home jobs contact us
Our Clients:
Browse by Sport
Find us on ASAP sports on Facebook ASAP sports on Twitter
ASAP Sports RSS Subscribe to RSS
Click to go to
Asaptext.com		 ASAPtext.com
ASAP Sports e-Brochure View our
e-Brochure

FEDCUP WORLD GROUP PLAY-OFFS: SWEDEN v USA


April 17, 2013


Sofia Arvidsson

Johanna Larsson

Lars-Anders Wahlgren


DELRAY BEACH, FLORIDA

THE MODERATOR:  We'll take questions for the Swedish team.

Q.  So Johanna and Sofia, assuming you're going to be the singles players.  Talk about the tie and coming in here.  I would assume you guys probably see yourself as the underdog.
JOHANNA LARSSON:  Yeah, I mean, it's pretty difficult to see ourself as the favorite when we're playing against the No. 1 Serena on the team.  Yeah, we all see ourselves as underdogs.
It's Fed Cup.  Everything is possible.  We are extremely happy to be here.  It's what we been fighting for so many years, to get a match like this and to get up to World Group.
So we're just really excited and happy to be here.
SOFIA ARVIDSSON:  Yeah, we're really excited to be here and trying to prepare very well.  No doubt they have a very powerful team, but, yeah, it'll be fun matches.

Q.  What do you guys think of the venue?  Full weekend here, but what have been your first impressions of South Florida?
SOFIA ARVIDSSON:  I think everything is great, the hotel and the court, the whole Delray Beach.  We're having a good time.

Q.  It's basically clay court season now.  Is it hard to be playing on hard courts?  Have you started your clay season?
JOHANNA LARSSON:  Well, yeah, I mean, I'm looking forward to the clay court season, but I don't think it matters that much that it's hard court right now.  Me and Sofia have been playing hard court up until this match.
There is no big difference.  We're used to it.

Q.  Captain, how do you prepare your team for coming in against, as Johanna said, the No. 1 player in the world, U.S. venue and stuff?
CAPTAIN WAHLGREN:  I think as Johanna has been saying also, it's very exciting to be here.  It's a great opportunity for all the players on our team to really step up and really, really feel like what it is to play against the big, big favorites, the U.S. team.
Last month against Argentina we were the favorites, and completely.  It's a different situation than right now to be the favorites and probably right now to be the underdog.
It's a good feeling when I think our team is training very well this week.  We came here Sunday, and we are preparing well every day.  We're feeling really good.  Everything is great here.
Also to be the underdogs and don't have the pressure.  No one expects us to win, but it's a really fun and nice feeling to go out there.  I know all the girls on our team, all four girls, are in good form, so I'm excited.
Good feeling.

Q.  Lars, what would a victory in this, no matter how improbable, mean for this team and a country as a whole?
CAPTAIN WAHLGREN:  A victory for Sweden to win here in the U.S.?  Probably the biggest thing that would happen in Swedish ladies tennis ever if we would do that.
But of course America is favorites with four very good players, highly ranked.  But you never know.  Our players think everything is possible.  They played most of the girls in the U.S. team and have had some close, tough matches.  We have been practicing with almost all of them as well.  We know them well.
Of course, U.S. team is very good team, but we have a very good team here from Sweden.

Q.  This is for whoever wants to take it, but are you a fan of the y the Fed Cup is played, the two singles on Saturday and two singles on Sunday with the doubles last, as opposed to maybe Davis Cup schedule or some other idea?
SOFIA ARVIDSSON:  I think it's good to play in two days.  Maybe the doubles could have been played in between, but it's kind of hard if you only have two days.
Yeah, I don't know.  I like it.

Q.  Have you been doing anything fun in Delray Beach?
JOHANNA LARSSON:  We did some running on the beach yesterday.
SOFIA ARVIDSSON:  Yeah, we went running and played some soccer and threw some Frisbee.  We're going to play some volleyball.
JOHANNA LARSSON:  Really nice town.  (Indiscernible) is actually a big talent in volleyball.  (Laughter.)

Q.  What's it like having a captain on the court with you for the whole match?  I know on the WTA you can call your coach on for once a set or something, but what is it like having somebody on every changeover sitting there with you?
JOHANNA LARSSON:  It's actually a little bit different than what we're used to.  When we play on the tour, it's usually me, myself, and I out there.  You also have to control your emotions and be able to listen to the tips.
If you have a good coach and player relationship, I think you can have a really good advantage from it.  Yeah, I think it's nice.  It's something that we take advantage of.

Q.  Do you use the WTA rule often, and are you a fan of it?
JOHANNA LARSSON:  I'm both a fan and I also don't like it.

Q.  Can you explain that then?
JOHANNA LARSSON:  No, I mean, I think it's very difficult for a coach to come in as an outsider and get the feeling of how the player a feeling in that amount of few seconds that it actually takes in a changeover.
At the same time, if you have a good coach and player relationship, you can have a good advantage from it like that.
So I'm a little bit in between.  Right now I like it.

Q.  Sofia, how do you feel about it?
SOFIA ARVIDSSON:  I think it's good.  Sometimes the coach sees things different and coming up with some good stuff.
Yeah, I like it.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports
About ASAP Sports • FastScripts Archive • Recent Interviews • Captioning • Upcoming Events • Contact Us
FastScripts | Events Covered | Our Clients | Other Services | ASAP in the News | Site Map | Job Opportunities | Links
ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297