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AUSTRALIAN OPEN

January 30, 2009

Laura Robson

MELBOURNE, VICTORIA

L. ROBSON/N. Lertcheewakarn
6-4, 6-3

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. You've obviously made the big-time.
LAURA ROBSON: This room is a bit different, yeah (smiling).

Q. Must be great to make the final here, obviously.
LAURA ROBSON: Yeah. I mean, I just did my best today, and that was good enough.
I didn't start so well. I felt really out of energy throughout the whole match really, so it was good to get through it.

Q. Why do you think that was? Do you think it was just sort of accumulation of waiting around...
LAURA ROBSON: Yeah, I think throughout the last couple of days, I've just been getting more and more tired. Then today I was just waiting around for so long. So I think that was the problem really.

Q. Is there anything you learned at Wimbledon that actually helped you here?
LAURA ROBSON: Uhm, this kind of stuff, yeah. That's about it. Oh, and then playing in stadiums, as well.

Q. Used to playing in wide-open places?
LAURA ROBSON: I'm used to playing in smaller courts without - not really seats on the sides, just fences.

Q. The final is in Rod Laver Arena. Have you been in there?
LAURA ROBSON: Nope. I went to watch yesterday Federer. He played really well. Uhm, then I'm looking forward to getting Hawk-Eye again. That's fun.

Q. You were in the stadium watching Federer?
LAURA ROBSON: Yeah, I was.

Q. What did you think of it, the stadium?
LAURA ROBSON: Well, 'cause I'd never seen Federer play like live before, so that was really good.
It's quite a big stadium, yeah.

Q. Will you have a chance to hit there tomorrow morning?
LAURA ROBSON: I think we've booked the court from 11:30 or something, just for a little hit before.

Q. Presumably you've learned a lot this week with the difficulties of waiting around, pacing yourself, drinking enough, and having to cope with the heat.
LAURA ROBSON: Yeah, I probably won't get another week like this for a while in terms of weather. But, uhm, yeah, it's been hard dealing with it. But I got through it, so that's good.

Q. Have you found this week more difficult than you found the week of Wimbledon?
LAURA ROBSON: Yeah, I think so. I don't know. I think at Wimbledon I was kind of like the underdog, and then no one expected me to even do well. So it's nice to get to the final here.

Q. How much contact have you had with people back home, your family and friends, over the last week?
LAURA ROBSON: Well, most of them didn't even know how I was doing, I think, because I went on Facebook this morning, and they were all asking me, What round are you in now? I'm like, Oh, yeah, semis.

Q. And then your parents, do you speak to them each night?
LAURA ROBSON: Uh-huh, yeah. My mum, I told her not to watch on the live score, because I think that's really horrible watching on there. So, uhm, she usually just goes to bed and then she kind of wakes up for my texts to say if I won or not.

Q. Have you spoken to her today?
LAURA ROBSON: She sent me a text because I forgot to send her the score. But she heard from a million other people. So, Yeah, why didn't you send me the score first? Then I actually got a text from my brother, which was strange, yeah.
He usually doesn't send texts. But today, uhm, he said, him and his friends stayed up. He must have not got any sleep.

Q. What do you think your energy levels will be like tomorrow in the final?
LAURA ROBSON: Well, I'm just gonna prepare as well as I can. Then I went in the ice bath again tonight, so...
There's not really much I can do if I'm completely out of energy. But, yeah, I'll just try to prepare as best as I can.

Q. Just hope she's maybe in the same condition as you?
LAURA ROBSON: Yeah, I guess that's all I can hope for.

Q. Has Ann Quinn given you a couple of long chats about what you should and shouldn't be eating?
LAURA ROBSON: Well, we have the nutritionist at NTC anyway, so we already have an idea of what we should and shouldn't be eating.
But, uhm, she's given me some, like, jelly snakes, so those are good. Also like the energy gels, but those don't taste so good, no.

Q. So what's on the dinner menu tonight?
LAURA ROBSON: I just had dinner actually. I just had pasta.

Q. Favorite color of jelly snakes?
LAURA ROBSON: The dark red one. I think that's -- I'm not sure what flavor that is. But that's definitely the best.

Q. Safina said today if she wins tomorrow she's going to have chocolate cake. How do you think you'll celebrate if you win?
LAURA ROBSON: Uhm, I don't know. I want to go shopping, yeah. I heard Chapel Street is quite good.
Also, I got my letter from Safin, the birthday card.

Q. What did he say?
LAURA ROBSON: Well, because it turns out that Sven didn't like get the card in time, so he got him to write on a piece of paper. Then he put the piece of paper in the card.
It just said, Happy birthday and all the best. But it's good enough for me.

Q. You need to run into Serena and ask her best shops on Chapel Street.
LAURA ROBSON: I heard she's quite a good shopper. I think she has a bit more money to spend than me, though.

Q. What's on your list? Bags? Shoes? Clothes?
LAURA ROBSON: Anything, you know. I haven't gone shopping in a long time, so...
It will be fun. I'll go with my sister.

Q. At least one British television station was talking about broadcasting the final live. It's going to be live on the radio services of the tournament. Do you think there will be any interest in that through the night in the UK?
LAURA ROBSON: I don't know. I don't know how many people are interested really.
But, well, from how many people watched the Wimbledon final, there might be a couple people willing to stay up. Then I have a feeling that the Rod Laver Arena won't be completely jam-packed like Court 1 was.

Q. Do you think your brother will stay up again?
LAURA ROBSON: Uhm, he said he will. I don't really know if he's certain on that, though.

Q. Away from the tournament here, have people recognized you at all?
LAURA ROBSON: Huh-uh.

Q. Not at all?
LAURA ROBSON: No. It's good.

Q. You like that?
LAURA ROBSON: Yeah.

Q. It was different, wasn't it, after Wimbledon?
LAURA ROBSON: Uhm, not for very long. Yeah, that was nice. Straight after Wimbledon, two days after actually, I went to Amsterdam for training with my coach. So a couple of people recognized me at the airport.
They actually made an announcement on the plane, which was really embarrassing. I was sitting right at the back. Literally, the whole plane just turned around and went (gawking). That wasn't very fun, but now it's fine.

Q. After your match I saw you signing autographs. Did you enjoy doing that?
LAURA ROBSON: The little kids are really cute, so I don't mind doing theirs.

Q. Did you collect autographs?
LAURA ROBSON: I did, yeah. I remember when I was really young, maybe like nine, we did an exhibition at Wimbledon. We didn't actually get to play because it got rained out that day.
But I spent the whole day running around. I had my little badge to get into Aorangi. I was running around all day with my big ball trying to get people to sign it?

Q. Who?
LAURA ROBSON: I think Hewitt and Clijsters signed it. And Dementieva, I think. I've still got that ball at home.

End of FastScripts

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