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SYDNEY INTERNATIONAL

January 9, 2018

Agnieszka Radwanska

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

A. RADWANSKA/J. Konta

6-3, 7-5

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. This was a very tough first-round match. What's it tell you about your form that you were able to get through it?
AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA: Yes, definitely tough first round, but as you can see, a lot of interesting first rounds here. But, well, I think it's good. Doesn't matter for the score. To have this kind of intensity player, top-10 player, to have that match before the Grand Slam, it's good to have. Kind of tough draw but also a good draw, good challenge, and playing this kind of match, it's always good. And I'm, of course, glad that I could win that match in two sets.

Q. Was there any thoughts back to last year's final? Was there a sense you had more motivation to change the result what happened on the same court one year ago?
AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA: Of course. I remember that match like it was a week ago. She was playing just perfectly in that final. I didn't play bad, and I couldn't do anything.

I think also today was a little bit different with the conditions. A little bit of wind and the sun as well on one side.

So I think in that match was a little of up-and-downs and a lot of breaks, so everything was happening there. I think in the important moments I did the right thing, and I was just better couple of points each set.

Q. You had a difficult year last year. Injuries and illness and things that kept disrupting it?
AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA: Yes. A lot of things going on. A lot of viruses around the world. I was really struggling with my health more than the opponents, so that for sure wasn't a good year.

Q. How did you get that right during the offseason?
AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA: Yes, that was the main goal, to really take care of that. I was trying to really get healthy and stronger. Of course the immune system, it's very tired after so many years, so I was just catching everything on the way.

So of course because I was also tired and exhausted and you're trying to play even when you're ill, and that just didn't end up good. Then I was going to tournaments without preparation, as well. That also didn't end up good.

You just want to keep going, but sometimes you just need to say stop and just to prepare for the next couple months better. So for sure I know my experience now. It's another year of good experience to have, and I'm not going to do the same mistakes.

Q. Did you take a longer break to get your health right before you started training again?
AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA: Yes. I didn't play for four weeks. Pretty long.

Q. And how long do you normally take that break for at the end of the season?
AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA: Less. I think sometimes three. Sometimes even not that. I'm starting to do some fitness in the end, as well. It was even more than four weeks, yeah.

Q. Did you also get married during that period or was that earlier?
AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA: It was earlier. I got married after Wimbledon.

Q. There happened to be a big moment at 5-5 in the second set where Johanna thought she heard a net cord. Did you hear anything?
AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA: Actually, it was a little bit weird, because sometimes I heard and was a net. Sometimes I thought it was net, it wasn't. I don't know if something wrong with the net or the sounds on that court. Then I would just keep going.

So I don't know if it was the net or not. It's just, you know, you just keep going, because the machine can be wrong, as well. And I don't know there are some noises you can hear from the stands. I was ready to go, so I didn't really hear that.

Q. Has something similar happened to you before in the past?
AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA: Yes, but not that often. Not that often. But for sure I was also complaining myself in some other tournaments that with the machine, because that was for sure couple of lets, and then the chair umpire was saying there was nothing there. If we were trusting only the machine, not hearing yourself, it's also different story.

Q. Last week in Auckland, obviously it was an odd tournament and a lot of down time unexpectedly in the middle of the tournament, but what do you take out of that week and how your season has started so far?
AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA: Well, I think in the beginning of the season, every match matters. You just want to find the match rhythm again after actually two-and-a-half months not playing in matches.

So that was the main goal, just to get that rhythm. I had couple of good, two matches. The third one was obviously terrible. But yes, at least those two were good and kind of good also preparation for this one.

Q. Did you get any chances during your offseason or preseason to play practice matches? I know some other players play league matches in their countries or find somebody to play practice matches with. Did you get a chance to do any of that?
AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA: Well, we don't have these kind of club matches in Poland. Yeah, well, there are a couple of guys I was playing points obviously. Practice is never going to be a match. Even when you're gonna play five sets and every single day, it's never going to be a match. That's different story.

Q. Do you feel refreshed going into the season? Some players have said they still feel the hangover from last season, and some players say they feel like it's a brand new year. Where do you fall in that spectrum?
AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA: Well, in the offseason, I was like, yeah, I could already feel the break and that we didn't play matches for weeks now. But then when you come into the tournament, it was like, oh, my God we are already here and it just goes so quickly and we were just in Asia yesterday and we are here already.

So I have really different feelings and sometimes confused (smiling).

Q. Is the body feeling okay, though? Physically you're feeling good at the start of the year?
AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA: Yes. I'm healthy. Not struggling with anything. So I'm happy, of course, about that. You know, at the moment everything is good. So hoping it will stay that way.

Q. Is your goal to get back up to the level it was before last year?
AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA: Of course. Going back to top 10 is the goal for sure. Also not going to be easy as there is a lot of players who deserve to be there and there is only 10 spots. So many new names that are really close there, so, well, it's going to be for sure tough but, well, I...

Q. And at least until your ranking starts to rise again, you are going to find this kind of match with Johanna early in tournaments in order to get back up...
AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA: Of course. I knew about that. Especially here in that kind of tournament when you're not expecting any easy matches. And also, on the other hand side, even when you play someone top 30, top 50, it's not making any easier.

Those times are gone. So I don't feel any different to playing someone seeded or unseeded. So you you're not playing with numbers; you're playing against players. Sometimes the rankings are just lying (smiling).

Q. Speaking of which, have you talked at all with Petra, Angie? All three of you guys are ranked outside of the top 20, which is weird. Feels like an odd sense of rankings?
AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA: Yeah. Actually, I just talked with Angie. She's playing Venus now. And we were kind of, like, well, now what do you have to do when we drop and we are playing seeded players? Also, we were saying it's, you know, probably they are not happy, as well, right? So both sides have the same situation.

But I'm saying it doesn't really matter. I don't feel any difference if I will play someone unseeded here, because they are top 30 girls here and playing really good tennis.

Q. You've got another player playing really well, CiCi Bellis, who you have next. She's won three qualifying matches, four matches in a row. What do you think of that?
AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA: Well, I guess she likes the conditions here, and obviously she warmed up very good with those four matches. We played once in Dubai. That was a great match. I will hope it will be different this time. If I can play the same tennis as today, I will be happy.

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