TENNIS US OPEN – 1st of September 2014. F. Pennetta d. C. Dellacqua 7-5, 6-2. An interview with Flavia Pennetta
Q. That’s the fifth quarterfinal here. What is it about this tournament? Why do you play so well?
FLAVIA PENNETTA: Everyone make the same question, eh? Every day (smiling). I mean, I don’t know. I’m just like to play here and maybe that’s why I play good here.
Q. Do you always feel good when you come in?
FLAVIA PENNETTA: Yes. There is something, I don’t know. I like the city all the time. When I get to New York, I feel much better. In New Haven I wasn’t play really well, and I had a bad moment on the court and everything. Just to come here I was already more happy.
Q. You made the semis last year. Having some great success late in your life. Can I ask you about Casey, who had been off the scene for a while and is coming back. Women playing great tennis into their 30s. Do you see her…
FLAVIA PENNETTA: I mean, I think we had a lot of things in common. We have a lot of injury, we come back and we stop and we come back. It was not easy also her career. She’s starting to play better and better now. She’s more consistent. Maybe just with age it’s coming.
Q. Just feeling more comfortable, as well?
FLAVIA PENNETTA: Yeah. And also I think you’re starting to enjoy more. When you are young, you want it too badly to have something. So much pressure. When you are a little bit old, you see things in different way. I mean, tennis is important, but life is important. Family is important. So you’re starting to give the good balance, to have the good balance for everything.
Q. Do you really think of yourself as a little bit old?
FLAVIA PENNETTA: Yeah, I am (smiling).
Q. While we can’t assume that Serena will win, you faced her a lot in the past without a great deal of success, but do you prepare any differently to play against Serena Williams than you would…
FLAVIA PENNETTA: If she win.
Q. If she win.
FLAVIA PENNETTA: She still on court (smiling).
Q. Is it different? Do you have to do something different to play against her than you would…
FLAVIA PENNETTA: Something different. You cannot invent something. I mean, you just have to play your tennis and do your best. Of course, she’s better than me, but if I still believe I can beat her, maybe if she doesn’t have a good day I can do that. If I get in the court and just play and try to don’t take 6-Love 6-Love, I gonna take 6-Love 6-Love.
Q. But you still believe?
FLAVIA PENNETTA: Of course. Why not?
Q. Are you enjoying playing doubles with Martina Hingis?
FLAVIA PENNETTA: It’s nice. It’s really nice. We have fun in court and outside, so she’s one of the best of the whatever. So it’s really — it’s nice to play with her.
Q. You’re playing doubles later on this afternoon. Can you talk a bit about how you will look after your body between now and then in terms of what you’ll eat and what you’ll drink.
FLAVIA PENNETTA: Drink a lot. I mean, water, and also some ennervate [sic], supplies, yeah, supplement. And then we’re going to have a lunch now for sure. I’m going to have some pasta and something. And then some treatment before, a good warmup, because to be ready again for be ready again and playing. And then after, I’m going to take like ice massage and treatment again, all this stuff.
Q. And if you don’t know specifically the time the match will happen, do you have like a prematch snack?
FLAVIA PENNETTA: No, I mean, we just used to be ready at the moment we have to be. I mean, maybe you can warm up three times before one match because it’s almost finished and then one win the set and stop again and warm up again. We are used to that. It’s always like this. If you don’t play at 11:00, it’s like this.
