Kournikova philosophical after another quick exit

Returning to the court after two months' absence recovering from a back injury, the 21-year-old Anna Kournikova continued to lose embarrassingly, this time to a Russian compatriot, Dinara Safina, Marat Safin's 16-year-old sister, who she remembers as a two-year-old sleeping in a pram beside a court in Moscow.

Kournikova started nervously – the second serve of the first of her eight double-faults in the opening set bouncing before hitting the net – and was unable to make an impact on the match until it was too late to prevent Safina from completing a 6-1, 6-4 victory in the first round of the Nasdaq-100 Open.

It was no consolation to Kournikova that the result was in accord with current rankings – Safina is three places above her at No 63 in the world – because her errors invited her tall, sturdy opponent to attack her. "I haven't played since the Australian Open," Kournikova said, "and no matter how well prepared you are, if you are not feeling comfortable in the court you can't do much. That was the case today."

Safina, though not entirely satisfied with her performance, was pleased with the way she dealt with playing against Kournikova on the Stadium Court of what is virtually the diva's home tournament. "I didn't play my best tennis, but I had a little bit of pressure because it was on Centre Court and against Anna, and everybody was like, 'Wow, Anna!'"

Before long the exclamations became, "Oh no, Anna!" and soon Kournikova was in the interview room fielding questions about her form and her personal life. "I'm in great shape physically," she said. "I've been working really hard. But it's very hard to do anything if you don't have the confidence that comes with playing tournaments."

She added a touch of philosophy: "I've been playing since I was five. When you're younger it's very different. It's not that you are stupid, but you just play and don't really think twice about it. As I got older, it was like, 'Why am I here? Do I really want to do this?' Stuff like that. You start to think more in general, and I don't know if it's a good thing or a bad thing. Maybe it's better to be simple."

Was she referring to her thoughts on the court or off the court? "Everything. It's just my head is like... I don't know, weird."

Asked if her state of mind was related to the revelation by the Russian ice-hockey player Sergei Federov, of the Detroit Red Wings, that he and Kournikova were married briefly and then divorced, she said: "If people want to go and talk about their private and personal lives, that's their choice. I've always said that it's not something that I want to get into. I don't want to talk about it. But it didn't really distract me. I really didn't pay attention to it."

Venus Williams, who is due to play her opening match today, held a press conference to discuss an auction she is organising in partnership with her younger sister, Serena, to support a charity that provides scholarships for traditionally African-American universities and colleges. The Williams sisters will auction their tennis rackets and dresses and a private tennis lesson from Serena.

The project is supported by Wrigleys Doublemint Gum, a Williams sisters sponsor. Your correspondent took the opportunity to ask Venus her opinion of Sir Alex Ferguson, the Manchester United manager, British sport's most famous chewer of gum, and his habit of absent-mindedly spitting out the gum at the end of matches. Venus smiles and said: "I guess if someone steps on it then twists their ankle, that deserves at least a warning."