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DUBAI DUTY FREE TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS WOMENFebruary 22, 2012Caroline WozniackiDUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES C. WOZNIACKI/S. Halep THE MODERATOR: Questions, please. Q. You're kind of used to defending titles these days, aren't you? Does it feel any different to come back and defend a title? CAROLINE WOZNIACKI: It definitely does. It's a great feeling to be back. You see your pictures everywhere. I see my picture together with all the other champions, and lifting the trophy, it's a great feeling. I wish it could be like this every week. But, yeah, it's a tournament that I enjoy playing. The crowds were decent today as well compared to the previous days. So it's nice to see that I have some fans here. They were definitely yelling pretty loud out there. Q. After loses early last week, is it good to get back on court straightaway, the next week? CAROLINE WOZNIACKI: Yeah, it is. There's one thing I really dislike about tennis, and that is if you lose early that you have to wait a whole week watching everyone else play. You have to practice again and again. I'm like, Just get me on the court, get my playing, get me going again. I lost to a player last week who played really well against me. It was unfortunate or unlucky, but I'm happy to get through this first round for me and actually already be through the quarterfinals, which is nice. Q. Considering you've had a week to dwell upon your last result, how would you say your played tonight? How would you assess your game? CAROLINE WOZNIACKI: I think I played pretty okay. It's tough to play an opponent who has played four matches already on these courts. They're used to courts, the balls the flight of the ball. It's always different from tournament to tournament. Practice and real matches is not the same, so for me it was really great to get through this match against a player who is really on fire, who has beaten some good players as well, and who actually, I think, played a pretty good match today. Took the balls early, tried to decide. So, yeah, I'm pleased about that. Q. How different is it to last week? The two tournaments are very, very close and same‑ we think‑ same surface. CAROLINE WOZNIACKI: It's different. Here it's a bit faster and the balls go through the air faster a well. In Doha it was a little bit heavy for some reason and the court was a bit slower. Q. Looking ahead to your next match, you play Ana. How did you approach that match? CAROLINE WOZNIACKI: Well, it's gonna be a tough match again. Ana, you know, has played really well today, and the first match against Schiavone she just ripped the ball. So I know Ana very well as well. Great girl. Just going to go out there and fight and do my best to try to win the match. Q. Vika obviously withdrew today and Petra Kvitova is not here. Does that add extra pressure on you? Obviously you're the defending champion anyway, but you're the highest seed left in the draw. CAROLINE WOZNIACKI: No. I think for the last two or three years where I've been pretty high in the rankings I've been used to being the top seed, or one of the top seeds, so that's only a good thing. You know, Vika has had a great start to the year. I'm sure her body is feeling very tired at the moment, and she needed the rest before Indian Wells. Petra, I'm not sure. I think it's her Achilles. You know, injuries happen in tennis. Just need to be happy when you're healthy. Q. Have you spoken to Vika? Were you aware that she wasn't fully fit? And have you spoken to her since or had a chance to? CAROLINE WOZNIACKI: About these things you really don't talk. You're not waking around and saying, I'm not fit, I'm not fit. So, yeah, actually didn't know until I came out here. Actually was on my way over here. I heard that they've changed a little bit in the schedule. I was like, Why didn't I play at 7:00 then? (Smiling.) Q.You've changed the thing around your neck. It's not your usual Danish flag gift that you received. CAROLINE WOZNIACKI: Well, to be honest, I always had this four leaf clover on my bracelet, and actually two days ago it just broke off and it disappeared. It's something that has meant a lot to me. So when I didn't have the clover on my hand, I just thought, Okay, I'll have the cross and maybe‑‑ I don't know, this was something that meant extremely much to me, so I was a bit upset a few days ago. I just thought maybe this can give a little bit of, I don't know, substitution. Q. With Vika, obviously she's now the new world No. 1, that's presumably where you want to get back to in your professional career. Is it harder to sort of target or have a friend as a target, someone you're close to in the rankings? CAROLINE WOZNIACKI: No, not really. To be honest, you target your opponent when you're playing on the court on that day. You know, can be a friend, can be one you don't really know too well, one you have played millions of times, and one you haven't played. Doesn't really matter. Then of course the rankings ‑‑ if you play well, the ranking will be there and you will keep being up there at the to. If you're No. 1, No. 5, No. 10, you know, it can change. But if your level is high, you'll manage a way to stay up around the top. You'll always have periods where you play unbelievable tennis and periods where maybe you play good. But, you know, it's just about form and about peaking at the right times. Q. Now you're neighbors. Have you actually been in your apartments at the same time since you moved in? CAROLINE WOZNIACKI: Yeah, we have. Quite a lot actually. At least five or six weeks, I think. I would say five weeks maybe where we've both been there at the same time. Daniela is just living down the road as well. She's been there quite a bit at well. I know she's going there after this tournament, so going to see her there. I'm not sure what Vika's plans are. I'm sure she wants to go home to Belarus. Q. Yeah. CAROLINE WOZNIACKI: And then, yeah, Novak is living in the building next to me, so I'm living right in the middle. Q. Do you see a lot of them? Do you socialize? CAROLINE WOZNIACKI: We see each other a lot because we practice at the same place and use the same gym. In summers we all go just across the street and you're at beach. You bump into each other whether you want to or not. It's nice. It's nice have to some friends there and someone you can talk to and be around. Yeah, it's great. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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