CBS SportsLine
Chat Transcript
September 10, 1998

CBS Sports tennis Analyst Mary Carillo dropped by the CBS SportsLine chat room to talk about the U.S. Open.

Find out what Mary had to say in the full transcript of his chat below.

Mary Carillo: I'm happy to be here. It's a beautiful day here at the open. Moya has just won and it's a great day!

Question: Mary, what is the atmosphere like at the Open?

Mary Carillo: It's the last major of the year, so it's rather tense. On the women's side it's very highly charge. As for the men's side, Pete Sampras and Rafter is being perceived as the last final that matters.

Question: Hello Mary, Describe your relationship with John MCenroe after his derogatory comments he made about you not being qualified to cover mens tennis?

Mary Carillo: we've been a lot better over the years. We work well together, I enjoy his company in the booth. We've been friends for so long....it was tense for a while but we're grownups. It's better. For a while, though, it really stunk.

Question: How accessible are today's players toward giving interviews with the "media"?

Mary Carillo: The women, except for Kournakova are very easy to get to. Williams, Davenport, Hingis, they understand their responsibilities well. They understand they can really impact the sport. Patrick Rafter is really great. Since observing Mark McGwire, Sampras has gotten great. I think he really wants to be a role model and a hero. Rios is the worst.

Question: Mary, what was the greatest match you ever covered at the US Open?

Mary Carillo: The greatest run I ever covered was Jimmy Connors in '91 at the age of 39. That was the greatest fun I ever had as a broadcaster. I also loved watching my childhood buddy McEnroe do so well. I didn't broadcast then, but I enjoyed every one of his runs.

Question: Rios does come off "stuffy." Is he hard to interview?

Mary Carillo: Rios is brutal. He acts like he's doing you a big favor. He doesn't make eye contact. He's real guarded and surly. Rios is about as difficult as anyone can be. Hopefully that will change. He's a helluva player, and he'll have to do a lot more interviews. Hopefully he'll come around and see that the media is not his mortal enemy.

Question: What was the highlight of your professional career?

Mary Carillo: The only thing I won of import was the 1977 French Open Mixed doubles with John McEnroe. That was the highlight of my career. When we won that, he was an amateur, he couldn't accept the money. We won $800 each. The winners here today each made $120,000. I'm thinking of making a comeback!

Question: Can Hingis win a Grand Slam?

Mary Carillo: Yes, she can. It's difficult. It hasn't been done by two many people. But she's good on so many levels. It's possible.

Question: Some have written that Hingis is a bit snotty and thinks way too highly of herself. What is your opinion?

Mary Carillo: Hingis comes off as haughty, but it comes off as a natural confidence. Hingis walks into a locker room and says hi to everyone. I don't think she's as haughty as she comes off on the court. Her body language is so assertive, she comes off that way on the court.

Question: How important do you think it is for Sampras to win the French Open?

Mary Carillo: Pete will make history as one of the all time greats whether he wins the French Open or not. Conners went his whole career, Boris Becker, McEnroe, Ivan Lendl went their whole careers while missing one Open. I think it would be hard for Sampras, but I think it would mean the world to him.

Question: Mary, are Venus and Serena still very "influenced" by their father?

Mary Carillo: Very much so. That's a very tight family. The kids have learned to diffuse a lot o f the problems their father creates. They're good at putting out the "bonfires" that Richard Williams sets. Obviously he's doing a lot of things right, but they're very good thinkers on their own. They're very bright kids and very mature.

Question: How innappropiate was the way Venus Williams acted when she did a sort of dance after defeating Mary Pierce at the U.S. Open?

Mary Carillo: Sshe sholdnn't have done it and she knew it right away. I think she knew that display of hers was inappropriate. Venus accepts the mistakes she makes and she moves on.

Mary Carillo: Everyone should watch the women's semis tomorrow. Two terrific matches. I think Pete Sampras' hunt for one more major win and Patrick Rafters title defense are very interesting story lines. I hope you all watch. I have to go now, thanks for chatting today.