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

THE CHAMPIONSHIPS


July 3, 2018


Johanna Konta


Wimbledon, London, England

J. KONTA/N. Vikhlyatseva

7-5, 7-5

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. That looked like a bit of a struggle out there. A tough task for you.
JOHANNA KONTA: It was a tough match. She has a big game. She hits quite tricky on grass, as you know. When someone serves well, when someone has a good first strike, that makes it quite tricky out there. She did a good job, I think, on playing her tennis. She made me work for it very hard.

It was a great match for me to have. It was a great match for me to battle through and fight through until literally the very last point.

Q. What things are you most proud of out there today?
JOHANNA KONTA: I think just the way I kept regrouping. It would have been easy to get discouraged when I got broken at 4-2 after coming so close to breaking her again at 4-2, is that right, then getting broken at 4-3. I think the way I competed and the way I just kept going after every single point, I think I can take a lot from that, as well as not always coming through at some points.

Yeah, I think just basically the way I fought.

Q. Do you think saving those set points in the second set, that's the kind of thing that's going to help you as you build your campaign this fortnight?
JOHANNA KONTA: For sure. I think it's the tough matches, the ones where there's quite a bit of ebb and flow, when you save set points or you save breakpoints, those are the matches where you come away feeling quite tough.

I think the matches where things are a lot more straightforward for you, obviously you take the good things from that, maybe the level you played. But in terms of the way you competed out there, these matches ask a lot more of you. I definitely felt I can take a lot of good things and a lot of trust in how I'm able to compete out there regardless of how the match is, how I'm playing, what the conditions are like.

I think I have control over how I'm able to compete.

Q. What was your internal expectation with what you did last year? I know you only have one win. Do you think it's possible to replicate that, a similar run to last year?
JOHANNA KONTA: I'm not playing this year's Championships on how I played last year. It's a completely separate year, separate Championships. I take forward the incredible experience and the memories of last year, and I thank them very much. But I'm here as a 2018 Johanna Konta. I'm playing it on the challenges and the triumphs of here and now.

I'm just looking forward to really fighting my way through as many rounds as I can.

Q. There's another big match tonight. Will you be watching England?
JOHANNA KONTA: Most likely. Yes, most definitely. Whether it's my choice or not, I have a boyfriend at home who is very excited about the match. But I've been actually watching some of the World Cup. Yesterday Japan played against Belgium. Oh, that was heartbreaking for Japan at the end, wasn't it? I don't know if you watched it. Geez, the last 30 seconds. Talk about having your heart in your mouth there.

No, I'll be watching today.

Q. Talking of home expectation, with Andy out, you're the Brit with the best record here. How do you feel about the expectation of that? How much will your experience last year here help you?
JOHANNA KONTA: Again, the only expectations I need to measure up are my own. I've said that from the very beginning. I love playing here. I love playing at home in general. I think just to come back into this part of the season, starting in Nottingham, ending it here, I'm really taking full advantage of really enjoying this part of the season.

Then at the same time I'm continuously looking to play at a higher and a higher level. I want to get better. I want to be playing against the best players in the world on a consistent basis.

In terms of specifically here and what other people expect of me, I don't have much control over that, so I don't really spend much time thinking about it.

Q. Victoria Azarenka said last night that there's been some discussions in the players union about improving maternity rights and facilities for the women players coming back after giving birth. You're on the players council. Can you give us any insight into that?
JOHANNA KONTA: I actually couldn't make the last players council meeting, which is here. If that was a topic of conversation, actually I wasn't present. I haven't been caught up on what has been spoken about.

I do remember the one previously, that there have been changes made in terms of aligning the maternity leave according to what the injury leave is basically, to align the two and have the same amount of time to be able to come back.

Previously and wrongly it was shorter, which didn't make much sense. I think it's been aligned correctly. But that's all I know really. I don't know what the facilities are like. I think Vika will know better because she comes into contact with it.

Q. The fans certainly got behind you when you were playing today. There were quite a few empty seats. As Britain's leading lady, people might expect there to be more people watching you. Was that disappointing for you? Are you getting the sense they're not getting behind you for some reason?
JOHANNA KONTA: Towards the end of the match I didn't see many empty seats at all. Are you referring at the end of the match?

Q. In the middle of the match.
JOHANNA KONTA: Well, I mean, I think the way Championships works, the way Grand Slams works, there's a lot of people milling about. There's a lot of tennis to be watched. I don't take it personally. There's a lot of exciting tennis out there.

But all I can comment is when I did look around the crowd when I finished my match, it looked pretty full to me. That was a nice feeling.

Whoever comes and watches, I mean, as long as they're enjoying the tennis that they're there to experience, that's the best I can do.

Q. Shot clock is coming at the US Open. Wimbledon said they'll probably have it next year. Do you have any thoughts on it, a good innovation?
JOHANNA KONTA: I think it's for fan experience more than anything, I believe. I think the way society is now, people are quite impatient. People don't like to wait for things. I think everyone's looking for instant gratification. So I think it just speeds things up in that manner.

I personally, I'm not a massive fan of it personally. I think it's a big ask for especially some of the men and the women when we get into the men's fifth set and the women's third set. I think there's got to be some humane judgment from the umpire, as well, when we're in the third hour, after two and a half hours, we've played a lot of long back-to-back points. I think there's got to be a bit of give-and-take there.

