	products recent interviews FastScripts archive about ASAP Sports

Our Clients:

Browse by Sport

Find us on

Subscribe to RSS

Click to go to
Asaptext.com

View our
e-Brochure

DONGFENG MOTOR WUHAN OPEN

October 1, 2016

Dominika Cibulkova

Wuhan, Hubei, China

P. KVITOVA/D. Cibulkova

6-1, 6-1

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. Tell us how you were feeling on the court today?
DOMINIKA CIBULKOVA: I mean, I have to say she played extremely well. I couldn't do much more today on the court because she didn't let me do so. I can't regret anything. Okay, few balls I could do better, but otherwise she was just playing, you know, too good. Sometimes it happens.

She's a great player. When she's playing like this, she can beat anybody. You know, I have to see the big picture. I had a great week here. Today's final, you know, she was just playing really, really well and I couldn't do much about it.

Q. You have beaten her in the past. What was different about the game today?
DOMINIKA CIBULKOVA: Yeah, she was just really hitting everything full power. She was just serving really well, going for returns. I couldn't really play my game that I played during this week. Couldn't get in the long rallies or in the rhythm because she didn't let me. She was really powerful from the first strokes. That's how she overpowered me today.

Q. Still getting to the final, you're going to rise to a career-high ranking, and Singapore looks likely. How are you feeling about that?
DOMINIKA CIBULKOVA: You know, it's amazing. That's why I said I see the big picture. I never played well in Asia these last tournaments of the year. This is for me my first time in the career when I was still able to play a great tennis in the end of the season where everybody's really tired.

So this means for me really, really a lot. I'm not thinking about Singapore that much because that would be a dream come true if I would get there. I don't want to make too much pressure on myself.

I guess this is a good result to put me in a good position for Singapore. But even with my best ranking right now, I think it's going to be around 8 or something, I'm not sure, finally it's something I always wanted to achieve.

Q. You mentioned a little bit about being on form at the end of the season. What have you done differently this year?
DOMINIKA CIBULKOVA: Just, I would say, maybe more mature. I mean, I'm working also with a mental coach. I just realized these are also very important tournaments. I'm still focused. I don't want to feel that I'm too tired and I want to go home. I'm just thinking about what I have to do.

For me, now I see it as a challenge, not something that I have to do, and I don't want to do it. These tournaments are important for me. I think it's just second time in my career, or maybe first time, I have a chance for Singapore. So I'm still really, really focused.

Q. How early in the match was it where you realized today might be one of those days for Petra?
DOMINIKA CIBULKOVA: Actually, I wasn't thinking like this on the court. I knew she's playing good, but I was trying to find the ways how to make her more uncomfortable on the serve or on the return. I tried to serve better, I tried to serve more sharp. It was just really, really hard today. As I said, she didn't even let me play my game, to get in a good rhythm because she was just hitting everything full power. Even her second serve.

Today I didn't feel comfortable on the court most of the time because she was really overpowering me today.

Q. You were talking about this last section of the season, working with a mental coach, seeing the Asian swing differently. Kuznetsova has said she's had to try to trick her mind a little bit during the Asian swing to maybe not think that it's the end of the season or she's tired. Do you kind of agree with that, that mentally you have to fool yourself a little bit?
DOMINIKA CIBULKOVA: I would say for me this is always Moscow. When I go there, I play relaxed. That's how I won Moscow. For me, this Asian swing was really tiring. I didn't feel the energy that I really, really want to win matches.

But right now with the Singapore situation, it's first time for me that I see it as a challenge that I really want to do. I want to win matches and have good results here because it matters to me.

We talk about that with my coach before this Asian swing, Let's see this as an opportunity, you can prove to yourself that you can play well till the end of the season. And it's working.

Q. What is Petra's reputation in the locker room? We know she can play the highs, and some days it's hard to hit the ball on the court. What is her reputation as a player?
DOMINIKA CIBULKOVA: I don't know what you mean exactly. But I think most of the players, they see her as she's a two-time Grand Slam champion. When she's playing good, she's just playing really, really good. She can beat anybody in the world.

So she's one of these players that you also have to get lucky and play good tennis to beat her that day. When she's playing like this, it's really hard. It's really hard for the opponent to do well.

Q. What are your thoughts on the China Open? When are you leaving?
DOMINIKA CIBULKOVA: We're taking a train tomorrow at 1 p.m. I'm happy we go by train because always when I have this opportunity, I prefer that.

I had a great week here. I need to get ready, my body, for the next week because it was very hard physically and mentally. I'm happy I have a bye in the first round so I can start later in Beijing. I still want to keep this focus and I don't want to get like, Okay, I did well here, and now relax too much. I just want to really push myself for next week.

I know it's going to be really, really tough, because this week took a lot of energy from me. But still I will try. I will try and do well at the China Open.

Q. Wuhan and Beijing are back-to-back tournaments. Do you feel any physical problems?
DOMINIKA CIBULKOVA: Actually, no, there are no specific physical problems. I have my physio with me. He's taking great care of me, even my tennis is very physical.

No, no injuries. I just need to get rest. I need my body to be rested. I need to look forward to go on the court and play again.

Q. What do you think of this match? Was it hard or easy for you?
DOMINIKA CIBULKOVA: When you playing finals, you always want to win. When you play like this, you could do a little better. It's not like if I would know I played shitty match and I just lost and I was maybe nervous or didn't do my best. I would be like really upset.

But right now this is different situation. Petra didn't even give me a chance to get into the match, even be winning during the match. Now it just feels different. It feels that she was better today.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297