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INTERNAZIONALI BNL D'ITALIA

May 12, 2019

Karolina Pliskova

Rome, Italy

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. Who do you think between you and Serena Williams have the best serve?
KAROLINA PLISKOVA: The best what?

Q. Serve.
KAROLINA PLISKOVA: I mean, it's tough to say. Of course, she won a lot, so I don't want to say me. But maybe this season it's me. I think couple seasons back, for sure it was she.

I think it's different, there is different way how she serve, how I serve. But I think she has a great serve, for sure.

Q. Last year in Rome you broke your racquet in a very scary way.
KAROLINA PLISKOVA: Yes (laughter).

Q. What are your memories from that? Do you regret that action?
KAROLINA PLISKOVA: No, I don't regret because it was not my fault and I never behave like this without no reason. I think was absolutely normal. I think it could be much worse than it was.

But it happened. It's a year ago. I'm happy I'm back in Rome after some while again. I hope to play some good tennis without problems like this. Yeah, I hope the fans going to cheer for me maybe more than last year, but I'm going to enjoy it anyway.

Q. Your coach Conchita Martinez said that Rafael Nadal could be the perfect role model for you. Do you think so?
KAROLINA PLISKOVA: Well, I don't have any idols, not even in girls, not even in men. Of course, he's not only for me. But he's a fighter, he's playing good tennis, he's practicing hard. Of course, he can be good idol for me.

But I don't feel like he's idol. He's lefty. He's a man. He's completely much stronger than me. I don't feel like he should be the one.

Q. How do you consider clay court among your overall tennis? It's something you play, but you're not expecting so much from yourself?
KAROLINA PLISKOVA: I'm always expecting quite a lot from my myself, doesn't matter which surface I play. Of course, when you play some clay specialists, it can be difficult.

Right now, actually I don't know where is my level because I didn't play much in the last couple weeks, not many matches. Actually practices I've been feeling fine now. Last couple days were pretty solid for me.

I just need to move on. I hope to play some matches here in Rome. Of course, last one is Paris. I hope to do well there.

Q. Agnieszka Radwanska, you've played a lot of matches. How do you remember her from the court?
KAROLINA PLISKOVA: Yeah, I remember my head-to-head against her was not the best. Actually the last match I won. I'm sorry that she left because, anyway, she was always beating me, but the matches were always so good.

Also I think for the fans, for the people, so good to watch because she just has amazing hands. I think we are missing a player like this on tour right now. She was just a little bit different, the style was different.

She's from Poland, which is next to my country. We quite talk a lot. Czech and Polish is quite similar. She was always friendly. I think everyone, not only me, we miss her in the locker rooms, the courts. Also the fans for sure, they miss.

Q. Any specific match you remember the most against her?
KAROLINA PLISKOVA: I remember all of them, but sometimes it was always kind of little bit close, but she was always better. I think she just loved my game quite a lot because she was always playing I felt like good tennis against me.

Couple times we were playing, she always won the tournament. She had the best two years, and I played quite a lot in that period with her. I think she was on the top. She was maybe 3 or 4 in the world. I was lower ranked than her. It was normal that she was beating me.

I think so far on grass, I played two matches on grass, and on grass she was good.

Q. She played technically. Do you think there's a place on the tour for such a player right now?
KAROLINA PLISKOVA: I think the tennis is starting to be much faster right now. I'm not sure if there's really a possibility for this game. But, of course, she was capable of doing that.

Of course, you need to have I think huge talent, you need to move well. You need to have couple things together to be playing this tennis.

I mean, the last match when I beat her, I think it was too fast for her already. I think because everything is moving, everything is getting better, faster, everybody is just little bit stronger, I think it's tough to play this kind of tennis right now. When you see all the winners, everybody has the power to play. It's not much about the touch or the skills, it's more about the power I think now.

Q. Do you think Serena Williams should play more tournaments in order to win a Grand Slam again?
KAROLINA PLISKOVA: I guess she knows what she's doing. I think she's doing this for a couple years already. Her age, she's not 20, so of course she cannot play maybe that much as she was playing before.

But I think she can win a Grand Slam without playing any other tournaments.

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