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WESTERN & SOUTHERN OPEN

August 23, 2015

Simona Halep

CINCINNATI, OHIO

S. WILLIAMS/S. Halep
6‑3, 7‑6

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. What are your thoughts after that match and that effort? Good? Bad? Happy? Sad?
SIMONA HALEP: It's okay. I'm sad because I lost. It was close, but she was stronger. I played a good match I think. I played good tennis. I was aggressive as much as I could.
I tried just to keep fighting. It was fine. You know, it's not easy to return her serve. I had chances to break her, but she served really well in important moments.

Q. How is your confidence now back on hard courts, which you enjoy playing on, after the last two weeks?
SIMONA HALEP: I have a lot of confidence because I played tough matches and I won difficult matches.
So I'm pretty sure that I have a good game now. I can win matches. I feel good on court. I'm a little bit tired, but it's normal after many matches. I'm okay and I'm looking forward to have next match.

Q. What about dropshot on match point?
SIMONA HALEP: I don't know why I did, but I was tired, and in that moment I thought it's the best idea to give her a dropshot. But wasn't. It was okay.
I knew that she is going to be very tough. She was very motivated at the beginning and during the match. At the end as well. So it was a good match, and she deserves the title.

Q. Do you think it makes a difference at all? Like in Singapore you played her early in the tournament in the group stages. A little bit more fit and more energy. Now 1 and 2 you're going to be meeting much later in tournaments. Do you think that makes a difference in the matchup?
SIMONA HALEP: Yes. Makes difference because she's playing day by day better. So when she is going like semifinals, finals she is playing really great.
At the beginning of the tournament it's not easy for no one because you are not used to have matches with the balls, with the courts here. So it's a bit difficult.
Yeah, in the end it's pretty tough to play against Serena. She's more motivated I think.

Q. Just motivation? What do you mean she's more motivated?
SIMONA HALEP: More focused and into the tournament. Yeah, she feels the game and she feels everything and she gets more stronger.

Q. When you play her, what do you do that can bother her? What do you notice that if I do this consistently...
SIMONA HALEP: To be aggressive, take the ball fast, to hit the ball. I did today, but I had to‑‑ I did some mistakes, easy mistakes, and with her you cannot make mistakes, otherwise it's coming‑‑ she will dominate you and you have no chance then.
I started to play good tennis against her I think. Aggressive. I served okay. I return well at her serve. So it was good.

Q. What do you think about the crowd? In the second set you seemed to have won over the cheering from the crowd.
SIMONA HALEP: Yeah, the crowd always is amazing. I have many Romanians coming to support me every match, so it was really nice to play here in Cincinnati.
Everywhere where I go I have big crowds, so I'm used already to that. I'm trying just to enjoy and take the power from them.

Q. It happens a lot with the crowd chanting your name, but do you ever stop and kind of in the middle of the match think, Wow, the entire stadium is chanting my name?
SIMONA HALEP: No.

Q. No?
SIMONA HALEP: No, because if I think about that then I cannot play anymore. So I try to keep focusing what I have to do.

Q. You have a following unlike most of the other players on the tour. You see anything that you can attribute that to?
SIMONA HALEP: Sorry, can you repeat?

Q. Why you have such a crowd following...
SIMONA HALEP: I don't know. You have to ask the crowd. I don't know. Maybe they like my game. (Smiling.)

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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