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ROLAND GARROS

June 1, 2016

Yulia Putinseva

Paris, France

Y. PUTINTSEVA/C. Suarez Navarro

7-5, 7-5

THE MODERATOR: Questions in English.

Q. You've played an incredible tournament. Did you have any sense as to whether you were playing this well to make your first quarterfinal?
YULIA PUTINSEVA: I have been working a lot, especially before the clay season. So, yeah, I played some couple great matches here, and I hope to continue the same way.

Q. With how well you were playing the first week, I think you only lost eight games in the first three matches. Was it tough to have to wait over two days to play again? I'm guessing how good you were feeling on court and all the momentum you had.
YULIA PUTINSEVA: On this court it was easy my first three matches, but if you watch the game it was really difficult because I saved so many break points and stuff.

So, yeah, then I have been waiting for like two or three days for my fourth-round match. Of course it was getting nervousing and all this stuff, weather. I had to change my hotel, as well, because my reservation finished.

But I'm happy that the time that I wait are worth it.

Q. What do you credit your sort of better play this season? Has there been a change as far as training? Where is that confidence coming from?
YULIA PUTINSEVA: I think I have been always playing well. It's just in last few years I had some troubles with like sometimes fitness, sometimes my game that I have to a little bit of change it in the more aggressive way.

But I think it's just the moment came and now I'm playing better in this tournament. Helped to finish the season the best way. If my game is there, I think it's also gonna follow.

Q. How long did you have the reservation for when you booked it initially? When did you think you were leaving this tournament?
YULIA PUTINSEVA: I was not thinking that I'm going to leave the tournament. It's just I wanted to play like kind of games, if I'm going to go in the second week, it's better to find a hotel for second week than to make reservation for the full tournament.

And then just to stay in the room because you don't have other choice.

Q. So you're at a nicer hotel now?
YULIA PUTINSEVA: Yeah. It's very good -- both hotel was good. Just different places now.

Q. Has this whole process of making the quarterfinals at the French Open, has it felt like what you thought it would feel like in your head, in your dreams, or has it been different?
YULIA PUTINSEVA: I didn't realize it yet. I'm happy. I'm always happy when I am winning the games. But still my goal was not to make the quarters. I mean, my dream. I hope I'm going to go further.

Q. You play Serena next.
YULIA PUTINSEVA: Yeah, Serena is next.

Q. Thoughts on that? You have played her tough before.
YULIA PUTINSEVA: I played her two times, yeah.

Q. What do you think this next match will be like?
YULIA PUTINSEVA: I think she's -- of course she's the best player. She's a legend. I'm just gonna go there and show my game, show my best, and we'll see what's going to happen.

Like I have nothing to lose obviously against her. Yeah, I'm just gonna go and play. What else can I do? (Smiling).

Q. I think you served for the set a couple of times in Indian Wells when you played her that first set. What did you learn from that match in Indian Wells where the set was so close in the first set? How will you try and change whatever you did there to better the next result?
YULIA PUTINSEVA: Serena, on important moment, had a better return than beginning of that match. That's true. I don't know. We'll see tomorrow. It will depend on the situation what I have to do, if I have to be more aggressive for her or if I have to go step back.

I can do both, so just we'll see how the game is going to be tomorrow.

Q. Who's here with you in Paris?
YULIA PUTINSEVA: I have my coach here, Roman Kislyanskiy. Also my agent is here and my close friends from the Academy Mouratoglou when I was practicing here. So I have a huge team around me.

Q. You're not practicing at Mouratoglou anymore, right?
YULIA PUTINSEVA: Not anymore. I'm in Delray Beach.

Q. You're good friends with Daria Gavrilova, right?
YULIA PUTINSEVA: Yeah.

Q. She had that great run in Australia. You did well there as well. Now you're making this run here at the French Open. Seems like you guys are kind of moving up together.
YULIA PUTINSEVA: Yeah, we are both hard workers and we always wanted something big. So we just are following our dreams and we are trying to believe in ourselves and just work on everything, every single part of the game, and just to improve.

Q. A lot of players obviously connect Venus and Serena. You beat Venus in Charleston a few weeks ago. Do you take any sort of confidence out of that and the way you played Venus?
YULIA PUTINSEVA: Yeah, I mean, of course I have more confidence than in the beginning of the season. Obviously I had some good matches and good wins.

But Serena is totally different kind of player than Venus. Venus, she has better forehand and Serena has a better backhand. So it's gonna be a different match than in Charleston with Venus, but I hope to just play as good as I can.

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