>> WELCOME BACK. JUST LIKE THAT, MARIA SAKKARI. LITERALLY ON OUR DESK HERE IN CHARLESTON RIGHT OFF THE COURT. THANKS FOR MAKING IT SO QUICKLY OVER HERE. >> I ALWAYS MAKE TIME FOR YOU. >> ARE WE APPRECIATE THAT, MARIA. I SAW YOU AFTER THE MATCH. GIVE A LITTLE SOUVENIR TO SOME FANS. TELL. TELL US ABOUT THAT. >> YEAH. THERE WERE TWO LITTLE GUYS, THAT THEY WERE, LIKE, CHEERING ME EVERY SINGLE POINT. THEY WERE TELLING ME WHAT TO DO ON. ON THE NEXT POINT, THEY TOLD ME TO SERVE AND BALL, AND I WAS LIKE, NO, I'M NOT GOING TO DO THAT, SO YEAH, THEY WERE PRETTY CUTE AND I JUST WANTED TO GIVE THEM SOMETHING SO THEY REMEMBER THAT MATCH. >> WE LOVE THE FANS HERE IN CHARLESTON, RIGHT? YES, YES. GREAT. GREAT SPOT. SO BOTH SETS YOU HAD LITTLE COMEBACKS. WHAT WHAT GOT YOU THROUGH? >> WELL, I THINK JUST, YOU KNOW, MY LEVEL, MY EXPERIENCE, JUST THE FACT THAT, YOU KNOW, I WAS I WAS STAYING LIKE I STAYED, YOU KNOW, PRETTY PRETTY SOLID. NOT OVERDOING THINGS AND JUST, YOU KNOW, I HAD TROUBLE ACCEPTING SOME, SOME THINGS ON THE COURT TODAY, BUT I THINK THAT'S WHAT WAS THE KEY THAT I PUSHED MYSELF TO ACCEPT THOSE THINGS. AND THEN I JUST MADE IT HAPPEN. >> WHAT WERE YOU NOT ACCEPTING, ALL THE LINES. ALL THE LINES FROM MY OPPONENT AND YOU KNOW, THOSE, YOU KNOW, HIGH SHOTS THAT ENDED UP IN. AND I JUST FELT LIKE I WAS LAYING IT DOWN AND. OKAY, MAYBE I MADE ONE MISTAKE, BUT I DIDN'T REALLY DO ANYTHING WRONG TO BE LIKE, 40 DOWN. >> WELL THAT'S SPECTACULAR. ARE YOU ABLE TO KIND OF FIGURE THAT OUT IN THE MIDDLE OF GAMES AND COME THROUGH STILL WITH A STRAIGHT SET VICTORY? WHAT'S IT LIKE FOR YOU TO PLAY THAT FIRST MATCH ON CLAY IN A SEASON? >> WELL, IT'S NEVER EASY BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, IT'S, MOVING MOVING WISE, IT'S DIFFERENT OBVIOUSLY, I ONLY HAD THREE DAYS BECAUSE I WANT TO TAKE SOME SOME TIME OFF AFTER MIAMI, SO IT'S GOING TO TAKE TIME. SHE HAD ONE MORE MATCH, SO SHE WAS MORE, YOU KNOW, USED TO THE CONDITIONS, LET'S SAY. BUT YOU KNOW WHAT? I WOULD TAKE THAT FIRST MATCH ANY, ANY, ANY TIME BECAUSE I FELT PRETTY GOOD OUT THERE. >> YOU BRING UP MIAMI AND I SAW YOU THE OTHER NIGHT. AND. LISTEN, YOU MADE THE FINAL AT INDIAN WELLS. YOU MADE THE QUARTERFINALS IN MIAMI. >> I REMEMBER OUR CONVERSATION. >> SO WHAT I SAID YOU'RE KILLING IT, MARIA. AND WHAT DID YOU SAY? >> NOT REALLY, BUT I'M GETTING THERE. >> NOT REALLY, BUT YOU'RE