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AUSTRALIAN OPEN

January 26, 2020

Jiri Vanek

Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. What do you make of how Petra has played and also how she has handled the tournament so far into the quarterfinals? She said that she's been quite surprised she's been able to handle not playing, like, Sydney before here, having the off-week, a little bit different.
JIRI VANEK: Yeah, we just a little bit change our plan from last year, because last year also she didn't play pretty good in Brisbane. That's why we decided to play Sydney, and Sydney she played till the end.

This year she start pretty good the season. In Brisbane she make semifinal. Lost close match to Madison. We decided somehow to take the rest a little bit and prepare her for the Melbourne. So I'm happy for her that it worked pretty well here.

Q. How do you think she's played? Are you pretty happy with her level? A little bit of a heart attack today at times maybe?
JIRI VANEK: Oh, yeah, but those matches are important. I mean, if you are one set down, especially lose 6-7 first set, and she was probably in a lot of -- she has to fight with herself sometimes, but she found a way. It's make you more tougher and bring you maybe, I want to say, like a little bit more like luck to her next matches.

I'm really proud of her today.

Q. In terms of the off-season, I mean, obviously she was dealing with the arm and everything and you had a change with the Flo coming onto the team. So how different was it?
JIRI VANEK: Yeah, I mean, in the beginning I was a little bit -- not nervous. How it's gonna be working together and everything. But our professor, Mr. Kolar (phonetic) in Czech Republic, he told her after when she finish the season, You finish the season, then you're going to have like two-, three-week rest, and then you have to try to play without the sleeve and without the cover of your arm.

You have to do some good exercises. That's why we decided to ask Florian, the great physiotherapist, to be on our team. And also we have Ivan Trebaticky from Slovakia, the fitness coach.

So far I'm happy for her. She's happy. Looks like they are good team together. We are looking forward to some nice, good results in the future.

Q. As players get older, the work they have to do with the fitness becomes different than maybe two years ago and two years before that.
JIRI VANEK: Yeah.

Q. So is that a little bit kind of the focus given how the last couple of years there has been these second-half-of-the-season injuries and things like that that maybe impacted her? Is she looking at it differently? Are you looking at it differently?
JIRI VANEK: Yeah, fortunately, yes. But like last two years she always start pretty good like the beginning of the year and then a little bit after maybe Wimbledon, because for her Wimbledon is really the key of the season, and sometimes she puts too much pressure on herself. So she was struggling a little bit with her health after Wimby.

But, you know, she's going to be 30 this year and the body it's older and older, so I'm happy she finally recognize she needs a good physio with her on the road.

We will see how it's going to be in the future, but so far she's okay.

Q. Do you think you'll adjust the playing schedule this year?
JIRI VANEK: It was like you said before, it's tough to plan with Petra, because she's kind of a little bit different player. She can wake up without practice and she can beat everybody. Then sometimes we are practicing and we are preparing pretty good and she put too much pressure on herself and results are not there.

So we are planning, we have some tournaments what we gonna play and we will see during the season if she's tired. Then maybe she take a couple of days, weeks off, and we gonna prepare for the big ones.

If she, like, if -- we always, like, I try to listen to her a little bit what she's telling me, especially on the practices, if she's gonna play more matches because actually she like more to play matches than practice.

Q. Looking ahead, two very difficult opponents, first talking about Ash, Petra didn't lose to her for a long time and then has obviously taken a few losses since. What do you think will be the key to that match? Tactically, how difficult is it to plan against Ash given the way she plays her tennis?
JIRI VANEK: Of course Ashleigh's a great player, is one of the smartest probably player on the WTA. Petra beat her last year twice. Sydney was close match. And then she played amazing match here quarterfinal, and hopefully she gonna play the same level like she played last year.

But with Ashleigh it's always tough. She always have two, three weapons. She can come with a plan B.

So, I mean, we just concentrate for her tennis. She needs to play her fast tennis and then hope -- not hope, I mean, to believe herself that she can do it. And our team in the box, we are gonna believe her, as well.

Q. What if she plays Alison Riske?
JIRI VANEK: Yeah, Ali's a different player, of course. She beat also Petra a couple of times. Yeah, it's totally different game. She hits a lot of slices, a lot of balls back. Ali is going to be, how you call it, boom-boom game and they go for it.

Petra likes that. She likes to play aggressive and play aggressive with the opponent.

Q. Does it help Petra that making the final last year, you know, do you think that takes pressure off of her this year knowing she can make that final that she has done it before here, or does the pressure not change?
JIRI VANEK: No, the pressure don't change, I don't think. But we are not talking about it. Like she take just match after match and we just looking who is the other opponent, and that's it.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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