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SHISEIDO WTA FINALS SHENZHEN

October 29, 2019

Zhang Shuai

Shenzhen, China

STOSUR-ZHANG/Dabrowski-Xu

4-6, 6-4, 10-5

THE MODERATOR: Questions in Chinese.

Q. January this year you won a Grand Slam. In the middle Wimbledon. First time in the Shenzhen Finals, first win today. Looking back over the year, was it a very good year for you, a year of surprises?
ZHANG SHUAI: Up till now, Australian Open, Wimbledon, the breakthroughs were very, very special to me. Before I didn't really play that much doubles, wasn't really committed to doubles. Being able to win a Grand Slam in the Australian Open, I was very surprised.

In Wimbledon, I didn't really expect a very good performance on the grass. So this is a year of breakthroughs and challenges. In the areas where I'm not good at, I saw improvement and breakthroughs.

This year in the Finals, we have a new round-robin system. Even if we lost the first match, we were able to compete in a second round. Previously we had to go home after the first match if we lost. We will value and take this opportunity.

Q. You mentioned the round-robin in the doubles. Any impact on your mentality?
ZHANG SHUAI: No matter what, we'll do our best because every week we have matches, we have tournaments. It's singles and doubles. It could be a win here or there. We have to adjust as soon as possible mentally as well as physically to prepare for a second match.

Luckily we get one day off. Sometimes in the tournament we even have to play two matches on the same day. I think this is fortunate, a very good environment where we have enough time to adjust.

Q. Before this match you mentioned you were familiar with Yifan. Does that have an impact on how you prepare?
ZHANG SHUAI: To me, playing against a player I'm familiar with or my good friend is difficult because sometimes you don't want to be that aggressive, you don't want to get that many points from them.

Yifan could have been more aggressive with me, too. She gave us some free points, some opportunities. We had a chance to turn the tables.

Sometimes when you're playing against a friend, that is something quite challenging. Before the match I told myself that I needed to be 100%, I needed to be the best, aggressive, don't pull any punches.

Q. You mentioned you were not as committed to doubles in previous years. This season the results in the doubles, will that have an impact on how you prepare for the next season in singles.
ZHANG SHUAI: Playing doubles in Miami, we had good results. Other tournaments, it was more or less the same: one or two matches and that was it because we had to play singles.

On clay, Sam had to play in the prequalification rounds. We had to strike a balance between singles and doubles. Every day playing singles and doubles, we put more energy and emphasis on singles, both of us. I think that is why in the Asian swing, in the last segment of the season, it was very challenging for us to qualify for the Finals.

In the first half of the year, we were ranked No. 1 in terms of doubles. We were leading in the rankings for qualification to Shenzhen.

We're trying to practice, both of us are getting used to it, because sometimes we have to cover the whole court in singles. Preparing for doubles, we have to get used to practicing on half of a court, so I have to run more with my exercise.

Q. The Olympics are next year. Any plans for the singles and doubles? Are you looking for a Chinese partner for next year?
ZHANG SHUAI: I don't want to give up singles too easily because I've been playing singles many years, raising my ranking consistently. Getting here was very difficult for me, especially considering my early years on the professional tour. To maintain this high ranking for me was hard.

In terms of doubles and the Olympics, I have to talk to the national team to make sure we can get into the Olympics as well as the Fed Cup. There's still a lot of time before we qualify for the Olympics. It's still undecided.

The first half of the year next year will be the Olympics, that's my priority.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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