GETTING THERE. SO I LOVE THAT BECAUSE YOU'RE NOT SATISFIED. SO. SO WHAT IS THE STANDARD FOR YOU? >> WELL, YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY I ACCEPT, YOU KNOW, THE FACT THAT I'M COMING FROM, FROM A POSITION WHERE I WAS NOT FEELING MY TENNIS REALLY WELL, A LOT OF CHANGES, AS YOU KNOW, AS EVERYONE KNOWS. AND THEN I JUST, YOU KNOW, I WAS GOING INTO INDIAN WELLS. I HAD LOW EXPECTATIONS. I LOST EVERY SINGLE PRACTICE SET. SIX ONE, SIX TWO, TWO. EVERY SINGLE PLAYER I PLAYED WITH. SO NOW WHEN I PLAY A PRACTICE SET, I TELL DAVID THAT I WANT TO LOSE THAT PRACTICE SET. SO THEN THAT MEANS THAT I CAN GO DEEP IN THE TOURNAMENT. NOW I'M JOKING. BUT, THE THING IS THAT I HAD LOW EXPECTATIONS AND IT WAS VERY GOOD BECAUSE IT WAS THE FIRST TIME, AFTER A WHILE, THAT BACK TO BACK, I HAD GOOD RESULTS IN TWO VERY BIG TOURNAMENTS. OBVIOUSLY, YOU KNOW, I WOULD HAVE LOVED TO GO DEEPER IN MIAMI, BUT THAT LOSS WAS ONE OF THE LOSSES THAT YOU ACCEPT AND YOU ARE LIKE, OKAY, I DID SOME GOOD THINGS AND I'M GOING TO MOVE FORWARD. >> WELL, LAST TIME I TALKED TO YOU WAS WHEN YOU WERE JUST KIND OF GETTING IN THAT COACHING RELATIONSHIP WITH DAVID. DAVID WITT, THE NEW COACH OF MARIA SAKKARI. AND SO NOW, A FEW WEEKS LATER, HOW WELL DO YOU THINK YOU KNOW HIM NOW? >> A LITTLE BIT BETTER. OBVIOUSLY, YOU KNOW, WE SPENT QUITE A LOT OF TIME THE LAST FEW WEEKS TOGETHER, YOU KNOW, I'LL, YOU KNOW, I'LL JUST STICK TO WHAT I SAID IN, IN INDIAN WELLS. HE'S HE'S A GREAT GUY, AN AMAZING COACH, YOU KNOW, I LOVE BEING AROUND HIM. HE'S HE'S SO FUNNY. HE'S. YEAH. FUNNIEST GUY I'VE EVER MET IN MY LIFE. I SAID ONE OF THE FUNNEST. NOW I SAID THE FUNNIEST GUY. OKAY, SO IT'S GREAT. I THINK WE'RE DOING A GOOD JOB. AND HE'S SO LAID BACK THAT WHICH IS WHAT I LOVE THE MOST. >> IT'S A GOOD YIN AND YANG, RIGHT? >> IT IS. EXACTLY, EXACTLY. >> SO THIS IS YOUR FIRST TIME HERE, MARIA? IN FIVE YEARS. FIVE YEARS? YES. WHY DID YOU PUT CHARLESTON BACK ON THE SCHEDULE? >> WELL, YOU KNOW, IT WAS ALWAYS A PLACE THAT I WANTED TO COME BACK, BUT IT WAS ALWAYS TOUGH BECAUSE WE HAD FED CUP ALWAYS THE WEEK AFTER. AND THEN, YOU KNOW, ESPECIALLY AFTER MONTH IN THE STATES, YOU ARE ALWAYS TIRED. BUT I JUST WANTED TO DO SOMETHING DIFFERENT THIS YEAR, AND PLAYING HERE, I JUST LOVE EVERYTHING ABOUT IT. YOU KNOW, THE ORGANIZATION, THE PEOPLE, AS YOU VERY WELL KNOW, EVERYONE IS AMAZING. THE CROWD, I