Indian Wells champ and world No. 2 Ana Ivanovic took your questions from the Sony Ericsson Open at Miami. Get more news and information about Ivanovic at her official website, *www.anaivanovic.com*.
Q. Hi Ana, what's your favorite surface and which Slam would you most like to win? -- Kathleen
I like all the surfaces and I’ve had good results on each. Maybe if I had to choose just one it would be clay, but it’s so hard to choose just one. Concerning Grand Slams, I would have to choose the Australian Open, but I would take any of them!
Q. Congratulations on your continuous improvement. What have you done to improve your fitness over the past year? -- Mary Bonsall
It’s been a lot of hard work. Like they say, there is no substitute for hard work. I often train before breakfast and at times I have followed a very tough training schedule.
Q. Are you friends with Rafael Nadal? Who are your friends on the WTA and ATP? -- Zainab Sairafi
Yes, we’re friends. I am friends with quite a few players, for example: Svetlana Kuznetsova, Daniela Hantuchova, Maria Kirilenko, Tatiana Golovin, Novak Djokovic, Janko Tipsarevic.
Q. Wii Tennis or Guitar Hero? -- John, Texas
Tennis. I’ve never played Guitar Hero.
Q. How do you consider yourself different on and off the courts?-- Daniela, Argentina
On the court I am a lot more fired up. Off the court I think I am quite a laid back person, although I am very competitive no matter where I am!
Q. What do you think about Roger Federer? -- Mohammed, Iran
He’s my favourite player to watch. I can learn a lot from him. Some of the shots he plays are amazing. I’ve met him a few times and he’s a very nice guy. I actually interviewed him once, for The Tennis Channel, at a party for Wilson before the U.S. Open last year.
Q. How many hours a day do you practice? -- Ramon, Hong Kong
It depends whether it’s a “rest” day at a tournament, a training block or if I have a match. If I have a match then it’s never more than one hour of light hitting. If it’s a training block then I will practise on the court for up to three hours, and do some strength and conditioning work off the court too.
Q. What's your 'second love' -- what would you do if you weren't playing tennis? Good luck in Miami! -- Olga, California via Belgrade
I’m not sure if I would call it my “second love,” but I do love languages. I would probably be doing something with languages, or in business. I enjoy studying.
Q. What's been the biggest change in your game from last year to this year, and what do you think you still need to improve? -- Damian
My game hasn’t actually changed much, because I’ve become so much more confident and experienced. That has come from beating a lot of the top players. At the same time, I improved my movement a lot. I am still working on my fitness, and all other areas of my game because I am young and I feel like I can improve everything. I am working hard on improving my serve especially, and also my net game.
Q. What's the hardest part of being a tennis player? -- Braden Cuss
For me, I find it difficult to be away from my family for so much. It’s great when they can come to visit me at tournaments (they are all here in Miami), but I do miss the normal family life, and having a proper base.
Q. Will you be doing another karaoke performance at the French Open? -- James Munoz
We’ll see! I enjoyed doing it last year. But I’m not even sure if they’re doing them this year…
Ana Ivanovic responded via email from the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami. TENNIS.com reserves the right to edit questions for format and length.