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NATURE VALLEY CLASSIC

June 18, 2019

Harriet Dart

Birmingham, England

Y. PUTINTSEVA/H. Dart

6-1, 6-4

Q. What are your feelings after that? The second set was very competitive.
HARRIET DART: Yes, I mean, it was definitely a tough match. I expected it. And today I didn't get out the blocks well at all. But, you know, stayed in it and fought as hard as I could, especially in the second set and kept it close. And, yeah, sometimes you win, sometimes you don't. Just moving on from this match and hopefully I can take it into next week.

Q. She gets just everything back, doesn't she? She is such a good athlete and competitor?
HARRIET DART: Yeah, I mean it was evident at the Fed Cup, I watched a lot of her there. I knew she was going to fight for every point and I just tried my best and unfortunately I couldn't play the way I wanted to today.

Q. Can you talk a little bit about last night? It looked like a lot of fun out there and quite a late finish as well.
HARRIET DART: (Smiling) Yes, playing with Venus was very special and it was a massive opportunity for me and I loved every minute of it.

Q. What was it actually like on court? You were running around all over the place. Did you feel you were able to match the legend?
HARRIET DART: I mean, think that's pretty tough to do, but, you know, it was an amazing experience for me and honestly just a privilege to be able to share the court with her.

Q. How are you feeling about the grass court season overall? Is there a sense of excitement leading up to Wimbledon, or is there a sense of just nervousness about the results?
HARRIET DART: I mean, it's obviously always a little bit different playing on home soil. This is the only period that we do tend to play here. But, to be honest, I try and take each match as it comes and try and do my best and that is all I can ask of myself.

And obviously we get some good opportunities, especially this week I have a wildcard here which I have been fortunate to have. Again, just trying to get my level up to try and be at these tournaments in my own right.

Q. Can you explain how the doubles partnership with Venus came about in the first place and when you first met her? And what your impressions were of her going into it? You looked like you had quite a bond going by the end of it?
HARRIET DART: (Laughing) Yes, I mean, the tournament suggested it and she agreed to it so that was pretty cool. Yeah, I mean, we spoke a bit before the match and stuff and she's super-nice and very friendly and made me feel very comfortable on the court and, you know, it was difficult, it was a difficult one yesterday. You know, we lost in a super tie-break and a few points here and there and it could have been a different match.

Q. What was it like having that as your comeback match, you had been out for a few weeks with injury, you had to miss the French Open. Were there any extra nerves knowing your comeback match from injury was to play with Venus?
HARRIET DART: Well, I actually played last week in Nottingham so I played two matches there. Yeah, I mean, it's always good just to get more and more matches and whether it is singles, doubles or whatever, I was just happy to be on the court.

Q. You mentioned about being given a wildcard to this tournament. Generally, that virtually guarantees a tough draw. When you know you are going to get a tough draw, do you look at it as a match to learn from? You want to win, but...
HARRIET DART: I mean, all matches are tough. It doesn't matter whether you are a wildcard or not. You see a lot of wildcards do well in tournaments, so I think that doesn't really matter who you are, necessarily. Of course here it is a smaller draw size than other big tournaments. So you are going to be thrown in the deep end and play a top player straightaway.

But again, I was here to -- I am here to win matches and that's what I have come here to do.

Q. Do you relish the opportunity to play a considerably higher-ranked player than yourself, though?
HARRIET DART: I think I just take each match as it comes. It doesn't matter who is the other side of the net. I just try and focus on what I can do and try and bring good tennis to the match.

Q. You are one of the up-and-coming stars of the game and you played alongside Venus Williams last night. Did she give you any tips or advice?
HARRIET DART: Yeah, I mean, she's a great person and an unbelievable champion and being able to not only be on the court with her, but also playing with her was something quite special and not many people have managed to do.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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