THE CHAMPIONSHIPS

July 2, 2023

Elena Rybakina

Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: Welcome to the press conference for Elena Rybakina.

Elena, how does it feel to walk back in the doors as the defending champion?

ELENA RYBAKINA: Yeah, it's nice to be back. Actually it was like yesterday for me. Yeah, it's really nice to be back.

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. What are your best memories of this time last year? Obviously winning your first Grand Slam. Talk us through that.

ELENA RYBAKINA: The best memory I think is just the final, for sure, getting the trophy, the ceremony. Then we managed to stay maybe just one hour with the whole team to kind of celebrate.

Yeah, I think overall is just these two weeks which I played. I've been here last year. It was amazing. So all the memories from that year.

Q. How are you feeling? Obviously you had the virus. How are you feeling ahead of Wimbledon?

ELENA RYBAKINA: Of course, the preparation we did, I would say it was good, but still not the amount of hours and work we wanted to put in.

But overall I think we did maximum what we could. It wasn't easy after French Open because it took me -- I mean, one week I didn't do anything, then slowly start. It's been tough.

I think that still it was a good preparation.

Q. Is it related to allergies you had this condition since Paris? What kind of medication do you take?

ELENA RYBAKINA: I have an allergy. The worse for me is the whole May, I would say. I take the normal, I would say, pills, like antihistamine like everybody else.

The virus I caught was because the immune system was weak at that period. It was just the virus. I couldn't take much. But the body had to recover by itself also, so it took a lot of time, yeah.

Q. Heading into your title defense out of 100, what percentage do you feel coming into Tuesday's match?

ELENA RYBAKINA: Well, I think I'm ready. Of course, a lot of good players. First round is not easy always, so I think the preparation we did is good enough. Hopefully with every match I'm going to feel better.

Yeah, important just to start and then we see how I feel. Yeah, I think if I'm going to get matches more on grass, I will feel more confident, of course.

Q. Looking at your first round against Shelby Rogers, someone you played a lot of times, including twice on grass. How do you assess your game against hers, the challenges of playing her?

ELENA RYBAKINA: Yeah, we played a couple times. Two times on grass, I think.

She's tough player. She also serves well. She's trying to play aggressive, so it's going to be not an easy one. We know each other pretty well.

So yeah, I'm going to try to do my best, of course. We see how it's going to go.

Q. How will it feel playing your opening match on Centre Court, having the honor of doing that as defending champion? You spoke a bit after winning Wimbledon about how maybe you were disrespected by some tournaments by not getting the main stadium. What will that be like on Tuesday?

ELENA RYBAKINA: Yeah, it's going to be exciting for me. Yeah, to play now like first matches on big courts, it's different for me. Also to come to the tournament as a defending champion, it's something new, like new chapter. Hopefully I continue like this coming to the tournaments.

But, well, the goal is the same. I would say that the atmosphere is always really nice on Centre Court, on big court. Yeah, I try to enjoy. Yeah, hopefully I'm going to win.

Q. What effect did it have on the last year for you to not have the points from last year's Wimbledon?

ELENA RYBAKINA: Well, it was last year, so I don't really think about it so much. Now I have another opportunity. Every tournament is an opportunity to get some points.

Whatever was last year, it was last year. So I'm just looking forward for this season.

Q. What memories do you carry most from the experience you had here last year, and how has that experience helped you?

ELENA RYBAKINA: Yeah, it was of course very different for me this year. I already played the final of Australian Open, so I kind of took some memories and experience from that, bringing to Australia, now coming here. I know what to expect, how it works, if you actually go that far in the tournament.

Psychologically I would say that it's a bit easier than when you don't know what to expect after such a win, so...

Q. Can you give us an insight into what you've done off the court in the last 12 months? I think you and your sister went to Universal Studios in March, for example. Give us a sense of vacations and trips you've had.

ELENA RYBAKINA: I wouldn't say that I had much time off. Now I had off only because of the virus, but I didn't get a chance to do anything. I was just in bed.

But we went after Miami with my sister just for one day in Orlando. We spent the whole day in this adventure park. It was really nice.

I cannot say that I did really kind of vacation yet this year.

Q. So no holiday?

ELENA RYBAKINA: Well, the holidays I took, as I said, either because I was sick now or, like, not really. I was actually traveling, playing a lot, practicing, so...

Maybe after Wimbledon.

Q. As defending champion, do you feel an added pressure? Last year you went in with nothing to lose. Do you feel the pressure a lot more now?

ELENA RYBAKINA: Yeah, of course it's different this year. I won't say that I feel so much pressure. Of course, people are talking around. The important thing is that we keep on working with the team. They're also trying to help me out, to prepare for the matches.

Yeah, I think this is something to get used also. Hopefully my level is going to stay that high and it's going to be a normal thing to come and defend.

Of course, now it's something new, but as I said, this is just the next step to the goal.