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QATAR TOTAL OPEN

February 28, 2020

Ashleigh Barty

Doha, Qatar

A. BARTY/G. Muguruza

6-1, 6-7, 6-2

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. Can you just talk through the match and especially kind of the adjustments you made after that second set. Seemed like you were a little bit frustrated with kind of how things went in that set and it seemed like you rebounded well.
ASHLEIGH BARTY: Yeah, I felt like I started exceptionally well and I was able to get the ball kind of in my areas a lot more.

And then in the second set Garbine was able to shift her court position and take a few more risks, put me on the back foot. And it was frustrating, I felt like I wasn't doing a lot wrong but I wasn't making the most of my opportunities and wasn't getting opportunities.

So I think really happy to be able to start the third set well, I think particularly that first service game was going to be important in the third.

Q. And just, obviously semi-finals here and you'll play Petra, a familiar opponent tomorrow, so can you just talk about what you look forward to in that semi-final?
ASHLEIGH BARTY: Yeah, I love playing Petra, I really do. I feel like she has this way of bringing out the best in me, and no matter the result both of us have a smile on our face and that's what I love about the contest with Petra is we respect each other, we play well and we just fight and we just see whoever's better on the day will get the win and I'm expecting tomorrow to be no different.

Q. Just generally speaking on your game today, because you had the walk over obviously before and you had the first round bye, so you came in with one match under your belt here in your first tournament in Doha. So just what were you pleased with and was there a concern at all at any point that maybe there might be some off-day rust or anything like that coming in?
ASHLEIGH BARTY: Yeah, a bit bizarre, it hasn't happened to me in a long time. I think it's seldom that you do get walkovers kind of mid tournament without even walking on the court but it was my understanding that Rybakina had to look after her body, obviously she's had a very big start to the year and, yeah, it was unfortunate not to be able to play that match against her, but overall I felt like I was pretty happy to come out and play and be as sharp as I was, considering these conditions to me are still a little bit unfamiliar. But now we have another opportunity tomorrow to test it again.

Q. Why do you think that the players that have already achieved world No. 1 say, I'm not interested any more to become No. 1, and players like Petra or like Kenin they dream about this. And it's so energy consuming to get No. 1 and after that to say, Okay, it's enough.
ASHLEIGH BARTY: Oh, I mean my whole life as a tennis player is energy consuming. I love it, but, yeah, I think once you get to world No. 1 it's a bizarre feeling, it was something I never thought that I may feel.

And you dream as a little kid of trying to be the best that you can be and of course you have the dreams of being the best in the world as well.

But I think once you become comfortable in your own skin and trust yourself, the rankings are irrelevant. I think even if you are someone who hasn't reached world No. 1 that the rankings, in my opinion, don't really matter. It's about enjoying each match as it comes, each day as it comes and the journey as a tennis player.

Q. I want to ask you about the WTA new rule regarding coaching. Now coaches are allowed to give players some advice from the box. So how do you like that new rule or do you like to think about strategy by yourself?
ASHLEIGH BARTY: Well I think it's different. Obviously, in Grand Slams we think for ourself and problem solve in your on way. And I feel like even in my matches on the tour on the WTA tour I try and do the same thing. And you have the ability to call your coach out on court at the change of ends, but this is my first tournament with these new rules and I haven't really thought much about it.

I'm not trying to get that information from Tyz any more than I'm trying to problem solve myself and work through all the problems in my head.

And then we have the ability to use the on-court coaching when he comes on to the court at the change of ends if we want to.

Q. Just getting back to what you were saying on the rankings, when I was speaking to the doubles top seeds Barbora and Su-Wei, they seem to have a sense that now they're the top seeds here and I think they're ranked No. 2 in the world or they feel like players are sort of gunning for them a little bit more or they feel that players want to test themselves out against them as they're like the current measuring stick or the benchmark. So do you feel that's maybe not the case since you've become world No. 1 or do you, what's your take on that?
ASHLEIGH BARTY: I think it's all about your perspective. I think if you feel like you've reached the very top of the game, you may feel like you are the hunted, but I feel like you have to try and prove every single day. There's no real ceiling, there's no benchmark that you hit that is the best, every single day you have to try and improve and I think otherwise you're going backwards.

But I feel like it's just the way you view it. You can either feel like you're the hunted and, but for, in my opinion, I still feel like I'm trying to hunt as well, I'm still trying to beat every single opponent and do the right things every single day, regardless of whether I'm No. 1 or not, it shouldn't change your preparation, it shouldn't change your professionalism, all of these little things that kind of got you to that point.

So I think, in my opinion, it's about enjoying every single day, enjoying the bits that come with it. Some parts are more challenging than others, but that's normal, that's life and that's all kind of the journey that is being a tennis player.

Q. Just thoughts on Maria Sharapova's retirement. Obviously you played her a couple of times since you have been back, you got that big win over her at home at the Australian Open a couple years ago. But what was it like to face her as a competitor and also what do you think of just kind of her legacy and what it was like to be on tour with her?
ASHLEIGH BARTY: Yeah, I faced Maria a couple of times and obviously we had great battles every single time. She's an exceptional competitor and achieved so much in our sport.

And I think whatever is next for her, whatever her next chapter is, I'm certain that she will excel at.

She's an incredible fighter, like I said, she did everything possible to get the most out of herself and I'm sure that whatever she chooses next she will do great at.

Q. Speaking of Maria, she's well known as a player who doesn't spend much time in the locker rooms or players around, she's not hanging around with colleagues. And you said that you like to enjoy the tour life, so what is your way to deal with pressures and your colleagues and that life?
ASHLEIGH BARTY: Well I have my friends, they're not just my colleagues, they're my friends. And I think that -- I enjoy spending time with my team, I have an exceptional team of people that are not just those that I work with, they're my extended family. And I think then, obviously I've been very fortunate to have met a lot of really good people on my journey and, yeah, it's pretty nice being able to see your friends week-in, week-out, compete against them and do something that we all love.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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