00:00Sous-titrage Société Radio-Canada
00:04OK, ready Alina?
00:05All right, we'll do English, then national language.
00:08A tough match out there today.
00:11How did you get through it, especially in that third set?
00:14Yeah, it was definitely a tough one.
00:17I mean, I didn't expect any other kind of match.
00:22Had a couple of big battles against Anna.
00:25Of course, two losses against her.
00:28But yeah, today, for me, it was just important to follow my game plan,
00:35to bring the best fight that I can.
00:38And yeah, I'm just really happy the way that the match ended up with a win for me.
00:44And yeah, tough battle and tiebreak.
00:51Hey, she gave you a hard time in Madrid.
00:54What is bothering you so much in her game?
00:58Well, I think it's difficult to pick one thing because Madrid's altitude is very unique conditions.
01:06Also, you know, if you take my loss against her in New York, also it was like some issues in
01:13a way that it's difficult to say.
01:17That's one thing is something is bothering me, but she just plays really well against me.
01:24I think if you take the matches itself, I think she just serves big, goes down the lines, cleans the
01:34lines and just playing a great tennis.
01:37So, yeah, sometimes happens like this.
01:40I think when people have nothing to lose against you and it's a bit, you know, they are going through
01:48it full and you have to just find a way to win.
01:51Okay, we'll do Ava and Dan, Ava just raise your hands so they can.
01:58Alina, when you've lost two in a row to a player, what do you take from those losses?
02:02Do you try to shut them out?
02:03Can you explain a little bit more about the mindset of someone who's, you know, I know it's not like
02:0810-0 or anything like that, but how does that work?
02:11Yeah, luckily it's not 10-0.
02:15Well, I really sat down with my coach and, you know, talked about things that I can improve for the
02:27upcoming match.
02:29The things that I did well still, you know, in Madrid, it was really bad performance from my side.
02:35She played unbelievable.
02:38And, yeah, I think just find tactically the things that's going to work.
02:45I still beat her two times, so I could, you know, gave me the confidence that I could beat her.
02:50I beat her here as well.
02:54And, yeah, it's just about this, the tactical things that we really focused on and, you know, bringing the fight.
03:04Because when a player is playing great against you, you need to be locked in, still, you know, following your
03:09game plan and, you know, find the ways to win.
03:13I think I played still a good tennis today.
03:16And, yeah, she was sometimes playing great as, like, when in the third set it was 4-5.
03:24I think she won eight points in a row.
03:26I didn't do anything wrong in that moment, but she was just unbelievable.
03:30So you just have to put your head down and keep working and finding the small opportunities to dictate.
03:38Elena, given the conditions and the difficulty of this opponent, where would you rate this among Grand Slam, your toughest
03:45Grand Slam first round matches that you've managed to grind through?
03:49Yeah, definitely. Top three. I don't remember that kind of tough, not only because I played against her, lost against
04:01her, but also I think it was pretty hot.
04:05And, yeah, it was just, yeah, difficult conditions, difficult opponent.
04:12And, yeah, I sat down. I had to really bring that confidence from Rome to step up my game and
04:20keep fighting.
04:22And, in the end, I played some good tennis, second, third set, and I was really locked in.
04:31Congrats on the win today.
04:32I wanted to ask you, yesterday, Marta Kostiuk came in here and she spoke about the impact of missile strikes
04:39in Ukraine
04:40and how, obviously, she had a very close encounter for her family.
04:46She spoke a little bit about how, during the match, it kind of kept popping into her mind and she
04:51had to find a way to focus.
04:53I wonder, for you, obviously, over the years of the war, how much has that happened to you, where, during
04:59matches, you're having to kind of try to block that from your mind?
05:02Does it ever pop into your mind, those kind of challenges and those very difficult things happening back home?
05:08Yes, for sure. And especially the nights like that, like it was two days ago, it was a massive attack
05:15on Kyiv and generally in Ukraine.
05:18I mean, we are kind of used to it, in a way, but, of course, in Marta's case, you know,
05:25when the missile is very close,
05:27landing really close to your home, to your parents, it's just terrifying and you are thinking too much, of course,
05:39you know,
05:39when there are other kind of situations happening like this, you know, you, of course, you start to think about
05:47it,
05:47you start to think about just your life and, like, what are you doing, you know, here, in a way,
05:55because, you know,
05:56you could potentially, you know, lose your family. So, I think it's just for all Ukrainians like that, in general.
