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WESTERN & SOUTHERN OPENAugust 13, 2013Na LiCINCINNATI, OHIO THE MODERATOR: Questions for Li Na, please. Q. Li Na, how does it feel to be back in Cincinnati? Not a bad year for you last year here. NA LI: I just feel like time was running so fast. When I just arrived, I was thinking about oh, I already working with Carlos for a whole year, because we start working last year start in Cincy. So I was feeling, wow. I was feeling like, even I was training one day, it's pretty slow. But if you think about backwards, I was like wow, so fast. Q. How is it going, Li Na, with Carlos? It's been a year. NA LI: I was feeling pretty good. At least we're still working together. Also, I think Carlos for me is not only about the tennis coach because he was teach me a lot out of the court about‑‑ I think he save my marriage. No, because, you know, my husband is not my coach anymore so we're both feeling more relaxed, you know. Q. How has it changed your relationship with your husband? NA LI: Of course we still fight because this is‑‑ I think this is normal. But if husband's the coach before I have to listen to what he say, but I didn't like to listen to what he say on the court. But now if he say something, I say, You're not coach. Why you say something? Why you say that? I just listen what the coach say. But now if my husband, because he also play tennis, he want to say something, he didn't talk to me straightaway. He talked with Carlos and say, Oh, hey, look, Carlos, I think she should do this, she should do that. And now Carlos, Oh, Li Na, I think we should do this. Q. How long did it take for him to get to that point where he went to Carlos instead of going straight to you? NA LI: I mean, I think pretty quickly because, before I have the ex‑coach Michael Mortensen. When I finished with Mortensen, my husband was the coach, so like forward, backward. How do you say, if my husband is not my coach anymore, I can at least (indiscernible). So it's pretty quickly, you know. Yeah. Q. How do you like playing in the U.S.? How does it compare for you like playing in Europe or Australia? How comfortable are you here? NA LI: For me, it's tough when it's jet lag. I have to use at least like three or four days because it's 12 hours difference. It's very tough. So after Toronto, I was coming here and I think I got a little bit of a cold. Here is more humid than Toronto. So for me, I only had the two days to prepare for the first match. Q. What's your feeling like coming to defend a title? How does it feel different than another tournament? NA LI: Before, of course I would think about, Oh, I have to do better because I have to defend the championship. But after one year working with the coach, I'm feeling now I more enjoy the tennis. I don't have to think about the far away. I only have to think about what I actually do on the court. That's all. Q. Does it make tennis more fun for you with Carlos or just less stressful? NA LI: I was feeling more fun, because for a whole year he was talk to me all the time. He say, Relax. I was like, Yeah, I am. He was like, No, no, even more. I was like, Okay. Q. Are you guys working on anything specifically? Like what's the focus between now and the US Open or between now and the end of the year? Anything in your game in particular that you can improve? NA LI: Yeah, because Carlos is not in Toronto, so after we are training. Start yesterday the first time. He was ask me before how is the feeling about Toronto, because he was not there. Yesterday and today we found a little bit of rhythm on the court, and now so he tried to‑‑ how do you say‑‑ after Wimbledon, we tried to as much as I can come to the net. This is the main important thing for me for US Open. Q. So when you're in Toronto without Carlos, does your husband try to become the coach again? NA LI: Yeah, yeah. Q. So how does that work? NA LI: I think it was not bad because my husband also was training with me before we come to Toronto. So I was training with Carlos for two weeks in Beijing and we know exactly what we should do on the court, but sometimes it's tough because I call him come to the coach but I do not listen. It's just like left in, right out. But it was okay because only one week. Q. Li Na, it's been a while now since you won your slam. Do you still feel any pressure of being a slam winner, or is that over now? NA LI: No, I was feeling even this year is much, much, much better. I think the worst for me is 2011, like second half of the year, because I didn't do well on the tennis court and I cannot focus on the court because I have so many things around. I didn't have any experience before what I should do. So, yeah, we have to learn every day. So I learn a lot. Q. Where do you like to eat in Mason? NA LI: Wow, of course I try to find the very good Chinese or Asia food, because for me the maximum is I cannot not have rice for three days, so this for me is terrible. Q. Are there restaurants in Cincinnati that you like? NA LI: Yeah. I always find the one very good because I like spicy food, you know. I was a little bit worried about if I eat too much spicy, maybe the next day it's a little bit dangerous. Q. Li Na, you said you learned during those six months after winning your slam. What are one or two specific things that you learned that you would tell someone new who won maybe? NA LI: Because after I win the Grand Slam I was feeling, wow, I was bringing a lot of pressure for myself. But now I was feeling that, yeah, you're a tennis player. You have to do as much as you can on the court, because just right after winning the Grand Slam I was feeling, Why am I working so hard? Because I can make money easy. But now I know if you didn't do well on the court, no sponsor can find you because they need to see how hard working you are. Q. Li Na, how do you feel about Singapore being the next host of the WTA Championships? It's the first time it's going to be in Asia. NA LI: That's good. I mean, for me at least I don't need to have ‑‑ to be the jet lag. Also, I think it's good for all the top players because, after the US Open starts next year, they have so many tours in Asia. So we don't have traveling to Europe and back to Asia again. So maybe just after China Open we can have one or two weeks training in Asia or somewhere else and come to the Masters. It's much easier. Q. Are you going to host the rest of the players in China for a few weeks there? NA LI: If they want, of course. It's not bad. I can train with them, yeah. Q. So you're saying you don't like American style food? You look for Chinese restaurants in Mason? NA LI: No, I try to lose the weight, you know. I mean, of course I tried American food, but for me, I have to eat the rice. Otherwise, I feel I'm missing something. Q. Li Na, Bartoli, like you, won a slam a little bit later. What did you think when you saw her winning her first slam? NA LI: Because a couple of years ago she was already in the final for Wimbledon, so... Also, she's a pretty hard worker, you know. When I saw she win, I was like, Wow, it's very good for her. After in Toronto I talk to her, and she said, Amazing. The life just changed like totally. So I have the same feeling like her. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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