US OPEN

September 8, 2026

Linda Noskova

Press Conference

A. SABALENKA/L. Noskova

7-6, 3-6, 7-6

THE MODERATOR: Questions.

Q. A tough match out there but a great quality match. Obviously you had the lead in the third set and you had advantages in the tiebreaker. Do you feel there was anything in particular you could have done, looking back at the match, or do you feel like she raised her level that much higher?

LINDA NOSKOVA: Well, I could have done a lot of things differently. You know, being a break up in the third set, it's not very easy. Also having a little break at the start of the tiebreak in the third one, as well, it's frustrating, obviously, but at the same time, I definitely could have done different decisions at those crucial moments.

But at the same time, Aryna, she played the best tennis that she could in those moments, which didn't really make it easy for me.

Q. You talked I think in Toronto or Cincinnati about having issues with your motivation after winning Wimbledon, being able to fire back up to play the tour. After this great run here and battle against No. 1 here, how are you feeling about wanting more and is the hunger back for you now?

LINDA NOSKOVA: Yeah, definitely feel like I have that back. You know, it was a new Grand Slam, so I definitely stepped it up since the beginning of the tournament, which helped me to get into the flow kind of.

Yeah, I mean, such loss is good for the motivation, but, you know, obviously bad itself. So I have to take some positives from it all.

Q. On match point, second serve, Aryna felt she got lucky in terms of how you read it, maybe thinking it was going to go to your backhand. Curious about your perspective on match point was.

LINDA NOSKOVA: Yeah, it was the only ace that she aced me by the second serve. Yeah, didn't expect it to go wide at all, because it never happened throughout the whole match, so she played it smart.

Q. Tough day. You were hitting, like, really big shots in the tiebreak, and I'm sort of curious, the reset after giving up the break and getting to the point where you're in this match tiebreak and really going for it, where do you think you found that?

LINDA NOSKOVA: I feel like I played the whole match well sometimes, little worse sometimes. I feel like the level was still there. Obviously just matter of a couple points. Yeah, I don't think that was a big difference in the tiebreak itself.

Q. Given the summer that you've had, how long will it take you to get over a loss like this? And how do you do it?

LINDA NOSKOVA: Well, it's getting tougher and tougher obviously since the matches are more and more important. I feel like I'm closer and closer to, you know, whatever I want to achieve.

At the same time, I've always been kind of -- these losses and wins, as well, I cannot really enjoy either of it. So that's good and bad, but at the same time, throughout these tough days, it's a good thing to have, you know, to forget about it.

Q. Tough day at the office. I have a question about the roof closing when it did. Did that affect you at all? Also curious, sometimes in the stadium, maybe more in Ashe, when it's a set point or match point, it's flashing in the back, is that disruptive to you as a player?

LINDA NOSKOVA: I did notice the roof closing right after point, although it started closing even before the point, so it was weird. No one even told us about it, I guess. We didn't expect it at all.

At the same time, you know, I knew that the tournament wanted to keep us in the shade, and, you know, not have us play on the light throughout the whole match, but at the same time, it was, like, a crucial point of the match, so I don't know why they started moving it so late.

Q. And at the match point...

LINDA NOSKOVA: I didn't notice it.

Q. Great match and good tournament for you. Maybe at this point your motivation or goal of this season is to get qualified for the WTA Finals. How does your schedule look like towards the end of this season?

LINDA NOSKOVA: Well, it would definitely be a dream come true. I don't know how close or not close I am. I have no idea. I'm just gonna try to play and see what happens. You know, I'm not going to have this in the back of my head like I have to play some amazing tennis and have all the great results I can to qualify. I feel like I'm already having great season, so whatever happens happens, you know, let it be.

Q. With the roof, were the shadows bothering you at all? Did you need to have that closed, or were you fine the way it was?

LINDA NOSKOVA: Well, it was fine the way it was. I feel like maybe in the very beginning it was more tough than as the match went on, but I don't know. Didn't really make a big difference for me if we were playing in shade or not.

Q. Aryna has a terrific record in tiebreakers, and she has that big serve. How would you describe what it's like to face her in tiebreakers?

LINDA NOSKOVA: Well, the first one went horribly for me. I didn't start well. It's always very tough to get it back as the tiebreak is just about a few points.

But in the third one, I obviously had my chances. The had double fault, which did not really help me at a crucial time, so I feel like that was just one of the main mistakes that I did.

But at the same time, it's good to look at a match and be like, okay, one or two points made the whole difference.

Q. Any thoughts on her serve, especially in those crucial moments?

LINDA NOSKOVA: On her serve?

Well, she's one of the best servers in the world. Obviously she wouldn't be No. 1 if she wouldn't have such weapons, so it was not easy to return it.

Q. We can see how disappointed you are, how sad you are. Why don't you hang around New York for a couple days? If you could do anything in this outstanding city, what would you do now that you're out?

LINDA NOSKOVA: I will do something. I'm going to stay for, like, three more days. I'm going to get drunk and forget about this, I guess (laughter). I'm old enough to do that, thankfully.

Q. Don't you want to see a play? What do you want to do?

LINDA NOSKOVA: I already did see a Broadway show, but I love New York. I have so many places I want to go. I have a lot of great friends here. They will show me around, and, you know, I will forget about it hopefully in the next couple of hours.

Q. You are in really good shape to qualify for the WTA Finals because you won a major this year. If you win a major, you get preferential spot. How much do you feel, after this match against No. 1, you really are one of the very best players now, you are in this group and you belong there, and this is your role now, your place?

LINDA NOSKOVA: Yeah, I feel like especially after these matches when you're so close to getting to another semifinal of a Grand Slam in one year or, you know, beating the best player in the world, it kind of reminds you of where you are standing or what position you're in.

So, yeah, I have to take some positives from this whole tournament. It was not easy coming here from such a success I had on grass court.

I will just try to keep going, you know. I feel great on court, which is always my main point, and ranking doesn't really matter. But it gets me to some cool places.