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APIA INTERNATIONAL SYDNEYJanuary 15, 2015Petra KvitovaSYDNEY, NEW SOUTH WALES P. KVITOVA/T. Pironkova THE MODERATOR: Questions, please. Q. One step further then you got last year at this tournament. You feel like you're a step ahead in the way you're playing than you were at this time last year? PETRA KVITOVA: That's good, for sure. I'm glad that revenge went well today and I have the option to be in the final here in Sydney. I think that I played better today than last year against her. I am glad I played what I should play: aggressively, going forward, attack the balls early, and just playing my game. I served well, so was very important today. That help me. I'm looking for tomorrow. Q. I know you still have one match to go here, but do you feel like your game is ready now to play a Grand Slam? PETRA KVITOVA: I hope so. I'm glad that I have more matches under my belt. Yeah, just enjoying tomorrow and not thinking about the Melbourne. I'm still here, and I will try to do everything tomorrow to win a title. Of course, afterwards it's Grand Slam, so we will focus afterwards. Q. Are you the kind of player that likes to get many matches under your belt in terms of these leadups? Some players, particularly some of the men, only like to play the odd match here and there before a big tournament. You have five. Does that work well for you? PETRA KVITOVA: You know, I was trying to do different options, and I really don't know what works the best, to be honest. It's difficult. For example, before Wimbledon I played tournament as well in Eastbourne. I think from the beginning of the year for me is just better to play the matches. Even when we were playing the final on Friday we still have two days off or just light practice before the Grand Slam starts. So still good. Too much practice for me is a little bit boring as well. I prefer to play matches. So, yeah, that's why we decided to play here again. I'm just glad that I'm far in the tournament. Q. Karolina has been in such impressive form the last few games. What are you expecting tomorrow night? PETRA KVITOVA: You know, it's always difficult. I'm expecting big serve, of course. She is playing really risky, going for the winners. That's what I will do everything tomorrow as well. You know, we just practice in off‑season. I went in Prague and had a few points over there for hour, and we played in Wuhan as well. She was a part of our team in Fed Cup in the final. It's always difficult to play Czech girl. I'm just glad that she's doing so well. I'm just really looking forward for the final. I hope it's going to be very nice final. Q. She kind of plays very similarly to you with the big serve and the power, very flat. When you come up against someone so similar to you, what is going to be the difference? How will you separate yourself? PETRA KVITOVA: I'm lefty. (Laughter.) Q. Well, yes. There is that. PETRA KVITOVA: I'm lefty, but her twin is lefty as well, actually. Yeah, I know we are playing like very similar. Always you can find few players who are playing similar. I mean, I know what I should expect. I need to be ready for every single point and shot. It's really going so fast, so I have to be really ready and focused and try to do the pressure from myself, not that she's doing the pressure and I'm going to be the second one on the court. I think it's going to be really boom, boom on both sides. Q. Is the next step for you in your career to reproduce the success you had at Wimbledon at one of the other Grand Slams? PETRA KVITOVA: Yeah, of course. I will do everything what I can. I had great off‑season, and I'm really looking forward for the Grand Slams. Of course that I would like to win another Grand Slam. If it's Wimbledon again it's fine, but... (laughing.) Yeah, I mean, I think I have the game to do well on the other Grand Slams as well. It just didn't come. I played semifinal 2012 in Melbourne, so I know that I can play well. I just need to really think positively now in my mind, and then anything can happen. After last year when I lost my first round over there I had a lot of expectation for myself as well, so I need to take it a little bit easier. It's not easy actually of course to play the Grand Slams. Especially the first rounds is always difficult. We will see. Q. So from winning Wimbledon the two times you have, have you identified anything that's the key to you being successful at a Grand Slam tournament? PETRA KVITOVA: You know, I think Wimbledon is very special because it's playing on the grass. I think that I have very good game to suit on the grass, and with the left serve it's a little bit different. But I won some titles already on the hard court as well, so I don't think that it's like I struggle somewhere. I improve my fitness as well, so I can play more rallies, for example, or something like that. Yeah, we will see. Q. You talked about the match against Sharapova in 2012 Australian Open. Maybe one that got away or one of your most disappointing losses? PETRA KVITOVA: Yeah, I think for sure. Q. Does that make you more motivated to succeed at the Australian Open? PETRA KVITOVA: Every Australian Open is exciting to come and feeling the motivation to do the best what I can in the moment. This match is really in my mind, and I think it's going to be there. I had a lot of chances and I just didn't make it. I was like really disappointing for me, but maybe something bad is good for some reason. So, yeah, we will see how is it doing this year. Q. Your country is so strong in tennis, both men's and women's, with a relatively small population. Why has that been in the last few years? PETRA KVITOVA: I don't like this question. (Laughter.) Because I don't know the answer. Q. You think it goes back to the Lendls and the Navratilovas and the kids getting into it? PETRA KVITOVA: Yeah, probably. I think the tennis is very popular in the Czech Republic. We have soccer and ice hockey and tennis, and I think like we have plenty of history in our tennis. It is how you said already, Lendl, Kodes, Navratilova, Novotna. It's a lot of great players. That's why probably we just start to play. Because my parents like to play tennis so I started to as well. That's probably how everybody is starting. I think that maybe we are just talented and good coaches. Good parents for sure, because parents mostly take the kids to the tennis courts and have patient with them. So, yeah. Q. The WTA is going back to Prague this year. Are you attending? PETRA KVITOVA: No, I will not play for sure not this year. We will see how it's going the next years. I played Shenzhen already as a small tournament for a top‑10 player, so... Q. There is a new rule... PETRA KVITOVA: Yeah, I know, but I'm not playing this year. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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