MUTUA MADRID OPEN

April 26, 2024

Aryna Sabalenka

Press Conference

A. SABALENKA/M. Linette

6-4, 3-6, 6-3

THE MODERATOR: Congratulations on your win. A tough match. Can you talk about what happened in the second set and how you overcame to the third.

ARYNA SABALENKA: Yeah, that was tough match. She played unbelievable tennis.

I think in that second set she just put a little extra pressure on my serve, and I just didn't handle my emotions well. We went to a third set, and I'm just happy that I was able to close this match with a win.

THE MODERATOR: Questions.

Q. In your five last editions here in Madrid, you have lost three in the first round and the other two you won. No gray colors. What do you think fits better? The altitude? Do you need more time to prepare the matches? I don't know if you see any pattern in those results.

ARYNA SABALENKA: You're asking why I'm doing well in Madrid here, or...

Q. Yeah, but three years...

ARYNA SABALENKA: If I get through the first round, I guess it's a good sign for me, okay? Okay. Got it (smiling). Hopefully it's going to be a good sign and I will keep it like that. I either lose in the first or I win. Let's just keep it as a good sign (smiling).

I don't know. I like Madrid. There is a lot of things why I like it. The atmosphere in the stadium is amazing. The court is really great quality.

The altitude definitely helping me. The high bounce also help me a lot here. Also, I just like the city, lots of good restaurants for me. I'm practicing and I need to eat good food. It's a lot of good restaurants here, so I have lots of good things to do. Yeah, I think that's why I'm doing well in Madrid.

Q. I honestly appreciate your honesty, but do you think some way what you said on the last days about you preferring to watch men's tennis over women's tennis can some way damage women's tennis?

ARYNA SABALENKA: I didn't want to damage women's tennis, no. Listen, I mean, we are doing our best and, great, there is lots of great matches.

I don't like to watch it just because I play against all of them, and I just want to kind of like change the picture, and because I watch lots of women's tennis before I go to the match, I watch my opponents, I watch lots of woman's tennis.

It's not like I don't like it, you know, like I try to offend what I do, you know. I was just trying to say that because I'm playing there and it's too much for me, I'm just trying to watch men's tennis. For me, it's more fun, you know, than watching my probably like future opponents in the tournament.

Q. I just have a couple of questions about your past. I know you like talking about things that are fun. We have a lot of junior players that follow you. We interview them, and we always ask who are your favorite players, and a lot of times your name comes up. I don't know if you have something you can think back on your time when you were a junior and maybe some things you can say to these kids that are really trying their best, training so hard, we see them every day and looking up to players like you.

ARYNA SABALENKA: What I, like, advice or...

Q. Advice, and if you can think back at your time when you were a junior, like things that really stick out and that help you now.

ARYNA SABALENKA: Oh, that's a very tough question, you know, like what I would say to myself and probably would say to all of the juniors is just, like, Don't rush things. Just take your time. Just do your job as good as you can, and just the only thing you can do on court is fight for it.

If you work hard, if you do everything you can on the practice court, it means you're going to do it on the match court. You just have to trust your work and fight for it. That's it. And don't get super crazy about, like, don't get super negative on court while you're playing.

Q. We have seen in your social media that you have gone through El Retiro, the park?

ARYNA SABALENKA: Oh, okay. Got it, yes.

Q. You said also that you visit a lot of restaurants, but...

ARYNA SABALENKA: Lots of parks as well. Yeah, there is lots of things, lots of parks, because Madrid is like a green city, meaning like lots of parks, and that's why I really like to spend my time in the parks, like, walk around, just enjoy something different, a different atmosphere and different vibes.

I like when it's lots of greens. I don't know, I find it so relaxing. Yeah, I went, I forgot the name of the park, whatever. El Retiro? No, it wasn't Spanish accent. Okay. But it's very beautiful. The beautiful lake there. Yeah, I love my time there.