Jankovic focuses on the upside of Open fortnight

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Ever-smiling Serb Jelena Jankovic dwelt on the positives after losing the U.S. Open women's final to Serena Williams 6-4 7-5 on Sunday.

Although the 23-year-old squandered four set points in the second set before being overpowered by the American, she was delighted to have reached her first grand slam final.

"I had a great two weeks," Jankovic told reporters. "I really fought hard out there every match and tonight I gave everything I had. Unfortunately it was not enough.

"Tonight was special because it was my first final of a grand slam but I did not look at it that way. I really went out there like it's just another final of a tournament.

"We had great points and it was entertaining tennis out there. But she was the better one tonight.

"I had my chances in the first set and in the second set as well, and also some unlucky points. I should have won them but I didn't. I let my opportunities slip away."

Jankovic, who booked her place in the final with a 6-4 6-4 win over Russian Elena Dementieva, stretched out the rallies in the second set with her terrier-like retrieving but failed to take advantage while Williams became noticeably fatigued.

"I felt she was tired and I really had my chances," the Serb said. "I really was a little bit upset about the umpire, you know. She (Williams) took quite a lot of time in between the points and I thought it was not fair.

TIME VIOLATION

"When I played against Dementieva and I just went to take the towel, I received a time violation. I think it should be (the same) for all the players if she goes and takes more than 15 seconds, and not once but many times.

"She took her time to recover and get back. But you can talk all day about this. I lost, she won. That's what counts."

Jankovic, who beat Williams on the way to the semi-finals of the Australian Open in January, was pleased to bury memories of a series of niggles earlier in the season.

"Overall I was happy that I made it to the finals, especially as I struggled a lot this year," she said. "I had a lot of injuries and all these problems and I really worked hard to be here on this stage.

"I'm proud of that and it will hopefully give me a lot motivation to continue to work hard. Hopefully I can be healthy and work hard on my game and become an even better player."

Jankovic was unaware of the value of the runner-up's prize at the U.S. Open but, after being told she would receive $750,000, she quickly settled on her next task.

"Now I have a lot of money to spend," she said with a broad grin. "Tomorrow is my day to go shopping."

(Editing by Pritha Sarkar)