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WIMBLEDON

June 29, 2016

Johanna Konta

London, England

J. KONTA/M. Puig
6‑1, 7‑5

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. What are the emotions like being a Wimbledon singles winner for the first time? Is it relief?
JOHANNA KONTA: I didn't really put that kind of pressure on myself to win a singles match here. I just wanted to go out there and perform the best that I could, to really deal with the situations that were at hand, try to do myself proud, really staying calm, staying present and fighting well.

Q. You told us at Eastbourne you'd been working on head space in the game, on court keeping cool. How hard was that with the rain delay from yesterday?
JOHANNA KONTA: It definitely came in handy. I think it was mainly about also seeing the funny side of things, just keeping it lighthearted, not really staying too, I guess, intense for such a long period of time. That can be very exhausting.

Q. What did you do last night?
JOHANNA KONTA: Went back. I don't even remember. Watched a bit of TV. Yeah, made like some dinner, joked around.

Q. What did you watch?
JOHANNA KONTA: I can't remember. I think there was some tennis on still. Oh, yes, we watched Taken 2.

Q. Was the match going on on Centre Court a distraction for you, a few football chants going on?
JOHANNA KONTA: No, not really. I guess we're used to having all different sorts of noises depending on the tournament. So, no, it wasn't.

Q. It seemed to be a bit quiet on court from the crowd.
JOHANNA KONTA: I thought they did a good job. It's not easy on them either having to wait around all day. It's cold, not exactly the most motivating of weather conditions.
So I think, compared to the conditions, they did really well, too.

Q. I was wondering if you can tell me some particular memory from your first time in Wimbledon.
JOHANNA KONTA: I played Wimbledon as a junior, so I remember being here as a junior. I guess the most memorable for me would be when I played as a senior for the first year. I had a very long match, which actually prepared me very well for this challenge that I had.
I played against Christina McHale, it went over two days. We stopped the first day because of light. And the second day we had to stop once because of rain and then come back. I lost 10‑8 in the third there.
Yeah, that's probably my biggest experience, my most memorable one, because that's the first time I ever had to stop before because of light and things like that.

Q. Can you tell us a bit more about your prematch rituals? Something that goes on with your shoes before you play?
JOHANNA KONTA: No.

Q. I don't know if you've heard, there's been a controversial Nike dress some players have been wearing, a dress that flares up too much in the wind. Would you feel uncomfortable wearing that?
JOHANNA KONTA: I don't wear Nike, so I don't know.

Q. That style of dress, would you feel uncomfortable?
JOHANNA KONTA: I'd have to put it on to understand what it feels like. I haven't been in the dress, so I can't comment. Sorry.

Q. The rain was coming right at the end. How did you mentally deal with getting it over? Was it a concern, put it out of your mind, more rain breaks?
JOHANNA KONTA: I think it's definitely challenging for any player to not get too excited or too overanxious to try and finish a match. But also it's a bit unrealistic to think about finishing a match when there's another player out there that has a lot to say about that. So it's not quite so simple.
But I think so far this grass season, I've been quite well‑prepared for conditions like these. I'm not too far outside of my comfort zone.

Q. Last year you came here and you weren't seeded, you lost in the first round. At that stage, you'd only won one Grand Slam match in your entire career. Now you had runs at the US Open, Australian Open, established top‑20 player, expected to do well. Are you surprised how quickly it's all turned around for you?
JOHANNA KONTA: I don't think about it, so I can't really be surprised in that sense. I've worked my whole life, since I was eight years old, on becoming the best tennis player I could be. In that sense, I've been doing this for 17 years, so it didn't exactly happen from one day to the next.
I am very, very grateful for the experiences that I've had in quite a condensed, short period of time. I think that I am very grateful for that, enjoying that very much.
Then again, also, the previous year where I had lost in the first round here, I had played some very, very good players. I always say I'm a firm believer in accumulating experiences. I'm most certain that if I hadn't had those experiences, I wouldn't have been able to deal with the example of today or the last few days.

Q. Obviously you came out very quickly in the first set. Monica was up slightly. How much was potentially the prospect of having to come off again with the weather driving that sprint at the finish?
JOHANNA KONTA: Again, I really put it out of my mind. It was just about just being there, doing the best that I could in every single point that I played, not thinking about whether it's going to rain, whether it's not going to rain, whether we're going to have to play a third set.
It's really about doing the best you can there. If you get too far ahead or too far behind, you find yourself in sticky situations.

