Interview: Shelby Rogers – 2R (def. Caty McNally 6-7(4) 7-5 6-1)

Wednesday, April 5, 2023

Second round: Shelby Rogers (USA) def. Caty McNally (USA) 6-7(4) 7-5 6-1

THE MODERATOR: Shelby, congratulations. Will you share your thoughts on the match tonight?

SHELBY ROGERS: Yeah. Sometimes when you just fight and run and try to make one more ball, things start going your way. The crowd really helped me, got some energy going, and it just ended up being a really fun show. I thought Caty played an unbelievable match. It’s been really fun to watch her progress and improve the way she has. She’s going to be dangerous in a lot of draws coming in the future.

THE MODERATOR: Questions?

Question: You’re down in the second set. What’s going through your mind, and then how did you recapture your energy?

ROGERS: Just trying to problem solve. Her forehand was on fire. I felt like my balls were going short. I wasn’t getting enough angles off the court. I actually stepped back a little bit, tried to give myself space, especially on the return. She was serving really, really well, and I wasn’t getting into enough points on her service game. So I had to come up with something there to stay in the match. Thankfully it worked.

Sometimes just little adjustments like that can really change your momentum. And you just kind of not only physically work your way back into the match, but mentally, too. And I thought the more momentum I got, she got a little down on herself, too. Sometimes it only takes one point in a tennis match, and I’ve been on both ends of it. So you just never give up. You never know what’s going to happen.

Question: Shelby, you talked after the match. What did the energy inside the stadium do to spur you on there to victory?

ROGERS: Yeah, I love it. Makes me just want to stay out there. I don’t want to give up. I hear the crowd. I hear little girls shouting, “come on, Shelby, don’t give up!” That means more than they know, and I really appreciate it. I know I say it all the time, but I don’t think they understand just how much, you know, any player takes from the crowd, because you’re out there all alone, you know, trying to figure out what’s going on, and looking at your box, looking at faces in the crowd, like trying to just pull on anything. So it definitely is a big help.

Question: You said yesterday you’ve been through everything in this tournament. Where does this rank, a three-hour epic match on stadium court?

ROGERS: Yeah, it’s a new one. I think I jinxed myself there. Add that to the list. Again, super fun. Obviously really grateful to have another opportunity to play and really happy to get through that one, but just all these moments on court are memories that I’ll never forget. And, again, you know, put it in the memory bank and add it to the list. It’s pretty awesome.

Question: Going off that, with all the experience that you have had here on Daniel Island, has that kind of prepared you for anything that you may see, especially something like this tonight?

ROGERS: I would like to say yes, but every match I play is a new set of emotions and feelings, and it keeps surprising me day after day, and with as many years as I’ve been on tour, unfortunately, I’m the veteran now, but it keeps — that’s why this sport is so exciting. There’s never a match that’s the same as any other. All of them are so different, and I just love going out there and seeing what’s going to happen.

Question: Just talk about how you’re going to rest and recover and get ready for tomorrow’s match. You got a quick turnaround.

ROGERS: Yeah. What are you guys still doing here? Why are you all not asleep? Yeah, protein shake, recover, massage. Get some ice bath going. And sleep is the most important thing at this point. But I’m playing later tomorrow, so I’ve got plenty of time. Not to stress about it. That’s the most important thing. If you get all worked up, like how am I going to sleep, then you for sure won’t sleep.

Question: Shelby, potentially you could play Belinda Bencic, who is defending champion. If that matchup comes to fruition, how do you see that and how do you take on one of the best in the game?

ROGERS: Yeah, absolutely. She’s been on fire this year. We’ve already played in Abu Dhabi. Different surface, much faster there, too, but we had a heck of a battle there. So I will be ready for nothing less than that.