BILLIE JEAN KING CUP

November 12, 2024

Horia-Vlad Tecau

Jaqueline Cristian

Anca Todoni

Elena-Gabriela Ruse

Monica Niculescu

Ana Bogdan

Team Romania

Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: Hello, everyone. Let's start the press conference with Team Romania. We will start with English questions, so please raise your hands for questions.

Q. Hello, everyone. Welcome to Malaga. Nice to see you. Jaqueline, can I start with you? How much excitement and anticipation is there within the team ahead of Romania's first appearance at the Finals?

JAQUELINE ADINA CRISTIAN: Hi. Obviously we are very happy, very excited, and I feel really good. We have had really good days, and I feel we are with good energy. So everything is wonderful, really. We are ready.

Q. Ana, could you take me back to the qualifiers and that doubles match that got Romania here, just the emotion and the adrenaline at that moment? Could you just take me back to that winning moment?

ANA BOGDAN: Well, I think it's a moment that we will never forget and a moment that sometimes we go back then and we think about the energy and the pure passion that we had, and we put it out there on the court.

I think we played with our hearts. That was the key for winning that match (smiling). For sure, we will always have it in our hearts. For sure, that one gives us a lot of energy for what's coming this week.

Q. Monica, I think it was 2004 that you made your Billie Jean King Cup or Fed Cup debut, as it was then. What's the contrast between then when you were playing at maybe a lower level to now at Finals? How much excitement is there ahead of playing at this level?

MONICA NICULESCU: I don't know the difference, but I just have to say I love this team. We are a very strong team. We communicate well, and we have a lot of fun.

I think that's why the results are coming, because we are a solid -- we are friends, and everything works well when we are together (smiling).

Q. One for the captain. What do you think your team can achieve at the Finals here?

CAPTAIN HORIA-VLAD TECAU: I mean, we are very happy, motivated to be here. It's a great event. Very strong teams.

Looking at our team, I think we have strong singles and strong doubles, so we have the state of mind to dream big. We are taking one day at a time, one training day at a time, and trying to keep the good energy and the focus on the things we can control.

After a long season, it's not much training to be done these last few days. Just to arrive in a good physical and mental state for the matches. With having this team and girls that beat top players before, we can dream big (smiling). Dream big, I mean, going further in late stages of the competition, but then we bring the focus back to the first match.

One thing we do all the time, just to focus on ourselves and then to reset after each win, to keep dreaming big.