Having sat through only a few pressers and interviews now, it's become abundantly clear to me that some players are better live and some are better in print. Mono and Ana? Waaaaaaay better live. I find myself transcribing their interviews and finding that the tone of their interviews just doesn't translate when you simply put their words on paper. The silences, the gestures, the tone of voice, and moments of laughter you can't really transcribe.
And then there are those who are better in black and white. Vika absolutely falls into this category. I sat through her presser today (and even got a question in!) and what struck me was her lack of enthusiasm. I'm not asking her to do a song and dance for me, nor am I asking her to giggle her way through her answers. But she's clearly been through media training and her answers, for the most part, were stoic, defensive, monotone, and...well...unfeeling. Robotic is the word that comes to mind.
And I don't mean like Short Circuit. That fucking robot was charming as hell.
She did perk up when I asked her about Twitter:
Q: Victoria, you were one of the early adopters of Twitter among the players. How have you found that? Have you enjoyed being able to communicate with your fans directly?
A: Oh yeah, definitely. Yeah, it's fun. You give a direct message to them all right away. I try to answer as much as I can to different fans and it's always nice to read the good luck wishes and best wishes and everything they write to me. It's pretty amazing. And I think it's also good for fans to see what you're doing. They see a different part of you, your personality more, and I think it's exciting.
She went back home to Belarus after Wimbledon to see her family. She talked a bit about her injuries during the clay court season and says she hurt her knee on a bad fall while practicing with Kim in Eastbourne.
On Justine:
"I think Justine has so much variety in her game. To me, she has the style like a guy. She plays like a guy."
And on Ernie (hee):
"Yeah, I like to watch his game. I think he has huge potential. I think he's extremely talented and I think he can be one of the future top 10 for sure. Well, not for sure. But I hope he can be."
The more you know.
