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TEB BNP PARIBAS WTA CHAMPIONSHIPS

October 25, 2011

Vera Zvonareva

ISTANBUL, TURKEY

P. KVITOVA/V. Zvonareva
6-2, 6-4

THE MODERATOR: Questions for Vera.

Q. Can you just talk about the match and also your shoulder that was bothering you and about your serve.
VERA ZVONAREVA: Well, my shoulder is much better than my last match, so of course I feel it a little bit, but I think you won't find any player that doesn't find something by the end of the year. So it's good. It's good enough to play. It's good enough to perform, so I'm happy about that.
And about the match, um, I think Petra played a very good match. She didn't really give me many chances in the first set. And second set I was able to turn it around a little bit, but, yeah, I just couldn't convert few chances that I had and made few unforced errors.
But I think overall I played, you know, a decent match. It was not my best tennis, but it was a decent match. She just played much better today than I did. She was going for her shots, and she was making a lot of those.

Q. She's beaten you on clay but not on hard. What about indoors? Different kind of ball that comes off of her racquet?
VERA ZVONAREVA: You know, it's different everywhere. Everywhere we play it's a little bit different surface, a little bit different balls, so you have to adjust to the court, to each conditions, and you cannot really compare, you know, a lot of those tournaments because each one is different.
I wouldn't say her ball is different. It's just the way the court plays, the way the ball flies. You have to make little adjustments. She just outplayed me today. That's it.

Q. You were talking about the court speed. How is the court playing?
VERA ZVONAREVA: Um, I think it's pretty, I don't know, normal, I would say. It's not fast; it's not slow. It's playing okay. It's playing good. It's nice.
And I'm not used to playing on a green court. We are used to playing on blue courts now since a while, but it's very nice.
I think the atmosphere was very good today. We got a lot of support, and a lot of people came to watch. So it was -- you know, overall it was a great atmosphere to be out there.

Q. You look a little tired. What do you think about your conditions in the end of this season?
VERA ZVONAREVA: I feel good. I don't know. I feel good at the end of the season. I think maybe, yes, maybe I'm not as fresh as I was in the beginning, so maybe it's the reason why I'm a little bit slow on the court. But overall I'm feeling okay.
I think it's just maybe my speed is not the same. Maybe my movement is not the same. But I feel good.

Q. Do you feel that time for the rest enough, like now, and no need tomorrow time for rest between the seasons?
VERA ZVONAREVA: What do you mean? Like...

Q. I mean like should it to be more time for rest before season or it's enough?
VERA ZVONAREVA: Oh. There are some pluses and there are some minuses. Those people that played a lot of matches throughout the season, and I'm among them, um, those people that play until the end including the Championships and including the Fed Cup, well, it will be good to have extra weeks of rest, for sure, because we are pretty tired and we had a long season.
But those players that weren't involved, for example, here in the Championships or the Fed Cup tournament and those players that played maybe twice less matches than I did during last season, for them, maybe they need to play. It's enough time before the new season.
So you cannot really say if it's too long or too short, no? It's just, for each player, is different. Tennis is an individual sport, and you can't make it perfect for everybody, because our schedule is based on our performance. We don't have fixed amount of matches that we have to play, and you cannot make it equal to everybody. So everyone has got to make right choices in their own scheduling. That's it.

Q. (Through translation.) How did you find the atmosphere and spectators tonight?
VERA ZVONAREVA: I think it was great. I haven't expected something like this. And when we both walked on the court, everyone was applauding and everyone was supporting us during the match, and I think it's incredible.
It was just the first match here at the Championships, and, you know, Istanbul has a smaller event, tennis event, but this one is very big, big event, and it's amazing how people are interested in tennis and how people know about tennis. And they really knew when to support and they really knew when to cheer.
So I think overall it was a great atmosphere, like I said earlier, to be out there, and I felt like unbelievable on the court. It was nice to see the whole stadium full.

Q. (Through translation.) I would like to refer to the second set when you seemed like you were caught off-balance and you seemed to almost slip three times. Does this have anything to do with your shoulder injury or the fact of the choice of shoes you had for today?
VERA ZVONAREVA: (Smiling.) I don't think it has to do with either my shoulder or my shoes. I think it has to do something with me. Every single match I play I'm falling down. I'm tripping on something.
I don't know. I don't know what's wrong with me, but I do a lot of sliding. I do a lot of like getting to the balls. I don't know. It's just me. I have been like this since I was a kid. If you watch me play when I am like 12 years old, you will find me on the ground like 50 times.
So I don't know. It's something. I think I'm doing much better right now.

Q. You played in LA. Did you play in Madrid?
VERA ZVONAREVA: No. Madrid, no.

Q. But you played in Doha. You talked about the atmosphere. Can you compare the venues, what they're like a little bit from your memories?
VERA ZVONAREVA: Well, I think, um, this event is actually is one of the best ones thus far, because usually in the first day, first match at 5:00 during the weekday, you know, it's hard for people to come.
Here we had a full stadium, and that's impressive. You know, usually a lot of people are able to come and watch tennis on the weekends, and during the weekdays they have to work.
And here it feels like people planned and they knew about it. I think that was a great atmosphere, and I think the way we have been introduced on the court, they really trying hard for that, and, you know, it's -- I felt it was a great atmosphere.
Doha, it was a special event, as well. You know, I always played well in Doha, so it was special for me. But I think also everyone welcomed us really well out there.
I don't know. Each place is special. You cannot really compare, but I think, you know, I enjoyed playing today even though, you know, I lost my match, but still I enjoyed a lot. And, you know, every time I played in Doha, I enjoyed it a lot. I played in Los Angeles. I enjoyed it a lot.
It's end of the year. It's eight best players. So each place is special, I think.

Q. Obviously the good thing about this event is you obviously have two matches left or maybe more. Obviously Wozniacki and Radwanska are two different players to Kvitova. How are you going to approach that match?
VERA ZVONAREVA: Definitely each player is different, but I think Agnieszka and Caroline, they are a little bit different style. And Petra, she's more aggressive and she's a lefty. So of course I will have another day. Maybe I'm playing tomorrow. So I will have another practice session, and we will try to work on a few things that might help me in the matches against Agnieszka or Caroline.
I'm sure that against them I have to be a little bit more patient because rallies will probably be longer. I just have to be ready for that, and that's it.

Q. Usually when you play a tennis match and you lose in a tournament, you're out of the tournament.
VERA ZVONAREVA: Uh-huh.

Q. Here the situation is different. You're obviously not down like you would be if you would have been out in another tournament. Do you like this formula, and would you like to see maybe more tournaments during the year with, you know, guarantees of a minimum number of matches for you during a week?
VERA ZVONAREVA: You know, I like this formula because it is the end of the year, and you have to play against best players, and if you lose against someone, you always have another chance to do a little bit better.
And I think it is great. Regarding other events, I think it's going to be a little bit too difficult, because we do play a lot of matches during the season, and if we have to play extra matches, you know, it's going to be very difficult.
At least this way, if you're out of the tournament early, you have extra week or maybe two based on your schedule to maybe take few days off and prepare yourself for the next tournament.
We have too many great players. Then we have to always play against each other in the round robin formats, it's going to be too tough. You know, we have to play almost every day during the regular tournament, and it's already very difficult.
At the Championships, it's different, you know. You really want, you know, another chance because you have to face best players, and I think it's great. You know, that's why, you know, I know that maybe I didn't show my best today, but that's why I have courage to go back on the court tomorrow and try to, you know, to play a little bit better. Hopefully I can play my best tennis here.

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