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ROGERS CUP

August 16, 2015

Simona Halep

TORONTO, ONTARIO

B. BENCIC/S. Halep
7‑6, 6‑7, 3‑0 (ret.)

Q. Simona, you showed tremendous fight once again today. When did you feel your injury start? Was it during the Errani match or did it just happen today?
SIMONA HALEP: Today. In the first set I felt a little bit muscle and then it was going to the knee. And in the second set I felt bad, like stomach cramps and dizzy and stuff like that.

Q. And when you finished the second set tiebreak and you had the forward momentum, did you feel then that even with the injury that you felt the momentum, you played great, you found your forehand that you could maybe finish the match or did you even think then that I need like a miracle to finish it out?
SIMONA HALEP: Yeah, I was thinking that I need a miracle to finish the match. I know that I have no power. So I tried just to finish the match, but at 3‑0 I said it is no sense to continue, and I stopped.

Q. And what outside of that for this whole week where you showed your fight would you take from this week besides getting healthy and resting up for the US Open, that you can take as a positive for how you played and fought this week?
SIMONA HALEP: Yeah, this week was a great week for me. I played big matches, I can say with tough players, top players. I had great victories. So I take only the positives. It happens‑‑ sometimes it happens just to feel bad on court and I couldn't change anything. So it's fine and I'm looking forward for the next tournament and to recover myself.

Q. You played Belinda last year. In what way did she improve the most during one year?
SIMONA HALEP: I think she's stronger. She's moving better. And she hits the ball better. I didn't watch her too much. I played on grass, so it was difficult to see many things because it's different tennis on hardcourt. So yeah, I think she's better than last year and she can improve more.

Q. Simona, you said that making the final it seemed almost like a bonus, you maybe didn't expect it at the beginning. So now are you disappointed by the results or how everything played out today or are you positive? I mean where is your head right now?
SIMONA HALEP: I'm positive, because if I did like took the second set like how I was, I think it's a big positive thing for me. I didn't play my best. I couldn't be there. And still I won the second set.
She's a great player. She played well, so I'm not disappointed because I stopped the match. No, I'm not disappointed because I lost the match, because I am disappointed that I stopped the match. I'm not used to give up the matches, and I don't like this way. But today it was too much. It wasn't about injury. It was like myself, my body. So I decided too late, I think it was late I decided to stop.

Q. And at 3‑5 in that second set what were you telling yourself, because watching it it was almost like, you know, why try to push it into a third set? You know, you didn't look well out there at all.
SIMONA HALEP: Yeah. I don't know why I continued to play. Maybe for the fans. They were like screaming all the time to push me to still play.
I have no idea why I still played the second set, but I did great, and I'm happy that I could‑‑ you know, I could find the power to win the second set.

Q. Do you think the illness was triggered by the injury? And how did you feel it start to come on? Have you ever experienced anything like that before?
SIMONA HALEP: No. It's different. The injury is my leg, and I felt bad inside of myself, so cramps, stomach cramps and, you know, from the heat maybe. So it was different.

Q. I realize before you started the game you came out already injured, or you felt not good before the start of the game.
SIMONA HALEP: Where did you see me?

Q. When you came on the court, you were walking, not concentrated on the game.
SIMONA HALEP: I don't know.

Q. Maybe it was a result of this injury.
SIMONA HALEP: I was okay when I went on court. I mean I was tired because I had big matches before. But I knew that I have enough power to play the match. But you know, during the match it was difficult because I felt I started to feel bad.

Q. How do you think you're going to prepare for the US Open? What's the next couple of weeks going to be for you do you think coming out of this injury?
SIMONA HALEP: First I have to recover in a few days. Then I'm thinking to play Cincinnati, because I have a bye, so I have enough time to recover. But we will see.
Then I am entered on the New Haven tournament. And then US Open. So and I don't change anything right now. So I will see next days.

Q. And you talked about the fans, them pushing you. I guess what was the support like for you this week here in Toronto from clearly a lot of Romanian supporters?
SIMONA HALEP: I feel that they appreciate my game. They appreciate that how I fight here during the matches, and I really like to play in front of them because they are really supporting me. They are screaming my name. They are screaming many words in Romanian, so it was funny today the chair umpire said thank you in Romanian. So yeah, it was funny. So it was really nice and I enjoyed a lot this tournament.

Q. Simona, as you mentioned you're scheduled to play three straight weeks going into the US Open. Is there any concern that if you do all of them you might not have enough left for New York?
SIMONA HALEP: It's long time till New York, so I have just to take day by day to see how I feel, how I play. If I played here final, doesn't mean that next week I will play again final. So we will see.
I have no answer now, right now because I'm not sure what is going to happen in the future next days.

Q. Simona, what did this week kind of tell you with respect to your preparation and what you may not expect, but where your game is I guess right now for the next few weeks?
SIMONA HALEP: I think I have a good game right now, and my body is okay. I run well during the point, and I recover very well after the big points. So I feel that I'm ready to start to play a Grand Slam. You know, I have two more weeks, so it's enough time to prepare myself better.
But like I said at home I didn't practice too much because I had the break, I wanted to take a break. So every day is important, and every day I will take like an improvement.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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