MEAN, IT JUST MAKES IT VERY SPECIAL. AND I JUST WANTED TO PLAY A DIFFERENT CALIBER CALENDAR THIS YEAR. JUST GOING INTO THE CLAY BY PLAYING HERE FOR THE FIRST WEEK, THEN GOING TO PLAY BILLIE JEAN KING CUP AND THEN TAKING A WEEK OFF, AND THEN INTO MADRID AND KEEPING THAT GOOD MOMENTUM GOING FROM THE SUNSHINE DOUBLE AS WELL. >> ARE THERE SOME THINGS THAT YOU DID IN CHARLESTON BACK IN THE DAY THAT YOU REALLY LOOKING FORWARD TO GETTING BACK TO AGAIN? WELL WE KNOW THE FOOD HERE IS AMAZING. >> I HAD A VERY GOOD BURGER LAST TIME I WAS HERE THAT I REALLY, REALLY WANT TO TRY, BUT THAT'S GOING TO BE AFTER THE TOURNAMENT, RIGHT? >> YOU ALWAYS WAIT UNTIL THE END. >> I NEED TO TAKE CARE OF MY OF MY DIET. >> SO I GOT TO BE THE PRECAUTION IN THIS SEGMENT. HAVE YOU FOUND A GOOD GYM HERE? >> OH, NO. >> PLEASE DON'T START WITH THAT, LET'S TAKE A BREAK FROM THAT FOR A WEEK. >> NO MORE, NO MORE. >> NO MORE GYM QUESTIONS. NO, I HAVEN'T I HAVEN'T HAD THE TIME. OKAY. >> THE HOTEL'S GOT A GREAT SPA. >> OKAY, LET'S STICK TO THAT, THEN. GOOD, GOOD. >> STEAM. GOOD SAUNA. >> I HAVEN'T TRIED IT YET. >> YEAH, THE STEAM IS FANTASTIC. SO, LISTEN, NOW THAT YOU'RE GAINING SOME MOMENTUM AND HAVING SOME GOOD RESULTS, HOW DOES THAT AFFECT KIND OF YOUR GOALS? FOR THE REST OF THE YEAR? >> IT DOESN'T REALLY AFFECT ANYTHING. YOU KNOW I'M JUST GOING TO TAKE IT SUPER SLOW, SEE HOW IT GOES, I KNOW THAT I'M, YOU KNOW, A CHARACTER PERSONALITY THAT, YOU KNOW, HAS UP AND DOWNS, AND I JUST WANT TO TRY AND, YOU KNOW, ELIMINATE THEM AND JUST NOT REALLY HAVE TOO MANY DIPS IN THE SEASON. SO THAT'S MY GOAL. THAT'S MY ULTIMATE GOAL. AND THEN WE'LL SEE WHERE THE RANKING ENDS THIS YEAR. WE'LL SEE I MEAN THAT'S SUPER FAR AWAY. WE STILL HAVE THREE MORE GRAND SLAMS, MANY 1000. SO LET'S SEE HOW IT GOES. >> WHAT WOULD IT TAKE FOR ME TO COME UP TO YOU AND SAY, MARIA, YOU'RE KILLING IT. AND FOR YOU TO BE LIKE, YEAH, STEVE, YOU'RE RIGHT. >> OH, I'M NOT GOING TO SAY THAT ON CAMERA. WELL MAYBE, YOU KNOW, I HAVEN'T PLAYED WELL IN A GRAND SLAM IN A WHILE, SO AFTER A GOOD GRAND SLAM, MAYBE YOU CAN SAY THAT. AND OF COURSE, IF I HAD KEPT THAT CONSISTENCY UP UNTIL THAT GRAND SLAM. OKAY. >> YEAH, WE'LL KEEP DOING WHAT YOU'RE DOING OUT THERE. CONGRATULATIONS ON THE WIN TODAY AND WE WISH YOU THE BEST OF LUCK GOING FORWARD. >> THANK YOU SO MUCH. >> THANK YOU MARIA SAKKARI. EVERYBODY THREE SEED HERE IN