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BNP PARIBAS OPENMarch 21, 2015Martina HingisSania MirzaINDIAN WELLS, CALIFORNIA MIRZA‑HINGIS/Vesnina‑Makarova THE MODERATOR: Questions, please. Q. First big title together. You guys seem like a natural combination, the power and finesse. Is it all working that simply for you guys on court, as well, seem like? MARTINA HINGIS: Yeah, I think this is something that's what we are hoping for, definitely. She hits a big forehand, you know, especially on the right side, and I was able to move and finish off the point. She prepares, I finish. That's pretty cool to me, I know. (Smiling.) No, it worked out great. I'm very happy, you know, that we made this move. Obviously we had partners who we played well with, especially me last year with Flavia, but to change, it was a big move. I'm very happy that it worked out, because you never know what to expect. I mean, because we had one practice together and it was pretty funny. But winning the tournament on the premier, it's new energy, and hopefully we can keep it up. Q. Anything else you want to say? SANIA MIRZA: No, I mean, just to add, I think, you know, on paper obviously we are supposed to be a good team. If you by our strengths and weaknesses, we try and help each other out, but also I think we complement each other's games. But not always on paper does it turn out when you step on the court, so we are just really happy that we are able to, not just win, but win in such dominating fashion where we are not‑‑ you know, haven't lost a set and only been down two times in the whole two weeks, 4‑2 in two matches. Yeah, I'm really happy obviously to win here again. She's happy to win here again. Hopefully, you know, we can... MARTINA HINGIS: Yeah, it's just like a few years later, right? You only three years ago. Me, just like a lifetime later. Q. You came very close, Martina, to qualifying for Singapore last year, but you had a few different partners during the year so it didn't work out. Are you dedicated to sticking with one partner? MARTINA HINGIS: Well, definitely. We said we will see how it goes. We will give ourselves an opportunity to play a couple of tournaments, but I think we don't need to even, you know, give ourselves more time, I mean, after this week we know we can beat the best teams out there in the world. Errani and Vinci didn't play, and obviously they split up now. We beat the No. 2 team of the tournament. We were seeded No. 1. It gives us great hope obviously for the next weeks to come. Q. You mentioned about being back on center court. One thing is you're only 34. I wish I was 34 again. MARTINA HINGIS: I wish I was 25 again. Q. How did it feel to get out there? At this stage of your career, is it fun to go out there and do this stuff? MARTINA HINGIS: Yeah, but you don't want to disappoint, either. I mean, I have my pride, you know, because I played well here obviously in the past. I have something to prove. Not even just like to be out there, but also I want to win. I mean, I love the challenge. I like going out there. I know I got great help from Sania. Obviously, like she said, we complement each other. I'm good at the net; she can hit hard from the baseline. But also I have to make it happen, too. It's not like I want to be the worst player out there. Q. Can you talk about winning your first doubles title here since 1999? First title here in this stadium. MARTINA HINGIS: Yeah, also won a couple titles this year obviously. Won with Sabine in Brisbane; I have the mixed title in Australia. Just the last couple of weeks in the Middle East wasn't great. That's why I had to take some, how you say, decisions. Consequences, you know. And then I'm happy it worked out, because I'm here to win and not just to participate. Q. But, I mean, just the gap here at this tournament. MARTINA HINGIS: Yeah, it doesn't matter. Once you're back in the tour and play a tournament, obviously I have great memories. It's amazing to ‑‑I mean, it's better not just think about it's been that long. That makes me feel really old. It's good. It's right now right here. That's what counts. Q. Can you talk about your success here at this tournament? I think this is your fourth final in five years. Can you talk about success and also playing Vesnina on the other side, because you won your first title here together. SANI MIRZA: No, I mean, I always love playing here. I played very good singles matches here, as well. I have done well in singles and doubles in the last five years. It's tough. It's always tough to play someone you know so well. I think me and Vesnina know each other's games inside and out. I think there were a couple of balls there where I was like, I can't believe she got that back. But she knows my game just the way I know her, like back of the hand. That's why she was able to get those back and I'm able to read her stuff as well. It's never easy playing a friend and a partner, an ex partner. Everyone is tight. No one wants to lose to each other. You try to keep it together. Yeah, I mean, you know, we have been playing really well over the last two weeks, and we were hoping to keep continuing that in the final. In the final it's about nerves, not just about tennis. You're out there trying to win a championship. It's not any other match, you know. It's tough. Yeah, so it's really good. I hope to come back next year and try and defend the title again. It's a really good feeling when you come to a tournament where you know you do really well and you know you're a defending champion. Q. Just talk a little bit about going to Martina. SANI MIRZA: Like how we got together? Well, so I play with Cara obviously and she stopped playing. It was a tough call already for me, you know. Then they played the finals with Flavia, so I knew they weren't going to split after US Open. I started the year with Su Wei. Unfortunately ‑‑yeah, we made a final and a semis. I didn't feel like we had that chemistry. One, most importantly, she was playing the wrong side. She had to move sides. I didn't want to move, even though in Doha I played the backhand side and we made the finals. I feel like I'm not the No. 1 player, top 5 player in the world, something on the other side. That's why the decision