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AEGON INTERNATIONAL EASTBOURNEJune 22, 2015Petra KvitovaEASTBOURNE, ENGLAND THE MODERATOR: I think most people know already that Petra is unfortunately withdrawing from the tournament due to illness. I will open it up for questions. Q. Can you kind of just talk us through the illness and how you have been feeling and your decision to pull out. PETRA KVITOVA: I started to feel not well when I come here. Maybe from plane. I'm not really sure. I didn't really feel the best. Like two days ago I really feel sore throat, and I was waiting what gonna happen. It's not really much better. I get a call this night that it was the decision which I had to make to pull out from the tournament. Q. Has the doctor given you any indication whether you'll be fine for Wimbledon? PETRA KVITOVA: I hope so. I didn't need antibiotics so that's a good sign. But I have to be in the bed and drink hot tea, I don't know, just lying and resting. Q. Where will you be going? Going home or stay around? PETRA KVITOVA: No, I gonna stay here, for sure. Then I gonna move slowly to London. Q. How much grass court practice have you had this year? PETRA KVITOVA: I practiced on the synthetic grass at home for preparation every year, and I play like three days maybe here on the grass. It wasn't that bad. That's okay (smiling). Q. Some players have won Wimbledon without playing a tournament before, but when you won in 2011 and 2014 you played here. Are you concerned about going to Wimbledon without competition? PETRA KVITOVA: Of course I wanted to play some match here, but it doesn't really make sense to play and not be ready for Wimbledon. May be getting more illness than I am now. That's how it is. I know that a lot of players don't play the tournament before. I'm not the only one. I practiced on it, and I still hope that I will have a few days in London, as well. Q. Does it come back to you quite easily playing on grass? Do you feel like home? PETRA KVITOVA: Yeah, I do, of course. I mean, from the beginning it's always a little bit weird, but I find it quite quickly to be able to play again. It's always nice, you know, to step on the grass. I have beautiful memories, and I know I can play well on the grass. I have to still think positively, and I hope I gonna be ready for Wimbledon. I'm playing Tuesday, so it's still time for it. Q. Did you feel when you were ill that it was connected with problems you had earlier in the season, or is there an issue connected to exhaustion? PETRA KVITOVA: No, it's something different. During that time it was just exhaustion, but now it's more illness. Yeah. Q. Not the same symptoms? PETRA KVITOVA: No. Q. When they added that third week for the grass season, a break after the French, what did that mean to you? Not happy that you obviously can't play this week, but overall to see the season change like that? PETRA KVITOVA: I think it was good. Of course I'm preferring to have more grass tournaments, but I was still scheduling on Eastbourne. I know it well, and unfortunately I can't play but I think the week extra between French and Wimbledon, it was very good decision for players. Q. Can we just specify when you actually started feeling ill? PETRA KVITOVA: Thursday. Q. What time? (Laughter.) PETRA KVITOVA: Around 10:00. (Laughter.) Q. Other players were suffering from a virus at Roland Garros. It's nothing to do with that? PETRA KVITOVA: No, I don't think so. I was okay there. So, yeah. Q. What did you make of Lucie's performance at Roland Garros? PETRA KVITOVA: Yeah, it was very nice to see her playing so well. I mean, I watched a little bit of the final. Unfortunately she didn't make it, but I think Serena really played her best in the end of the match. I think for Lucie it's a good achievement and it's nice to have another Czech girl in the top 10. Q. Has anything changed for you since winning Wimbledon last year? PETRA KVITOVA: I think the things changed already in 2011. So I don't think it was some big point after last year winning. So I knew what everything is like counting and how is everything going about, so it was much more easier for me. Q. People talk about you and Serena as the two big favorites for Wimbledon. Which of the other players do you think people should be concerned about? PETRA KVITOVA: I think of course still Maria. We have to count with her. I think Simona had a great run last year. I think when she has her form, she really can be dangerous player. Of course I think some other girls who like to play on the grass, Lisicki, she can be, with her serve, she can be dangerous, as well. Yeah, I think it's not just few players, but I think it's quite a lot and still the tennis, women's tennis is still very open so I don't know what happen. Q. A lot of people over here enjoy watching you play because it's safe to watch with the volume turned up on the TV. PETRA KVITOVA: Thank you (smiling). Q. What do you make of the phenomenon of noise pollution in women's tennis in recent years, Petra? PETRA KVITOVA: You know, I'm glad I'm not like big fan to watching the tennis on the TV, so for me really doesn't matter what the girls are doing. If I'm on the court, I'm still focusing on myself and not really‑‑ the noise is not irritating me at all. Yeah, I think it's quite tough sometimes to watch on the TV, but, I mean, if they feel well, I mean, that's the way, how they play. So I don't care (smiling). Q. You had some time off earlier in the year. What did you do? And second question: Serena is going for a calendar Grand Slam. How do you think she's playing? Do you think she's playing her best tennis ever? PETRA KVITOVA: During the time off I just really had to rest for four weeks and not touching any racquet. I was really just chilling and trying to get better energy back. About Serena, of course we saw her how well she's playing. Yeah, I think that she's really big champion. I think she can really make it. We will see. I think that every tournament is a little bit different, and I know how Serena really likes to play on the grass, so for sure she gonna be very dangerous. It's nice that somebody playing so well. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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