THE CHAMPIONSHIPS

July 7, 2023

Elina Svitolina

Press Conference

E. SVITOLINA/S. Kenin

7-6, 6-2

THE MODERATOR: Questions in English.

Q. Obviously getting through that tiebreak in the first was big for you. What do you feel like you were doing well today?

ELINA SVITOLINA: I think today I just had to put fighting spirit, you know, in front of me and just try to really be focused on myself and trying to fight for every single ball.

I think the shadow was really bothering both of us, and it was really difficult to play. So that's why I had to fight, had to really play one point at a time and to not get too frustrated.

I think this was important as well. So really happy I could handle that first set. Tiebreak is never easy. Yeah, just happy I could handle it.

Q. Curious about your comeback. I know you've said you felt stronger than you did before. What's the percentage you're feeling? How much like your old self do you feel? Is there a number or a scale you could put it on?

ELINA SVITOLINA: It's tough to put it on scale and to say in percentage, but I think I'm just more fresh. I think physically and also mentally more, you know, motivated in some ways.

Also, you know, for my country, I cannot complain, you know, on my life and what I have now. It's just every day I take as opportunity to be better, opportunity to fight for my country. Yeah, just I think those little things make this big motivation for me to be better.

Q. You have been at the very top of the game and you've been ranked lower obviously now as you're coming back. How is life different, especially at the majors? How are you treated differently as a top player, not just you but all top players differently than, say, somebody ranked 70 in the world?

ELINA SVITOLINA: You mean on the Grand Slams?

Q. Yeah.

ELINA SVITOLINA: I think you get priority, priority for practice, like you can always practice on like big courts, and you always get practice on-site. Like here, for example, you can use the members' locker room.

That's pretty much it. I think just priority for practice is like one of the big ones, because when you are a bit lower you have to practice off-site. You get only one time I think here. Also you get only one time practice on the match courts.

Q. At the US Open, did you ever have to practice sort of on those courts by the subways?

ELINA SVITOLINA: Yeah, well, I came through from like zero, you know, so of course when you're top player you get stadium courts to practice before the slam, and then these courts like 1 to 5, you never get those courts there.

Yeah, so I don't know how it's gonna be this year for me. But it's okay. You know, if I have to go through this, I don't mind. You know, I'm building and, you know, step by step will get there.

Q. What are your thoughts on playing Vika, a person you have played before? Now of course you're both moms.

ELINA SVITOLINA: Yeah, it's a big challenge, for sure. For me it's a big motivation. Firstly I think for my country, as well. Yeah, looking forward to this challenge.

Q. When you say big motivation for your country, would you elaborate on specifically what you mean with respect to this matchup between the two of you?

ELINA SVITOLINA: Well, it's another match, but in a way, a lot of Ukrainians will be watching, will be supporting me. I will go out there and put the fighting spirit on and just really fight for every single point.

Q. How about in terms of style of play? How would you describe the differences between you?

ELINA SVITOLINA: She loves to dominate the court, tries to take the ball really early.

Me, I'm more like defensive and then offense. You know, I'm trying to build my way. Yeah, we have very different game styles.

I will sit down with my coach and see what I did wrong in the previous matches and do the game plan and try to execute it well.

Q. There seems to be more and more young women having a child, coming back to the tour. If you had to give one piece of advice to, say, Naomi Osaka if she decides to come back, or anybody, or Serena, for that matter. Well...

ELINA SVITOLINA: I don't think I'm the right person to give her advice. I think I need to get advice from her to play a final, couple of finals after giving birth (smiling), this advice.

Q. I watched you today and that's as solid as I have seen you play. If you did have to give advice to somebody, what would you say the most important thing to learn?

ELINA SVITOLINA: To be patient, because of course when you are at the top and you been there in the top, you think or maybe expect that you will be there again. But, you know, everyone is really hungry to beat you. It's not easy also. Your body needs time to adjust to the pressure, to tough matches, to the nerves as well.

For example, I didn't know how my body will react under a lot of pressure, when there is lots of things going on in your head, when you have a lot of adrenaline, nerves.

So it was new for me, new feeling. So I had to adjust and I needed time. All these tough matches that I had at the beginning, starting from Charleston from April, they were really a big challenge for me, because before, you know, I was, like, okay, I was winning these matches. I was playing well. In the third set, I was doing this and that, and it was like 90% of the time was working.

But here, you know, your body is a bit different, reacting different. So it takes time. For some people will click a bit earlier maybe. For some it takes time, so you need to expect the worst to be okay with everything.

Q. It seems like it clicked pretty early for you. Grand Slam quarterfinal.

ELINA SVITOLINA: Well, I was expecting earlier (smiling).

Q. Is there a milestone you have in your mind where once you reach it, you can say, Okay, I can stop using the word "comeback"? I can say, I'm here, I'm fully back now?

ELINA SVITOLINA: Well, for me it would be a top 10 probably. I always have high expectations. It might sound arrogant maybe, but I will always have high expectations for myself.

Each time I play the tournament, I want to win it. Doesn't matter. Even the first tournament that I played in Charleston, everybody was telling me, Oh, it's unbelievable, you're playing your first tournament already in April.

But I even then had a goal to win the tournament, because, you know, why I'm playing then? You know, shoot for the moon and you might land in the stars (smiling).

You know, just, yeah, I want to win every single match that I play. It's always been like this for me, and I try to do the same right now.

Q. Did you have people in your life who were saying, Take it easy, you don't need to come back so soon? Were you hearing that from anybody or no?

ELINA SVITOLINA: Actually, I wanted to come back a bit later. I had some other goals, my personal goals.

But then when I start training, a lot of people, like, for example, some coaches from Gael's team, my coaches, and some coaches at the club who saw me playing, they were like, You're playing unbelievable, you should come back, you should do it earlier.

Then this motivated me, and this gave me this energy even more to train even harder and to push myself harder, and my body gave me a chance to and handled it well.

Yeah, that's why I think everything clicked together a bit earlier for me, and I was ready to play. Physically I was ready to play in Charleston.

Q. Is Gael home with the baby now?

ELINA SVITOLINA: Yes.

Q. You know we have an expression as mothers, it's little people, little problems. Big people, big problems.

ELINA SVITOLINA: Yes. Yes, he wants me to come back because he's really tired (smiling).

But it's okay. He's like, Okay, you're playing well, so it's okay. So yeah, he's enjoying. He's now home with two of our moms, as well. There is a big team taking care of Skai right now.