Simona Halep He left no choice to doubt under the roof of the Philippe Chatrier. In what was the rematch of the quarterfinals in 2019, the Romanian tennis player overwhelmed an unknown Amanda Anisimova, a victory that reinforces his status as a great favorite for the title in Paris and that also allows him to reserve energy for future matches. After the third round duel, the Romanian went through a press conference and left several interesting pearls in relation to tennis and life, in addition to talking about today’s match.
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– What did you do well today: “Without a doubt, I was much more aggressive. I took control of the game. Last year I played very far from the court, I played very short, which allowed her to do her tennis. When she has time and takes the ideal position for his ball, he is very dangerous and he can play very well, but today I think I did a great job of changing my tactics a bit. “
– How the pandemic has influenced your motivation towards tennis: “The pandemic has shown me how much I love tennis and how much I wanted to come back and be able to play some tournaments. I started again with myself. I was very fine after the pandemic, I was home for a long time and I was able to rest a lot. I enjoy being there. back, playing at this time since my birthday was recently, and everything in Paris, which is my favorite city. Being able to be here is enough for me. “
– Without Serena or Pliskova, do you feel more pressure ?: “No, I don’t feel the pressure. It’s clear that I demand of myself to be able to play very good tennis, because I’m feeling the game, I’m physically fit and I feel stronger, but all that doesn’t mean I have to win every game. . The important thing is to be able to give my best version the day I play. The rest? We will see. I do not think about the result, nor about the title. It is still far away and there are many players who are playing very well in this box. that there are no expectations on that yet. “
– How the loss to Anisimova influenced last year, as a few weeks later she won Wimbledon: “In my opinion, every loss is important. If you realize what you did wrong, you will be better. Last year I was disappointed in that game; not because of the result, but because of how I played. She was very strong, but I let her play her best tennis. In my mind after that game I just had to play better, I improved a lot and now I can say that I am much better in several aspects after that match.
– What do you prefer: Roland Garros in May-June or September-October ?: “I prefer both (laughs). Maybe if it were possible to have one in May and one in September … that would be great (laugh).”
– Change of focus or mindset: “As I said a couple of days ago, my life has not depended on a tennis match for a long time. I just enjoy myself, I am happy to be on the court. That is a good reason to play well. I have already worked lately in no focus all my work on tennis, that my life does not depend on tennis.The pandemic has helped me to change this within me, to feel more relaxed. I have seen that the most important problems are in our day to day, in our life, and not in tennis. I have seen that we have the privilege of playing all these great tournaments.
So somehow I have relaxed. I don’t know how to explain it, I don’t know if it’s going to stay that way. Right now I’m in good shape, I’m very confident. Maybe that will change next year or in a few months, but right now I have learned to live in the present; I have learned many things from this pandemic that I want them to stay with me. “
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