March 16, 2008

S. KUZNETSOVA/D. Cibulkova

6-1, 4-6, 6-3

An interview with:

SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. You look to be so in control in the first set. What happened in the second set?
SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA: I just stopped a little bit. I lose my concentration. Just a little bit there and a little bit there. I had chances to break her straight, and I didn't do that.
So she was lead 2 Love. She got a little bit more I let her be back in the match, and I stopped. And every time I was worse and worse till 5 Love, and I managed to win that game and come back and I had chances at 5 4 which I didn't use.

Q. Do you take anything out of that match?
SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA: Well, definitely. I have to figure out how to start to play better earlier than 5 Love down in the second set.

Q. The conditions a problem at all today?
SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA: No. They were not that bad, like yesterday was much worse.

Q. You must be pleased your match was today and not yesterday, given the strong wind?
SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA: Yeah, definitely. We played doubles yesterday. It was awful.

Q. When you are down 5 Love like that, how important is it to try and, you know, rather than just say, Forget this set; I'll get her next set? How important is it to try and come back right then?
SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA: Well, I try always to think that every point is important because I think in the end of the day it's true. There is always any point could be turning point in every match, so I got to play the best.
Of course some points you play bad and I just did some easy mistakes and I was not moving my feet.
Definitely it was important because I still wanted to have some games under my belt. I didn't want to go to the third set 6 Love down. So I changed that to give me key to play better in the third.

Q. You've reached a couple of finals earlier this year, I believe? How happy have you been with your form this season?
SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA: I was a bit disappointed about Australian Open to lose, because I think I was very well prepared and I don't do so well. But this is just I have to take some lessons from that. The same as from Doha. You know, it was so windy and I didn't play well.
Dubai I did final and I mean, she played good; I didn't play so well. In tennis, you got to go with whatever comes and try to make it better all the time.

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