TENNIS US OPEN – 7th of September 2014. S. Williams d. C. Wozniacki 6-3, 6-3. An interview with Caroline Wozniacki
Q. When Serena is on her game, what are your thoughts about whether she’s beatable?
CAROLINE WOZNIACKI: Well, when she’s on her game it’s not fun to play her. You know, she’s so strong. She has a good serve and she puts pressure on you straightaway. You know, today I went out there and I was a little nervous. I had a game plan in mind, but it was kind of difficult at the start. I tried to push her back, but that really didn’t work for me. She really just stepped in and she was playing aggressive. She was playing better than me today. I was a little nervous going out there. When you walk into the stadium and people are screaming so loud you can’t hear what you’re thinking yourself, so it’s kind of overwhelming. But it’s such a cool experience. I just wanted to get a good start. I knew that against Serena, you have to have a good start, otherwise she starts going in and being even more aggressive. You know, you’re kind of done. So, you know, I didn’t get the start I wanted. Then all of a sudden see myself going behind and it’s tough to get back.
Q. It was one of the sweetest Grand Slam finals I have seen between two women in a while, minus a lot of the drama. The two of you are friends. How much harder does it make it? And you’re a class act.
CAROLINE WOZNIACKI: Thank you.
Q. You how much harder does it make it for you to actually play her?
CAROLINE WOZNIACKI: Well, when you’re out there — we’re both competitors and we both want to win, so we’re both going to do anything possible to win the match. You know, after the match we’re friends again. You know, it’s tennis. It’s a game. But off the court we’re still — we still care equally as much about each other. It doesn’t really change.
Q. The WTA obviously has a ton of great players. Li Na, Maria, Halep, so many. Do you think in some ways that Serena is a level above? Just talk about that.
CAROLINE WOZNIACKI: Yeah, definitely. I think her results and her career says it all: 18 Grand Slam titles. You don’t get that unless you’re exceptional in what you do. You know, she is one of the greatest of all time. You know, to have 18 Grand Slam titles and still be the person she is is really something very rare. You know, I admire her both on and off the court. I definitely think when Serena is on her game there’s not much we can do. So, you know, I think that’s why she has so many titles that she has.
Q. Is it just a collection of talents? Is it the power, per se? What’s the most difficult?
CAROLINE WOZNIACKI: I don’t believe that talent can beat everything. You know, she’s a hard worker. She works hard every day, just like us, but when she needs to she can pull out that big serve. She has the power. She can push us back on the court and take the initiative. You know, she definitely has the experience now, as well. I think that makes it even harder, because maybe back in the day she might have made not the right choices. Now she knows what she needs to do out there, and it makes it even harder to beat her.
Q. Now, what is your schedule? Do you stick around New York? I understand you’re going to be back here in November for the New York City Marathon.
CAROLINE WOZNIACKI: Yeah, I’m going to stay here for a few days and then I’m going to go to Tokyo. I am staying here probably till Thursday and head to Tokyo from here.
Q. When you come back, when do you come back and get used to the streets and conditions?
CAROLINE WOZNIACKI: I’m planning on playing Singapore. That’s what I’m hoping for, so I won’t be back for a week before the marathon after the end of the season.
Q. You talked about the day before about not having anything to lose, wanting to go for your shots. With the way this played out today, do you feel like you did that or was it a function of Serena not even letting you do that?
CAROLINE WOZNIACKI: I think we both went out there and we were both a little nervous. I knew that I had to take the chance from the start. I think we both raised our level in the second set, and it was just a little too late for me. She also went out there and she was very aggressive from the start. So she didn’t really let me dictate it the way I wanted to.
Q. You mentioned noise on the court. I wonder, what did you do? What do you do? Can you shut it out or do you have to just go with it?
CAROLINE WOZNIACKI: No, you embrace it. You try and embrace it. It’s amazing. It’s a privilege to be out there on the court with that amazing atmosphere. It’s incredible. It’s one of a kind here in New York. There’s nowhere else in the world where the crowds are so loud and so cheering. It’s amazing.
Q. Does it distract you at all?
CAROLINE WOZNIACKI: No. But, you know, as I said earlier, I went out and I just got a little bit nervous. Playing a champion like Serena, you have to go for it from the start.
Q. What does reaching a final do for your belief going forward?
CAROLINE WOZNIACKI: Well, definitely it does a lot. You know, I have had a great two weeks here. I have played really well this summer. I have won so many matches. And Serena has stopped me three times. They say three times lucky. I was hoping for that today. I’m going to try four times lucky the next time. (Smiling.) But, you know, I feel like I’m on the right path. I have been playing really well, so hopefully I can finish off the year strong and have a good start to next year.
Q. Do you feel like you’ve played almost better than you ever did before?
CAROLINE WOZNIACKI: Yeah, definitely. I think I have definitely played better tennis these weeks than I have in the past. So it’s definitely a positive sign and a good sign for the future.
Q. You have been trying different things in your game. You start in Australia making some adjustment; seems like this tournament everything came together. Are you very confident the way you’re playing right now?
CAROLINE WOZNIACKI: Yeah. As I said, since Eastbourne, really, I have been playing really good tennis. It definitely gives me a lot of belief for the end of the year and for next year.