Q. Given your form and the sort of last year, were your expectations higher coming into this Wimbledon?
JOHANNA KONTA: No, my expectations with myself are very not result orientated or outcome orientated in general. For me, it was, for example, which chance kind of gave the situation that I found myself in with the conditions, I think my expectations were to deal with that the best that I could. It's very much those process goals that I work on.

Q. How pleased were you with the level of your performance today?
JOHANNA KONTA: I'm most very happy with it. I think compared to the conditions, it was quite gusty out there, we had been waiting around for quite some time, I was happy with how I was able to, you know, get myself into the match. It's not easy when it's not from the beginning of the match. You kind of have to really have to rush out of the block.
I was able to come back in that second set. Yeah, so I'm very happy with how I dealt with that.

Q. Now that you've had a few days in that very exclusive dressing room, are you getting used to it? Are they making you welcome? Is it weird?
JOHANNA KONTA: It's the same players that I see every week. The only difference, the thing I really enjoy about it, it's quieter. There's not as many players in there. It's that much quieter.

Q. You're not still pinching yourself that you're in there at Wimbledon?
JOHANNA KONTA: I mean, don't misunderstand me, the locker room downstairs is really, really nice. It's not like you've gone from economy to first class. We're talking like kind of business, first class. You can't really tell the difference. It's just quieter in the first class cabin, I'm guessing.

Q. It's good?
JOHANNA KONTA: It's nice. It's nice. Everything here is world class, so...

Q. How did you idle away the hours before you started your match?
JOHANNA KONTA: I don't even know where the time went. I ate. I kind of enjoy eating, so I did it slowly then. I kind of walked a bit. I went to the locker rooms. I lied down. I watched some TV. I joked around with the girls a little bit.
Yeah, just tried to keep things lighthearted.

Q. It's Bouchard or Rybarikova next round. Talk about those two individually.
JOHANNA KONTA: I have played Rybarikova before. I played her last year in Nottingham. She plays very well on this surface. If I do end up playing her, I know it will be a tough one. I'll do my best to prepare for it the best that I can.
Against Genie, I don't think she really needs much of an introduction. She's an incredibly good player. That doesn't change on where her ranking is. She's always a dangerous player to play against.
I'm really looking forward to whoever it will be. I'll just give my best.

Q. Some players have spoken about the nasty, vicious comments they get on social media, men and women players. Have you experienced that recently, and how do you cope with it?
JOHANNA KONTA: Yeah, no, it's not a funny subject. I don't know why I'm laughing because it really isn't. Yeah, no, it exists. It's unfortunate that it exists. I think it's important to not read it, to not pay attention to it where you can. If it's anything that affects the integrity of the sport, it's important to contact the right people about it.
Otherwise, if you do read it, make sure you read it when you're in good spirits and you can laugh about it because otherwise, yeah, it can ruin your day.

Q. Bearing in mind that you're British No.1, seeded, Australian Open semifinalist, you were on a show court, yesterday and today, it was only two‑thirds full. In a way, do you feel you're going under the radar?
JOHANNA KONTA: Was it really not that full yesterday?

Q. It felt like two‑thirds full.
JOHANNA KONTA: That's pretty good. It's not like it's empty. Are we going to look at it as the glass is half full or empty?

Q. You're our best woman hope. I would have expected a bigger crowd.
JOHANNA KONTA: I'm very happy for the people that came and made a lot of noise. People do also have to work, I'm guessing. Not everyone can take the day off to come watch some tennis. For the people that did come and watch my match, that are here in general, I'm glad they're here.

Q. The seeding, is it a badge of honor or a weight of expectation?
JOHANNA KONTA: That depends who you ask.

Q. You.
JOHANNA KONTA: For me, neither. It's a number next to my name. It does not affect my status compared to other players. I'm playing against players who work just as hard as I do, who have just the same amount of desire.
Whenever you step out onto the court, that really gets put aside. It's a 50/50 match. You try to hedge your bets the best you can in the match.

Q. The delay from yesterday you said came in handy.
JOHANNA KONTA: I said it came in handy?

Q. I think so.
JOHANNA KONTA: No, I didn't. It was a circumstance that all the players had to deal with, but it's never ideal to play one match over many days.

Q. Who was in your guest box today watching you?
JOHANNA KONTA: I had my coach, my boyfriend, my dad, my fitness trainer and my physio.

Q. You mentioned you watched Taken 2. Did that get you ready for an all‑action display today?
JOHANNA KONTA: I already saw the movie before quite a few times, so it was very predictable. I was kind of half watching it. I don't even know what I was doing. Yeah, when you just stare into space, sit on the couch, yeah.
But, yeah, totally got me going (laughter).

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