Lindsay Davenport felt she had no reason to be ashamed after she was beaten by compatriot Venus Williams in a captivating Wimbledon final on Saturday.
Davenport held a championship point to claim her first Grand Slam title in five years but eventually came off second best after longest women's singles final in tournament history.
"I don't really feel that I have to hang my head for or be ashamed of," Davenport said following her 4-6, 7-6, 9-7 defeat.
"It was great and it was exhilarating.
"I felt like I did everything I wanted to do out there and I felt like I got really close and just didn't win the one or two points that would have won the match for me.
"Whenever I felt like I was just about to shut the door completely, it was like, 'Oops, let's open that back up'.
"She hit some great first serves at some crucial times. She just took it away from me every time I got up.
"She deserved to win, absolutely. She fought hard and she played well when she was down.
"There's not many times when I feel like I've played well and I haven't won. So that's where I give her a lot of credit.
"But it's tough when you work so hard to achieve something like this and it just doesn't quite work out.
Davenport failed to convert a match point at 4-5 in the third set but did not think she could have played the point any differently.
"The point went by so fast," she said. "It wasn't like I had this easy shot or an opportunity to build a point. It was like wham-bam and it was over."
PULLED MUSCLE
The world number one had to go off court to receive treatment for a pulled muscle on her back during the third set but thought the problem had not caused her defeat.
"I went down to return and it kind of just tightened up all of a sudden on me," said the American. "But it never got worse and it didn't detract from my tennis.
"Towards the end of the match, it wasn't really a factor. I don't feel it cost me the match."
Davenport walked out of the All England Club last year saying she might never return as a player.
Since then the 29-year-old has climbed back to the top of the world rankings and feels she could be back again in 2006.
"I'm playing better now than I have in years," she said. "I'm not going to give up on the opportunities that present themselves to me."
"I've got the US Open in six weeks. Hopefully this will encourage me to keep going this summer.
"I hope to be back. Last year I improved on a semi-final. Maybe next year I can improve on this."
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