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HUAJIN SECURITIES WTA ELITE TROPHY ZHUHAI

November 1, 2016

Timea Bacsinszky

Zhuhai, China

S. ZHANG/T. Bacsinszky

6-1, 6-1

THE MODERATOR: Requests, please.

Q. You seem to have a bit of a struggle on court today. What was happening out there? Thank you.
TIMEA BACSINSZKY: Well, you know, for sure as a competitor it's tough, especially like you go out there, you play one hour, and it's done.

But when I reflect on the match, I mean, she barely missed anything. I think she was just on fire. She served well. She played well. Tactically she -- I mean, she took good decisions at good moments.

I never gave up. For sure it was just frustrating during the match. I was fighting until the end. Yes, sometimes it feels strange. It's a weird sport sometimes because of that, because you feel ready to compete. I practiced pretty well for the couple of days I was here.

Then you end up playing against someone who is playing every shot in every corner and playing really well. So I give her all the credit for that. Well, I just feel sad I couldn't do more.

On the other side I'm happy for her, because she is playing also here in front of her home crowd. Well, she has been playing great all year long, too. Probably confidence that she has is just growing.

Well, I think that's what happened.

Q. How are you feeling physically at this point of the season? I know last summer there were some issues with fatigue. How are you feeling now, like anemia?
TIMEA BACSINSZKY: What?

Q. Last summer you were feeling some anemia.
TIMEA BACSINSZKY: Ah, last year.

Q. Yes, so I am curious this year how are you feeling?
TIMEA BACSINSZKY: This year I'm fine. It's definitely not anemia anymore. But otherwise for this year for sure it's the end of the year. The year has been pretty long. I started I think with two months or almost three months difference with other players because of my knee injury of the end of last year.

So kind of I was really trying hard really quickly to -- for the first three months -- to get back on track. You know, with the competition around you try your best every day; you're so focused. You lose as well so much energy doing that. It costs you a lot.

Some huge results got to me without expectations in Miami, and then huge disappointments by the Fed Cup. Then again huge emotions the week after the Fed Cup with tournament win; then a great season of clay.

Then we added that tournament in Switzerland, a tournament in Gstaad. Usually this was my holiday week as well.

With an Olympic year I think it's tough sometimes. You have to be picky with schedules, because especially this year for me was really charged -- I mean, charged. Yeah, many events going on for me as well as the top 10 -- counting as a top-10 player. So I had many mandatory events.

Well, I think if I look back right now, today, 1st of November, I'm still in top 20 and thinking about every emotion things that have been going on this year, starting with the delay and everything. I'm super proud of what I did already.

This tournament is not over yet. Looking back at that, I think I can only take the positive side of it. Even if it was tough, really tough after the Olympics, all the U.S. Series, and then for me the Asian swing.

Unfortunately, because I really love to be especially here in China. But I wasn't able to be at my best because probably I was missing some rest and some preparation as well.

So I still feel that my legs are not that quick as they were like one year ago or many things. This is also scheduling. Sometimes if you have the Olympics, another extra tournament which was not schedule at the beginning, then some other mandatory things, if you have status -- I mean, I'm learning. It's only my second year finishing top 20. I am really proud of that.

This is the thing -- finishing top 20. Not sure yet, but around, so it's enough for me. But for sure I know now it's really the last push, and then I'm going to have two months almost to first recover, and then be really able to give my best at practice to be able to be ready for 2017.

Sorry for the long answers. Good luck.

Q. Is your name very popular name in Europe? You get to play another Timea next match. Talk about your game with Ms. Babos.
TIMEA BACSINSZKY: Well, so I have Hungarian roots and she's Hungarian, so it's really popular in Hungary. But it's funny to say that, because now it's getting quite popular -- I mean, not super, super popular as Emma, but still quite popular in Switzerland.

I'm almost too shy to say that, but maybe it's a little bit because of me actually. Because it's true, many parents have been writing me to ask some autograph cards for their daughters, because let's say they had a daughter and they named her Timea because they just loved the name.

I really feel honored about that. In Switzerland there is maybe a little bit more Timeas than ten years ago. Thanks for the -- I mean -- I cannot speak anymore. Too much emotions. Yeah, thanks. I been playing tennis for that. It's nice to let culture sometimes mix and name origins as well. Well, that's it for the little story.

Well, so with Timea Babos, we do speak Hungarian together. Well, we're friends, and, yeah, we know each other quite well. It's going to be a tough one definitely.

We played twice against each other but it was only on clay. You know, here the surface is quite different. I mean, you have to be aggressive as well. So probably it's going to be something totally different than on the clay courts.

Anyway, you know, I'm kind of pumped up because I don't like to lose. Today I lost quite quickly, in less than one hour, so I'm not really happy about that.

Definitely tomorrow -- yeah, like I said before, it's the last push, so I'm going to out there; I have nothing to lose; I maybe have the advantage that I played once on the court and I'm not going to be surprised anymore about how fast it is or -- yeah, about the small stadium or how it is.

I'm going to try definitely to do my best. You know, the best case is that I win and I can maybe stay here longer; the worst case I lose a tennis match and I'm going back home and going on holidays.

You know, both of them I think is really like without pressure, because both of them are good plans for me.

THE MODERATOR: Chinese questions.

Q. We know today's opening competition was very aggressive. Tomorrow we have more play. For the new player for tomorrow or for your team, your group, which one do you think is highly possible to come out of the group?
TIMEA BACSINSZKY: Well, assuming that I only won two games today, even if I win tomorrow it means that Babos has to win against your country girl 6-Love, 6-1, which is going to be really tough.

So for sure I would wish that I would go through, but the percentage of possibilities are really getting lower. I'm not perfect in mathematics, but I can make one plus one, and so...

I think and I hope for you, for this tournament, that Shuai Zhang is going to go through. Not only because she's like your player, but as well because she's a great girl. We played against each other this year at the Olympics. It was a difficult match; 7-6 in the third. Quite the opposite of the one of today.

But, yeah, well, still she is just really nice all the time with every player. Very humble. Yeah, so that's why when you like a fellow player, then you wish her all the time all the best. So that's what I wish her, so...

May the best win anyway.

Q. Chinese fans give you a nickname, which is like teacher. Every opponent against you later on will have greater performance. So are you their lucky star for them?
TIMEA BACSINSZKY: (Laughter.) Well, you know, I still prefer to win and to go far in the tournament because I'm a competitor, but it's a big honor to have nickname from Chinese fans. I admire a lot your culture as well. So much wisdom as well. For sure so much different than what I grew up with.

But I think this is what is amazing about people and about world and about knowing people, is that you can, yeah, discover new things and get to know some new things and have more culture about many other things around.

I know I can sound many times philosophic, but just beside of being a tennis player I think I'm a woman. I'm not only a professional athlete. I'm really interested in life in many, things.

I enjoy being interested in many things. I think it makes my life -- I mean, for sure there is a tennis career, but there is a life after. Hopefully it's going to be long, because I have many other things to discover.

Yeah, I'm just -- I like to explore. I wish the days would be longer. Not 24 hours, but let's say way more longer. Then I could do tennis, other things, cooking, trying to learn Chinese. It's tough. I'm improving. I know like five, six words. That's it. Next year I'm going to know more.

Just -- sorry. I just add. I did not answer 100% to the question. But to be quick -- try -- that, yeah, it's a big honor to get that nickname, but hopefully for the future I'm not going to be the lucky charm. I will myself just being able to go further in the tournaments I'm playing.

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