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ROGERS CUP

August 9, 2017

Angelique Kerber

Toronto, Ontario, Canada

A. KERBER/D. Vekic

6-4, 7-6

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. Really tight match, late finish. How are you feeling right now?
ANGELIQUE KERBER: Yeah, I think the first matches are always not so easy after a long break. So I'm actually happy how I played, and I played very well from the beginning.

And, yeah, the second set was really tight and close, but I think it got better from both of us at the end.

Q. It felt like the kind of match that you were winning a lot of this time last year especially on your way to No. 1. Was that sort of the feeling you had on court especially at the end?
ANGELIQUE KERBER: Yeah, I think this is the same feeling. But, of course, I need still few more matches to come there, where I was last year.

But I think I'm on a good way. And I was practicing good after Wimbledon. So it's good to staying on court again and having the competition.

Q. Is it tough going out on the court being the last match of the night, especially if it's your first of the tournament?
ANGELIQUE KERBER: Yeah, it's always not so easy especially because, yeah, you know you are the last one. You are the last one who is playing and everybody is waiting for you, actually.

But, yeah, this is what can always happen. And I think I played already so many last matches in my career, so it's nothing new. But, of course, it's always not so easy.

Q. She seemed to be struggling with the shoulder injury in the first set, but her level didn't really drop through the match. How does one deal with that during the match when you feel like she might be retiring? How were you feeling?
ANGELIQUE KERBER: Yeah, I think I was trying to not looking to this. I mean, I was actually quite surprised at the beginning that she take the physio because she was serving not bad, and then she served actually good the second set.

But I was not watching on her side. I mean, I was really trying to focusing on me and not thinking if she will retire or how she will serve. Because, yeah, I was trying to play my match. But hopefully it's not so serious for her.

Q. And Sloane is next. I mean, she's had a really good week this week. Just beat Petra. These are her first wins of her season. I don't know if you followed along with her comeback at all. I wonder what you make of that match-up.
ANGELIQUE KERBER: Yeah, I think it's always a tricky opponent to play. But, yeah, she beat Petra, so she has to play really good. And I know that she is starting to coming back and, yeah, it seems that she's on the good shape.

Q. What type of challenges were posed with Vekic tonight? She was drawing you in with the drop shots and using that quite often, especially in that second set. How tough is it to deal with something like that?
ANGELIQUE KERBER: Yeah, I think she played the drop shots really good. And I mean, if something was working, of course she will not changing it.

But I was trying to, yeah, being ready for the shots. And at the end, I won actually one or two. So it was, yeah, important point as well to go there at the end and win one or two of these points.

Q. And just one more question for you. I know you did work with Steffi Graf in the past. When you work with someone who's a hall-of-famer who's achieved what she's done, what is kind of like the most important think you kind of took away from that time you did work with her?
ANGELIQUE KERBER: I think, yeah, for me it was always -- it's always a honor to play with some champion like her, and especially because she was also my idol, and she's German. So it's always something really special.

When I was hitting with her some balls and we talk about a few things, I think it is always, yeah, something what you are trying to take on your own way and just trying to listen to somebody like her.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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