Elina Svitolina – Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. Second time you defended a title, even though you don’t remember the first time.

ELINA SVITOLINA: Even this morning I was trying to remember, but I couldn’t remember that I won two times, like Baku. I remember that I won two times, but that I defended…

Q. How do you feel about defending tonight?

ELINA SVITOLINA: Yeah, it was great. It feels great. I am very pleased with the performance throughout the week. When I had to play well, I played well, important moments. I was serving good, returning well, getting lots of balls back.

It was solid performance, I would say. Okay, maybe not amazing tennis, but I was pretty solid. It was enough.

Q. That sums up your whole week, pretty solid?

ELINA SVITOLINA: Yeah, I think it’s a perfect word for this week.

Q. When you were younger, could you have imagined you would have won 11 of your first 13 WTA finals? How do you explain that record?

ELINA SVITOLINA: I was thinking I could win 13 out of 13 (smiling). I always set really high goals for myself. Of course, you know, I was kidding.

When I was growing up, for me, I just loved playing tennis. I loved competing. I think this really brought me into the high level.

Yeah, you know, my family that was pushing me, not crazy, but in the right way. My brother who also had a big influence on me, motivating me when I was young, which was important. All these things that really came together. Yeah, I’m happy that I’m moving the right direction.

Q. You join two other very famous names in defending that title in Justine and Venus. How does that make you feel?

ELINA SVITOLINA: Yeah, it feels amazing. When they was announcing our names, they was telling that Justine and Venus only the ones who defended their titles, I was like, Okay, c’mon, you have to do this. It really motivated me, which was good. It didn’t add more pressure.

Yeah, I really enjoyed. It was tough battle in the first set. I was going through tough moments. She was fighting really, really hard. Yeah, was high intensity. But I was pleased the way I handle it.

Q. What is the key with the finals? Is it the way you approach it, you’re able to see it as any other match? How do you feel in finals?

ELINA SVITOLINA: Well, all the time I try to take it as a challenge, something new. Each tournament, the ones that I won, brought something really special into my game. This title particularly, handling the pressure, playing the way I had to play on court, yeah. Every final was different. I tried to just be ready 100%, then see how it goes.

But I’m very pleased it’s going my way most of the time, for the last, I don’t know, number of times.

Q. Are you heading straight to the States?

ELINA SVITOLINA: No, I’m actually very busy. I go to Kiev for media, and then I go to New York, then Indian Wells, Miami.