was made to split. It was a very mutual decision and we are in great terms. Paul tweeted to me as soon as we won, who is her coach. Again, coming to Martina, she's obviously one of the best players out there, and most importantly one of the best people who can complement the way I play. You know, she's got amazing ‑‑ probably one of the best hands in the world at the net. For me, I need that. I need someone who can finish the balls off where I set them up. Yeah. I mean, that's really it. Like I said, on paper everything looks great, but, you know, you still have to go out there. Names don't do anything. You still have to play every match and you have to try to win. That's what we try to do. We try to work every point together. We tried to practice in Doha a little bit, to be very honest, and interestingly we had one practice session where we got killed, you know. We absolutely got killed where we were actually trying ‑‑we hadn't made the decision. We were trying to make this decision. It's like, Okay, let's practice. We played terrible. I can't remember the last time I played that bad in a while. So sometimes in practice it's tough to judge the way you're going to play with each other. MARTINA HINGIS: You said you had the same thing, experience with Cara already. SANI MIRZA: I had that experience with Cara. When we played US Open, before we won Beijing and Tokyo, we lost 6‑Love to two people in US Open. We went and won two weeks later in Beijing and Tokyo. I said, Don't worry, we got this. (Laughter.) No, and then that's it. You know, that's exactly how it worked out. It just so worked out she was having some issues and I was having some issues and we just got together. Sometimes timing is all it takes. I'm happy that we could win. Obviously we are not going to win every tournament, but at least we have a shot at winning every tournament. Q. Talk about Flavia overall, because she was playing so well end of last year. Start of it was okay, and just went down. MARTINA HINGIS: Yeah, exactly. That's why it was for me ‑‑ I talked about it just a little earlier because it was such a tough decision obviously. You always hope that you're going to start the way the way you finished it. We made finals, won a couple of events, but already, you know, sometimes it's like the finish line, it was ‑‑our doubles matches, it was always like at the limit. You know, it was could have sometimes gone either way. There was never ‑‑I mean, we won tournaments, but it was like huffing and puffing every time. Like deciding points and everything was like‑‑ you know, she played awesome in the US Open. I mean, that was our best tournament. That's when we won in straight sets and everything was perfect. But it felt like every time it had to be every time perfect. That's why it was so hard to take that decision. But, I mean, we didn't go past the third round in any tournaments and it's like four weeks. It's not like I have ‑‑for her it's also singles priority, which I have to respect, but sometimes when I'm not playing perfect, I need to practice. That's why I think that was the main decision, why I took it, because, you know, when I'm down I need to practice. With Sania, it's also priority. I think that's why at the end I made that choice and that decision to have a little bit more time practice together and work as a team. Because with Flavia, obviously, I mean, she played here great again. It worked out at the end. Sometimes it's difficult, especially the smaller tournaments, to play singles‑doubles all the time consecutively and be competitive. So for us it means a lot more than for a singles player I think at the end of the day. Q. I think you're going to rise up this week to maybe like third or a bit below that. MARTINA HINGIS: Third. Best ranking, yes. Trying to go for the No. 1 spot. (Laughter.) Q. Are you eyeing up the No. 1 spot with Errani and Vinci splitting? SANI MIRZA: I mean, yeah. When you start playing any sport you want to be the best at it. It's always a dream as a child to be No. 1 in the world. You know, Martina has been very fortunate. She's been No. 1 in the world, singles, doubles, basically everything she's played. For me, I'm going to be at my highest ranking, which is No. 3, on Monday. I know I'm close to 1. You know, I try not to look at points, but it's tough not to when you're close to 1. Yeah, I know I'm close to 1, and a couple more good tournaments and I'll be probably be able to get to 1. That would be a dream come true for me. I have two dreams: win a women's doubles Grand Slam and other is get to No. 1. I don't want to jinx it. I'm happy the way I have been playing. Last two‑and‑a‑half years has been really good for me, and hopefully it will continue. MARTINA HINGIS: I have the pressure to make finals next week; you have only victories. (Laughing.) Q. It's been quite a good week for Switzerland. Will you be joining the Fed Cup team and looking for the Olympics? MARTINA HINGIS: Well, we're talking. Olympics are a little bit far away, but obviously there are steps to be taken to be eligible to play. Q. Vinci and Errani, were you guys surprised? SANI MIRZA: I mean, I'm not complaining. Q. Surprised at all? SANI MIRZA: Yeah, I think everyone was. Everyone was surprised when we didn't see them in the draw here. I was sure we were going to be No. 2 seeds, and then when the draw comes out ‑‑ a lot of times I don't look at the draw. I just look like who do we play, and they're like, Oh, you're top seeds. I was like, Oh, okay. So, I mean, that was a bit of a signal. We just thought someone was hurt or something because they had been playing a lot of singles lately, and then they made the call a few days later. So, you know, they have achieved so much as a team, you know, five slams. They have achieved a lot as a team. I think any partnership that breaks up is sad. Three, four years, I don't know how many years they have been playing together. MARTINA HINGIS: So many titles, Grand Slams. SANI MIRZA: They have had a tremendous career together. I wish them well whoever they are playing with, but, yeah. Yeah, that's one less team to worry about for now at least. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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