We'll see how it goes. I mean, I'm sure there's a number of players, myself included, I get quite a few soft warnings at times. So we'll see how it goes. Yeah, I think it's going to be trial and error.

Q. A number of players like Alexander Zverev have spoken out and criticized the amount of single-use plastics you use at sporting tournaments. Do you have any thoughts about tournaments like Wimbledon should help save the ocean and get rid of their single-use plastics?
JOHANNA KONTA: Well, I know that the step has been taken already with straws, but I think that's a government-run thing, isn't it? It's like it's the whole of the UK that has brought in that law, right? Wimbledon have abided. I know we can see the cardboard straws.

In terms of water bottles and things like that, at home personally I don't have water bottles at home. I have a filtration system. I have glass containers which I then put in the fridge. I try not to use plastic bags or anything like that.

I think you speak to Evian probably more than Wimbledon. Yeah, I mean, I think it's a battle that everyone is facing. Yeah, no, I'm a big fan of looking after our planet because we've only got one.

Q. You had five or six match points. Is one of your takeaways from today is maybe as the opposition gets stronger, you need to be more clinical at those moments?
JOHANNA KONTA: I think my opponent also has a say in how those match points go. From what I remember, there was one where she hit incredibly deep. Actually, I didn't do too much. I was trying to combat the weight of her shots in some of those points.

Granted, I was probably nervous as well there. But, I mean, I felt I did the best that I could.

Q. What controls your nerves in those moments?
JOHANNA KONTA: I think what I did. I continued to crack on. Nerves are going to be there. Nerves are there for everybody. I am definitely not special in that sense.

But, no, I think I competed well. I dealt with the occasion. If it was going to split and go into a third, I was going to continue to compete, I was going to fight very hard.

Q. You got Dominika Cibulkova next. Your thoughts on that matchup?
JOHANNA KONTA: I'm looking forward to it. She's probably one of the best competitors on tour, has been for quite some time. She's a feisty player. I think it will be a great test for me to keep a good kind of focus on controlling what I can, accept that she's going to fight her way into some points and really stay there until the very end. That's a good ask of me to make sure that I stay there, like, equally the same.

Q. With all the other Brits who played first couple of days here, how aware are you of the other matches?
JOHANNA KONTA: I mean, I'm kind of aware of what's going on. I saw Kyle won earlier. I was getting a massage, also seeing the score. I saw that one. I know Harriet lost yesterday in a really tough, tight match against Karolina. I think she's probably going to take a lot of good things from that. I know Katie won? Katie won?

Q. You didn't see it?
JOHANNA KONTA: I haven't seen anybody literally. Actually, no, I saw Gabby Taylor downstairs in the warmup area. I think she was getting ready to go on for her match. I saw her from the distance.

Yeah, I think that's all. No, I know Naomi just played Garbine. I think Liam lost yesterday. Actually, I've done pretty well (smiling). Look at me. Without even realizing, it's amazing how much you pick up.

Q. How do you reflect on the last 12 months as a whole? After a very strong upward curve, there have been some tougher moments, tougher results the last 12 months.
JOHANNA KONTA: For sure. Obviously last year I think was an incredible experience for me in terms of how you can have two very different experiences in one season. Obviously I won a boatload of matches in that first half of the season. In the second half, I only won two after Wimbledon. Difficulties and triumphs in completely different ways.

I definitely started this year with looking to rebuild my match fitness, match confidence, identity in how I want to conduct myself, how I want to play out there day after day really, and work up to the opportunities to be able to play many matches in succession.

But I think everything happens for a reason, so I'm really happy where I am in my career. I'm really happy with the challenges that I have because I think they will also help me post-tennis in how I deal with adversity, how I deal with my own struggles. I think it's a massive learning curve which I'm really grateful for.

Q. You talked about your baking quite a lot last year, how that helped to take the edge off. It's early days, I'm wondering what extracurricular activities you have going on at the minute on the side? I think you also promised Novak Djokovic some gluten-free treats.
JOHANNA KONTA: Well, I mean, if it was only gluten-free. I have a lot more criteria to meet than that. I will try.

He's a no sugar, no dairy, but I can do alternatives to sugar, Xylitol, alternatives to dairy, coconut milk, almond milk. I haven't thought up or even researched a recipe for something like that.

However, I'm really proud of this. I don't know if you follow me on social media, but I made a Pavlova for the first time a couple days ago. It was the first time I ever made meringue. It was a strawberry, mint and elderflower Pavlova, and it looked unbelievable. It also tasted really good. It was the first time I ever had meringue or Pavlova in general. I didn't know what to expect. I kept looking to my boyfriend, Is it good? Is it good? He said it was good, but I'll take it.

So, yeah, I feel quite chuffed about that one. I actually cook a lot more than I bake. I don't post it as much. I think I need to post my cooking more, like I marinated lamb two nights ago, made it last night. That was very good. I think I'm going to make a traybake this afternoon, this evening. I still have the elderflower cordial, so I'm going to make raspberry and elderflower traybake. You might see the big box coming in.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

ASAP sports

tech 129
About ASAP SportsFastScripts ArchiveRecent InterviewsCaptioningUpcoming EventsContact 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