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SHISEIDO WTA FINALS SHENZHEN

October 28, 2019

Ivan Bencic

Shenzhen, China

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. How is Belinda feeling after the injury timeout? What was it like for you to watch her qualify right at the last gasp?
IVAN BENCIC: Can you please ask again and please slowly. My English is not so very good. I try my best.

Q. How is she after yesterday's timeout? What was it like to watch her qualify in Moscow?
IVAN BENCIC: I think she's very happy that she's already here. A lot of pressure, it's going down from her. All the team, we enjoy to be here.

Belinda, of course, she tried her best. Was a long season. She is also tired. But this period is coming back. Especially when we are in this nice atmosphere of this tournament, in China with the people, this give her the spirit back for be fresh.

Yesterday I think she play a very good match against a very good player. Ashleigh is not for free on top of the women's game now.

Q. How is her foot feeling today?
IVAN BENCIC: It's much better. She had this problem a little bit longer. But it's an up and down. Yesterday was a little bit down. Now it's going better. She will be ready for tomorrow.

Q. What are you the most proud of about Belinda's season?
IVAN BENCIC: Like Belinda said also, that she play very consistent. She didn't had ups and downs too much. This I think it's also the result that she is No. 8 now or No. 7. This make me very proud, not only maybe win some tournaments somewhere, then nothing. I think this make me proud, yeah.

Q. What was the key for you as a coach and father to help her to play with this consistency this year?
IVAN BENCIC: I think, like a father and coach, you had plus and minus. The plus is that you know your player, your child better than other people. All the commitment around her helps her to come back to her tennis.

She has to do most of the work, of course. I just a key to help her what I can. Also that she's fit, very fit, with her physical coach. This all together in a package is the result that she's here.

Q. How different is it to prepare Belinda for round-robin compared to regular tournaments?
IVAN BENCIC: I think it's the same, same situation. I think every player, especially the top players, they want to win every matches. They didn't care about if it's first round. She know it also from team competitions in Fed Cup.

It's similar. I think on the court it's not a big difference.

Q. How different is she as a person and a player now compared to when she broke into the top 10 at 18?
IVAN BENCIC: Also plus and minus. When she was younger, she didn't think too much. She played her game. She didn't had so much experience like now.

Now she has more experience, but she's also older, thinking about the game and the life more. I think now she's the better player than what she was 18.

Q. From your perspective, the total WTA season in 2019, what is your analysis of the players that qualified here? What impressed you the most this year?
IVAN BENCIC: Analysis? What you mean?

Q. Analysis.
IVAN BENCIC: You mean the game generally of the top?

Q. Yes.
IVAN BENCIC: Yeah, it's very, very special. I told this before in the interview. Everybody can beat everybody. The level is high. It's not big difference. For example before 20, 30 years when Steffi Graf, Martina Hingis, Capriati was a better level better than top 30 players.

Now in the top 100, everybody can beat anybody. This is a good situation and also not a good situation because by the men's you have top four. In the women's tennis in the moment you didn't have top four.

Yeah, it's a chance for every good girl in the moment. Andreescu has showed what is possible. Also other players, Muchova, Alexandrova. Also Belinda is coming back. Yeah, this is the situation I think.

Q. How is your first Finals experience so far?
IVAN BENCIC: We enjoy it. It's nothing special. We know the same people. We know the same nice people from WTA, the same journalists. It's a special atmosphere, of course, with more medias, more attention for the players. It's a good feeling to be here because this is also a satisfaction for the hard work what we had in the past.

Who win? Will show the games, yeah.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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