“The Ukrainian tennis player spoke about the upcoming match of KBDK against Austria”, — write: sport.ua
“Condition and mood before the match? I feel just great. I feel a lot of strength. I am really looking forward to Saturday and Sunday to play for the national team. There is a great atmosphere in the team, so you can get extra energy. There is a lot of positivity in the team. We have a great team. We spend a lot of time together, we laugh a lot, so this also adds confidence, inspiration, and a good mood.
Performances on the eve of the team tournament? Most of all, I planned to play the tournament in Midland, because it takes place in very similar conditions, in the hall on hard. And I didn’t really want to play the tournament in Merida, I would like to stay a little longer in Asia and play in Japan after the tournament in Wuhan. But I had to work a little on my health. Therefore, I decided to skip these competitions and return to Europe and then play in Merida and Midland. Although Merida was really optional. The conditions there were very difficult, just extreme heat. I didn’t really focus on that tournament, I focused more on Midland to prepare for the national team match.
Team training? We have been training here since Monday. The conditions are very similar to the Midland tournament. The same balls, the same temperature in the hall, and the courts themselves are similar. Of course, there are small nuances: slightly different lighting, maybe a different bounce of the ball, but essentially everything is the same. Therefore, the sensations are as comfortable and familiar as possible.
The first number in the national team application? I do feel the responsibility, but this time it is more intertwined with the inspiration and the desire to play. I really can’t wait. It turns out that the team is very young and I am the oldest. The captain tells me that you, they say, have a leadership role. I am very calm about it. I feel that I really want to play for the national team, I really want to show a great result. And this is such a responsibility, but it is very positive.
Losing 0-2 in the match against Romania? Indeed, it was an unpleasant episode. But it must also be said that this also happens sometimes. It’s a pity that this happened to us. But I remember that match very well and the only opinion I have about what happened is that our team did not deserve that result. I don’t know how it happened, what happened that Sunday. There is no explanation for me. The team was as ready as possible and we did everything we could. Unfortunately, the result was negative. It’s unpleasant to remember and, to be honest, I don’t even know what lesson to learn from this. As I said, in my opinion, we did not deserve that result. I would like this to not happen again, of course. And I would also like to improve the position of our team in the ranking of nations, and, of course, I would like to bring victory to our national team.
Austrian tennis players? I did not play matches against them. Just recently I had a training session with Julia Graber at the US Open. And this is my only experience when I played draws with these tennis players. I have known Tamira Pašek for a long time, she is a tennis player who was once ranked in the top 20, a winner of WTA tournaments. I understand that now she is not playing at the level that her rating reflects. I have doubts that she will play herself. Perhaps they will declare Graber as well. And I have no doubts about Sinia Kraus. But we’ll see. We will prepare, we will watch a lot of videos to understand exactly how these tennis players play. We will prepare tactics – and go ahead!
Advice for the younger generation in the national team? I can’t say I’m giving any advice. Unless, if they ask me… For now, we just spend a lot of time together, train, build our communication. We try to understand each other better. I think the most important thing is the instructions on how to play against these opponents, the tactical points. And I, as for me, do not see the point in giving advice, especially when I am not asked. If they ask me, then, of course, I will share my experience. When you meet new people, of course, there is such an exchange of life stories. There is such an exchange of experience, but it is more light. I don’t want any difficulties in communication, I want only positive things. And already at the match – clear specifics.”
