	products recent interviews FastScripts archive about ASAP Sports

Our Clients:

Browse by Sport

Find us on

Subscribe to RSS

Click to go to
Asaptext.com

View our
e-Brochure

MUTUA MADRID OPEN

May 6, 2019

Carla Suarez Navarro

Madrid, Spain

V. KUZMOVA/C. Suarez Navarro

6-4, 7-6

THE MODERATOR: Questions in Spanish.

Q. I don't know what your feelings are today. How do you feel after today's match? We've seen you were a little bit behind during all the match. I don't know if it's a bit difficult for you to step in today's match. What has happened out there?
CARLA SUAREZ NAVARRO: It's true. Today was just not the day. It's just what you've seen on the court with my backhand being very uncomfortable. Well, that has been really the cause today. I tried to play as hard as possible. I tried to play with my forehand, but my backhand was not there and at this level, it's just not enough. You need to give 100 percent.

Today, I was feeling that I needed perhaps more time in order to fix any backhand, which could have maybe fixed the game. I mean, we could have gone to the third set and have a different result today.

I tried to step in, see if I could play better than her. But today I have been missing a little bit off everything. My game has just not been enough.

Q. What about the change of court? Yesterday, you played earlier, you played on court 2, and today you played on the center court a bit later. Has that changed? Has that influenced you somehow?
CARLA SUAREZ NAVARRO: It's true we are not used to playing at night and we don't know the conditions, but I don't think that has been the reason today, or the cause of today's defeat.

There are things that can affect, of course. It's not the same to play during the day or night, or in a smaller court or a bigger court. But regardless of those changes, I think that today it's been a tough day for me and I think that she has realized that. She has seen that today was not my day with my backhand and she was trying to pull all the balls to my backhand.

Q. You were a bit unlucky, but your opponent was touching the line with her balls all the time.
CARLA SUAREZ NAVARRO: It's true, she's been a bit lucky. She was playing long. She hit things cleanly. She was playing very aggressively and in some moments, she has been able to do that and she has been very successful.

So, we also have to give her all the recognition. I think that not at any moment has she let herself down. The audience was helping me. They were cheering me up all the time and she managed to stay positive and stay in the match all the time.

Q. Do you think that it's the same as Garbine? Maybe you were too anxious. And you weren't calm today and it wasn't the way you wanted to be?
CARLA SUAREZ NAVARRO: I don't think it's a matter of being anxious or not. In previous years, I have played pretty well here, so I don't think it's a matter of being anxious or the nerves. It's true that both of us want to do it really well here because we are at home in a big tournament. And we always want to play well in front of our people. But I don't think that that has been the reason, or that has been what has affected my game today.

I think that today I was just a little bit slow and it was 7-6 in the second set, but my game has not been enough today.

Q. We could say that your loss today and Garbine yesterday -- we can talk about the high level of the feminine draw, right? On the first round, both of you are out of the draw. Can you talk a little bit about the draw?
CARLA SUAREZ NAVARRO: Yes, everything is equal. We have the best players in the world here and I think that the players adapt themselves each day better to play on clay. I think that each week you can win. You can have great results. And while I think that all of the players come with a goal, they try to win as many matches as possible. And you have to just give your best. It can fall either side. So, the only thing that we have to do is to keep on fighting, keep on working hard and try to fix a couple of things on the games that can be made soon and hopefully will be made soon.

Q. Last year you made it to the quarterfinals. This time, you've left in the second round. Does your plan change for next week in the run-up to Roland Garros or Rome?
CARLA SUAREZ NAVARRO: No, I'm going to go to Rome. I'm going to go to Roland Garros. I can still play properly on clay. The level of the players in general is quite hard. I'm confident I'm able to do it very well in Rome and Roland Garros, which is a Grand Slam. Those are my goals. On grass, I have the same goals as last year and the same plans. Nothing has changed. My schedule has not changed.

Q. Do you think that if you don't win titles, people don't give merit to you for what you have done?
CARLA SUAREZ NAVARRO: It is true, people don't look at that, they look at the results. If they think about me all of the years I have been on the tour, or the results I have achieved, every time I go to train, or step into a match, or into a tournament, I try to give my best. I'm really with a lot of joy when I'm trying to play.

I know this is not going to last forever. And I've done a lot of sacrifices for this sport and this sport has given me back a lot of good moments and that's what I keep. And I leave people to evaluate the victories, and that is part of life. But I think that I feel pretty well with myself I think and I'm doing it well. And I think that the people also support me and they like me.

Q. We were talking about today's match. Things have not worked out your way. But I think that there's always a positive side to everything. I don't know what you take with you from this tournament. Is there anything positive that you are going to take from this tournament to build on afterwards?
CARLA SUAREZ NAVARRO: Yes, I think always coming here, it's a very positive thing. Feeling the crowd, feeling the support of the people besides the results. Every time I come to Madrid, I would like to make it to the final. This time has not been possible. And whenever it's not possible, the most positive thing is the connection that we experience here with people and with the crowd that come here to support us and to look at our matches. And right now, I cannot say anything else.

Last year, for example, I played really good matches here. I managed to get good results and that is very good and I think I'm still going to be doing good for the rest of the season. Thank you.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297