QATAR TOTAL ENERGIES OPEN

February 11, 2025

Elena Rybakina

Press Conference

E. RYBAKINA/P. Stearns

6-2, 6-4

THE MODERATOR: We'll get started with the press conference. Elena, congratulations on the win. What were the keys to the match today?

ELENA RYBAKINA: Started the match really well. I had a little bit of issues closing the match, but overall happy that I managed to win in two sets and get through another round.

THE MODERATOR: Questions.

Q. What is Sanguinetti adding to your tennis, and what do you like most about him as a coach?

ELENA RYBAKINA: I think he's a very nice person, and for now I'm really happy the way we work the week before Abu Dhabi and the time we spend in Abu Dhabi. He's very positive and he gives good advice. Of course, I have a lot of things to work on to still improve, so we're trying to do a bit of everything.

Q. When do you expect WTA to finish the thing with Stefano and allow you to work with him?

ELENA RYBAKINA: Well, I would expect this to be finished as soon as possible, but this is not something in my hands, and I'm not making any decisions, unfortunately.

Q. How difficult is it for you to work this way, with one coach here and another coach by phone?

ELENA RYBAKINA: Well, it's not a good situation to be in, and as I said before, I cannot do much in this situation, no one really listen to me, and my opinion didn't take in any consideration. So, I'm not happy with the situation, but the only thing I can do now is wait.

Q. But why did you stop working with Stefano in the off-season?

ELENA RYBAKINA: It was a decision in a moment when I was feeling bad physically, and I had some health issues, so I had to stop and I was not playing for two months. But again, it was a lot of things going on also outside, and I think a lot of players stop with the coach, and then they want to continue, and this is an agreement between player and the coach, so, yeah.

Q. When you win the coin toss before the start of the match, maybe you prefer to choose serve, but is there any reason behind that, or sometimes do you choose return?

ELENA RYBAKINA: No, I always prefer to choose the serve. I think that's a good way for me to start the match.

Q. On which surface would you play the match of your life, on grass or hard court?

ELENA RYBAKINA: Well, the biggest results for now is on grass, so probably on grass. The whole statistic is, of course, better on grass, but I really like hard court, and I think I can play good also on clay, so, yeah, all the surfaces are fine for me, but of course I would prefer something faster.

Q. Mirra Andreeva might be your next opponent, what do you think about her?

ELENA RYBAKINA: She's a tough opponent, very young, a lot of energy, she's defending really well. Yeah, it's going to be a difficult match, for sure.