06:07We've been dealing with that, just maybe not always talking about this, but this is extremely tough and I think
06:15it's weighing
06:16on us for years and years now. Some nights are easier, some nights are more difficult. Yeah, it's, I think
06:26she handled it amazingly.
06:28And, yeah, it's just really terrifying for us and for all the players who, the families are still back there.
06:42And I think just for Ukrainian people, when you have a massive attack like this, it was over 600 missiles
06:48landing in Ukraine.
06:50And, yeah, you're just, just really down and really don't want to do anything. You just, you know, shut down.
07:01Listen, you've had an amazing career. You've had to deal with so much off the court as well.
07:05Do you like the fact that a lot of people are considering you as a, as a genuine, possible champion
07:12at the end of the fortnight?
07:14Does that start to well in your mind at this stage or are you able to dismiss it and just
07:18focus on the next steps
07:19in what's likely to be a very long and hot fortnight?
07:22No, I'm not thinking too much. I think people are talking too much about it.
07:26I think, yeah, I'm in a good form, but I think there are still players who are more favorites than
07:33me.
07:33I think at least five players who are, who are, you know, still the bigger, they have bigger chances to,
07:41to win the storm.
07:42And so I'm not thinking too much about, about this at all.
07:47I'm just really focused on, firstly, I was really focused on the first round
07:51because it was a big challenge for me and was not sure I would be, I would be in the
07:57second round.
07:58So, yeah, I just put the hard work in.
08:02As always, you know, focus on the recovery, focus on the game plan that I have to execute for my
08:08next round.
08:08And when you are playing well, when you are at the, you know, top of, kind of like in the
08:15ranking, everybody is playing free against you.
08:18And I think like the example of Anna or other players, you know, they have nothing to lose, so they
08:23bring the best game.
08:25And when you get into this position, that's a dangerous position to be in, you need to be, need to
08:31be really, even more kind of focused on the work that you have to do on the court to, to
08:37beat those players, because they are playing the matches of their lives.
08:48Congratulations.
08:49After the first set, it looks sometimes like physically, it could be very difficult for you.
08:55And suddenly you were born again.
08:57And the second set was very impressive.
09:01What keeps you like with your strengths so tough?
09:07Was it experience, the moment or what factor?
09:13And after so many weeks playing so good and so months, what was a key that something made you really
09:22rise a lot?
09:24Yeah, answering your first question, it's about the mental toughness.
09:27Of course, it's not always easy and smooth.
09:32And especially, you know, when you are not playing the way that you want and conditions were really tough, really
09:38hot.
09:38And yeah, I was just trying to focus on my breathing, trying to focus on what I have to do
09:45on the court.
09:45I think with a little bit of nerves, it's normal that sometimes, you know, you're not feeling at your best.
09:51And yeah, for me, it's all about the mental toughness and being really fighting for every single point.
09:59Even if I break point down, I think there was in the third set a really tough game in the
10:05second game.
10:06I think we played over 15 minutes.
10:07And I think only with, you know, just being strong and giving like all my energy into that game really
10:17put me through and put me back on the track because, yeah, you know, I had no right to give
10:25her the lead in the third.
10:27So it's for me, it's been years and years that I work to be mentally, mentally tough, mentally locked in,
10:37playing every single point as the last one.
10:39But of course, on the other hand, you know, it takes a lot out of you, out of your body.
10:45And, uh, sometimes, um, yeah, you can, uh, earlier can get a burned out.
10:51Like for example, you know, it happened to me in the end of last year, um, where in September, you
10:56know, I couldn't anymore like just push myself.
10:59Uh, so that's why I'm still, you know, learning in a way that I could balance, uh, my mental toughness.
11:05When I push myself, you know, in the matches like this, I really push myself.
11:08I go through hell and walls in my, in my head to be still aggressive on the court, to go
11:13for my shots and to, to not play safe.
11:17Because if you play safe, it's, it's not, uh, uh, not the way that champions do.
11:22So, and for me, it takes a lot of, uh, a lot of strength, the inner strength to do that.
11:28So, you know, I'm trying to, to balance that.
11:32And, uh, I think this gives me, of course, good results and, um, good, uh, wins like today.
11:40Um, but, uh, yeah, I have to, to find also the ways where, when I push myself to 100%
11:47that I also, you know, have the, the rest and, uh, the balance of the scheduling.
11:52And, you know, just have myself a good rest before going into the hell again.
12:00All right. Thank you. We'll do national language now. Stay there.
Commentaires