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NATURE VALLEY CLASSIC

June 23, 2018

Petra Kvitova

Birmingham, England

P. KVITOVA/M. Buzarnescu

6-3, 6-2

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. A great result. What were you most happy with today?
PETRA KVITOVA: For sure will be the important points when I need to serve well and play well. When I was, like, two games 15-40, when I faced some breakpoints, that's probably the best that I can remember from that match. To stay in the game, to serve well, to play well, to turn the game around. I know she's returning pretty well as she showed today, but in the key points, I serve better. So that was important.

Q. I know you said you don't feel any pressure to defend. But how important is it to reach back-to-back finals here in Birmingham?
PETRA KVITOVA: You know, when I was practicing before coming here, I couldn't really imagine to be here all week, so I just said it to the coaches that I don't really expect that. But from the first round, I really felt relaxed as I said already here. Even today, I was facing breakpoints and I was just pretty positive in the mind, which I'm happy with for sure because it's not happening every week. So I'm taking it very positively.

Q. How do you feel about playing Magda in the final?
PETRA KVITOVA: I think it will be fun for both of us. We are friends. We are watching the football every night. We know each other pretty long already. We spend some years on the tour together. I think we kind of grew in the rankings together. We played some doubles, so it was always being fun. She's a fun girl. She's playing fun game on the grass as well, tricky game. We practice here once as well. It will be nice. I think it's nice to see someone who you are friends with in the final.

Q. Talking about how you were able to get out of the 15-40 games, you've served very well against breakpoints throughout the year. Have you made adjustments on how you serve that second serve or first serve. Is it just confidence? What is it?
PETRA KVITOVA: I'm still trying to find the perfect timing for the serves, still not there. But luckily in those important points, even I don't serve the first serve, the second serve is pretty big out here as well. That's great to have it. I think it's about the confidence as well. In the past sometimes I did a double fault for the breakpoint. Now it's a little bit different story and it's showing in the results, so it's better way.

Q. The last time you played Magda was in the New Haven final a few years ago. What do you remember of that final? She kind of joked you guys always play in the semifinals and finals of tournaments all the time.
PETRA KVITOVA: We joked together this week, I think. I don't know, we were just chatting and talking about the head-to-head and, yeah, that we are not playing very often, but if we playing it's in the end of the tournament. So it's good. Actually, I don't remember anything from the final. I do remember I won (laughing). We had fun with the ceremony. That's what I remember, those pictures and everything. But, like, from the game, I don't. I think she's a different kind of player on the grass. Definitely she showed in the result last year at Wimbledon as well here. She likes to mix the game a lot, approaching to the net, playing volleys, playing slice. It will be different opponent, different game plan. That's kind of great to have different opponents with different style that you can be really prepare for the next matches. I'm thinking positive. It's the final, so I like playing final. So, yeah, that's it?

Q. Every time you've been under pressure this week, you've come up with the answers. Is that experience or just confidence in your game?
PETRA KVITOVA: I think experience out there as well. But, like, especially with this week, I think it's about the confidence, be relaxed in the mind, as I said already. You need some experiences for the matches and for the important points as well. But like serving well, it's probably about the confident.

Q. You had an amazing kind of year so far, obviously after a particularly difficult time last year. Is part of it to do proving it to yourself and saying I'm back and so much stronger than I was before? How has your mindset been?
PETRA KVITOVA: Actually, I'm not really thinking like that. I did think probably in this time last year, but not this year. I think the past happened and I closed that in myself. So just playing tennis and I'm a tennis player. That's it. Playing with the joy, which is important. I think I had a great results this season and I'm enjoying the time as well. Last year was very important for me to see that I can compete with the best.

Q. Will you be watching the football together tonight?
PETRA KVITOVA: I think I will. Always depends when we were going to the dinner whether we watch the first half or the second half.

Q. Who's your pick for the World Cup?
PETRA KVITOVA: My pick is Argentina. I did it before the tournament. Sorry. I didn't know. Ronaldo is playing better than Messi, so we'll see.

Q. Is it a sweepstakes? Did you have to draw something?
PETRA KVITOVA: No, no, no. We had, like, a bet in the Czech newspapers, I did Argentina and player is Messi. So I'm not doing well now. I try to play tennis better.

Q. Let's just hope.
PETRA KVITOVA: Thank you. They have a still chance. That's good.

Q. Since you first won Wimbledon in 2011, what's the biggest change you see in yourself either as a player or person, like the most positive from then to now?
PETRA KVITOVA: Probably the most positive thing was off the court when I learned to say no for many things. That I think was kind of the big thing for me, just saying to people, kind of media stuff, no. So that's probably the best.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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