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ROLAND GARROS

May 24, 2019

Petra Kvitova

Paris, France

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. Can you just talk about when did you arrive here, what your week has been like in terms of practicing, if you had a chance to practice, and just physically, mentally, how are you feeling?
PETRA KVITOVA: I'm good, thank you. I arrived on Wednesday. So we already hit on Wednesday. We hit twice yesterday. Everything is okay.

It's just different balls compared to other tournaments when we play before. Yeah, and after Rome, I had a few good days of practices. We were so-so with the weather in Czech, so it was a big fight there. If I couldn't hit, I was spending time in the gym, of course.

Yeah, I'm here and ready to go.

Q. Simona Halep said she thought about 10 women could win this title this year. Last year she thought it was about 15.
PETRA KVITOVA: Okay.

Q. I know you're focused on yourself, but do you think it's more open, less open, than in the past? Are there more better players now?
PETRA KVITOVA: I think it's not as open I think as the last year probably. I think of course we have so many winners of the tournaments this year, but of course Grand Slam is just a little bit different. So I think -- I'm not counting, as Simona is, but yeah, I think it's not as open as probably last year. I think that we see some players playing really well on the clay and who has a good season so far in the season. So, yeah, I think it's not as open.

Q. Could you please comment on your part of the draw, Simona on the same quarter.
PETRA KVITOVA: Okay. Thank you.

I don't really care who is in my quarter. I know I'm playing Sorana in my first round and that's pretty important for me and nothing really else. So, yeah, that's it.

Q. Given your run last year in the majors, was a little less than what you were probably happy with, how much did Melbourne change things? Does that carry on to Paris now to make a deeper run on the slam that's often been your least likely?
PETRA KVITOVA: You know, I think for Paris I do have kind of different memories since two years which was my first tournament to come back. I just remind myself yesterday actually when we arrived and then played here on the Suzanne Lenglen. You know, the time is really flying fast. Two years is like nothing.

But I don't really care how Paris will end up, actually. I didn't have a great results for so many Grand Slams in the past, and I already did great result in the Australian Open, which I'm very proud of it. I couldn't really imagining myself to playing in the final again. So for me I think it's kind of something I already proved myself and I just don't have to run for something else. So whatever happen, happen.

I have been in the semifinal here one year, so I'm not, like, questioning myself if I can do or can do well here. So just here I'm feeling good. It's important. And as I said, whatever happen, happen. So it's a nice Grand Slam, and we'll see.

Q. You mentioned the different balls here. How different do they play compared to the ones that y'all have been playing on on tour coming up to this tournament?
PETRA KVITOVA: I find it a little bit heavier probably. So it's flying but not for long.

Yeah, that's probably the main case, that I feel them a little bit heavier than normally.

Q. You mentioned that it's been two years since you came back here. Just what was the press conference like, seeing everyone again for the first time?
PETRA KVITOVA: I like this press conference more than that one (smiling) for sure. It wasn't really nice, to be honest, I didn't know how I gonna response for those questions, how I gonna respond to see you all again. I don't know how I gonna, like, handle it.

Afterwards, I was pretty proud that I didn't cry for so long (smiling). And I could kind of answer those questions, and of course I was pretty happy that I, you know, be here and see you all, guys, again and be in the draw and play.

But of course it was different situation, as well. Yeah, in the two years changed a lot.

Q. You came within one match of being No. 1 in the world this year at the Australian. At your age and everything you have done and everything you have come back from, how big a deal would it be for you? Did it mean for you that you got that close to No. 1 and that you can do it again?
PETRA KVITOVA: Well, for me, it's kind of like a miracle. When I was trying to come back and play on the higher level, I couldn't really imagine to being, as you said, one match from being No. 1 in the world and playing for the title of the slam.

It was not -- of course it was kind of a surprise for me. But in the other hand, I think I produce pretty good tennis over there and hopefully I can show it again one day and play well. But, yeah, I have been pretty close already to be No. 1 before. Now I was again in Melbourne. So we'll see what will happen in the rest of the year.

Q. The last few weeks you have been talking about how your game has developed to kind of have -- you know different ways how to play so that you can get better consistency on the court.
PETRA KVITOVA: Sometimes, yeah (smiling).

Q. You said it. But can you talk about why, I guess, that change kind of came, you know, when we think of Petra five years ago or six years ago it was plan A. Now there's plan B and plan C. So --
PETRA KVITOVA: Which one is plan C?

Q. It's the dropshot one.
PETRA KVITOVA: Oh, okay. Serve and volley maybe (smiling).

Q. Why the change now? Why do you think that section of your game developed now at this point of your career?
PETRA KVITOVA: Well, I think maybe I'm more thinking about my game that I was before probably when I -- maybe I do have more experiences, I'm a little bit older, more mature, as well. So I think I'm just probably thinking a little bit more. You know, when we sit with the coach after the season, we were talking what we want to improve and so that's when I kind of said that I would like, you know, to improve volleys, some slices, as well, of course the movement which is kind of together everything, but kind of have a more kind of game plan, as you mentioned.

I'm pretty glad we were working on it and it's pretty paying off. So of course the clay, it's a bit different, but still, I can do some other things, not just playing my younger Petra before.

So sometimes it's more fun, to be honest. Yeah.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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