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WIMBLEDONJune 29, 2015Johanna KontaLONDON, ENGLAND M. SHARAPOVA/J. Konta THE MODERATOR: Questions, please. Q. Jo, what was it like playing a top‑five player for the first time? JOHANNA KONTA: Well, it wasn't just playing a top‑five player. It was playing a top‑five player on the Centre Court at Wimbledon. There were obviously a lot of special moments all rolled into one scenario. I enjoyed every minute of it. You know, she came out. She played very well. My best just wasn't good enough today. Q. What about the noise from the other end of the court, did you come across that before? JOHANNA KONTA: Yeah, I have played other players who grunt quite loudly. But me personally, I don't quite hear that on the other side. I'm obviously tracking the ball, watching the ball, breathing, doing my own thing. That doesn't really affect me. Q. Did you have any nerves? JOHANNA KONTA: I had excitement and anticipation. But, no, I didn't go out anxious or scared or anything. I went out looking forward to the opportunity and the scenario. I enjoyed it. Just a shame I couldn't have done a little bit better. Q. You had a few chances, a few breakpoints. If you could have gotten ahead early on... JOHANNA KONTA: Yeah, there were definitely some chances that I had. Granted, I believe she played very well on those points as well. She is top five. She's a four‑time Grand Slam champion for a reason. Yeah, I mean, to be honest, all I can say is that I really did enjoy my time out there. Q. You talked last week at Eastbourne about how wonderful it was to get the crowd behind you in big numbers. Did you sense them desperate to be able to cheer you on this afternoon? Were you aware of them? JOHANNA KONTA: Yes, obviously. But I think I needed to stay a little bit more within myself this match because there's a lot more going on here, not just on court, but everywhere else. Everywhere you go, there's hundreds of people. I didn't really pay attention to the crowd much, to be honest. I was very much just on the court alone with Maria. Yeah, no, I enjoyed it. I just hope next time I can do a bit better. Q. Must give you a buzz to walk off court with Maria, and think, Right, now I have to prepare for the Williams sisters? JOHANNA KONTA: I was joking with my mixed doubles partner, that's if we get in, I said, If we get in, don't be surprised if we end up playing the Bryan brothers with one of them dressed up as a girl. To be honest, I feel I'm one of the luckiest athletes in the world that I get to play not one, not two, but three incredible champions in the string of a few days. Not many people can say that. I'm very much just looking forward to the opportunity, going out there and giving my best with my partner. Q. Do you feel you're living a dream? How much more determined does it make you to want to have these sort of occasions more often? JOHANNA KONTA: Obviously, that's what I work towards. I've been playing and I train every day to be able to compete against the best in the world at the best events in the world. You don't get much better than this. You don't get many better players than the players I'm playing. Yeah, no, but that said, my motivation is very simple, and that's just to keep getting better every day. Yeah, no, I keep striving to do that. Q. Presumably not so long ago you would have been asking these guys for autographs? JOHANNA KONTA: No. I've never been one to ask for autographs really. I think the last person I asked for an autograph was Lindsay Davenport back when I was about nine. Q. Are you meant to be playing in the mixed? JOHANNA KONTA: We'll see. Provisionally with Ken Skupski. Q. Jo, next time you find yourself facing a top‑10 player in a Grand Slam, how much will today have been a benefit to you? JOHANNA KONTA: I'm taking experiences and lessons and everything else from every match I'm playing, to be honest. I've been fortunate enough that I've been playing a lot of good players in the last few weeks. Today it was no different. Yeah, you know, you can start saying, I've been there, been in the scenario before. You might be that little bit more comfortable from the get‑go. To be honest, in terms of stage and scenario, I felt very comfortable out there. I didn't feel overwhelmed by the situation, nor did I feel overwhelmed by the player I was playing. You know, obviously I went out there with belief in myself that I can do my best out there, and I did do my best out there. Unfortunately today it wasn't quite as good as I wanted it to be. But I did play Maria Sharapova. You know, she has the reputation that she has for a reason. To be honest, I'm just very grateful for the All England Club for giving me the opportunity to go out there on such a beautiful day. I mean, it's hot. Q. Watching you, it feels there's been a bit of a breakthrough. Do you feel that way? JOHANNA KONTA: I feel very happy with where I am physically and mentally. To be honest, I just keep trying to do my best every day. That hasn't changed from the first day that I started playing back, oh my God, like 15 years ago. To be honest, in terms of results, on paper, yeah, things look good on paper. But ultimately I'm just happy that I've been healthy enough to be playing as much as I would like to this year. You know, I've played a lot of matches, a lot of good matches against a lot of good players. I've been just fortunate enough that I've won some of those. I'm taking the positives from everything and I just keep trying to build on one day to the next. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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