BILLIE JEAN KING CUP

November 15, 2024

Matej Liptak

Viktoria Hruncakova

Tereza Mihalikova

Team Slovakia

Press Conference

HRUNCAKOVA-MIHALIKOVA/Krueger-Townsend

6-3, 3-6, 10-8

Team Slovakia - 2

Team USA - 1

THE MODERATOR: Congratulations for the victory. Questions.

Q. Congratulations. Can I start with Viktoria? Your emotions just showed how much that meant to you. Can you sum up how it felt to finally clinch it, I think it was on the seventh match point?

VIKTORIA HRUNCAKOVA: I stopped counting, to be honest. It felt amazing. We lost couple of deciding doubles in the past, which hurt a lot back then and still does when I remember it, when I think about it.

Yeah, so this time I really, really wanted to win. We both did. And we did absolutely everything we could. That final moment when Tereza did that smash, I have no words, to be honest.

Q. You kind of had to reset after that second set where they had kind of come back. How did you do that? What kind of messages were you talking to each other about? What was going through your minds?

VIKTORIA HRUNCAKOVA: Yeah, I mean, it's always about little things. They are both amazing players, so you can kind of expect that something can go wrong. We lost a serve, I think, in the beginning of the second set, that kind of was a bigger deal a little bit.

They started to put more returns into the court. They started to play better than in the first set. Yeah, it was one break, and in doubles, you know, it goes quick.

So we're just very happy that that super-tiebreak went our way.

Q. Tereza, I just wonder, how much were you inspired by Rebecca's performance in the second match? Because she obviously played incredibly and set you guys up in an amazing way, had that momentum, I guess, behind you.

TEREZA MIHALIKOVA: I think it was incredible, and she brought the energy. I think she brought the fans, the fire, everything.

It was just, I mean, Rebecca is having amazing season now, end of the season, and I don't know. I think we have a strong team. All four singles girls are strong. We were actually hoping that someone can win a match that we can go for deciding doubles, because I feel I think for us we are always very excited to go for the deciding doubles, because it's more fun that way. The stress and the emotions are much bigger, and you can play your best tennis.

When you win, it's the best feeling. When you lose, you're very down, but you just give everything, because this match at that moment is the most important. It was amazing, the energy, the team, and I'm very happy that we won.

Q. Matej, you were obviously living it on the sidelines there. I think we spoke a few days ago, and you said your team wanted to maybe spring a surprise. I think you did that. Can you sum up your emotions and your feelings about how your team performed today?

CAPTAIN MATEJ LIPTAK: I mean, it's unbelievable, unbelievable feeling. That was the hope that the way it can be like that maybe we win one single and then we will play the deciding doubles.

For sure we believed somewhere in the back that we can win also two singles, but the most belief was that we can do it this way.

I'm really proud for the girls, because they really deserve this, and our atmosphere in the team and believing and heart for the country is unbelievable. We are really happy, and we are looking forward for the next match.

Q. Looking ahead to Australia next, can you just comment on that. Do you think you have shown as a team today how far you can go and how well you can do in this competition?

CAPTAIN MATEJ LIPTAK: It's another big country, another big tennis country. So it's another challenge for a small country. So we'll see. I mean, everything we will show on the court, I think we showed it today, and I hope it will be the same or maybe better in the day when we play to Australia.

We are confident after this, for sure, but it's next day, next match, and we need to prepare the players and be ready for it.