Tennis Atlantic

One on One Video: Michelle Larcher de Brito After Qualifying at Citi Open in Washington

Michelle Larcher de Brito had a tough three set win over rising American Victoria Duval in final round qualifying at the Citi Open in Washington, D.C earlier today. The sticky humidity was definitely a factor. I discovered that her parents travel with her everywhere. She also discusses the recent press attention after her upset win over Maria Sharapova at Wimbledon last month, her fans, her grunting and her disappearance from twitter in this lightning-round interview.

On the heat: “It’s definitely really hot. Since Day 1, I’ve been struggling a little bit with the heat and I’ve been feeling tired. Vicky played a great match and I’m just lucky I got through”.

On Family: “My family’s always been there since day one for me and my dad’s always been my coach. He’s always been there through the good times and the bad times.”

On her fans: “They inspire me big-time. When I’m feeling down or not feeling great, I want to do better for them because so many people look up to me. I feel really special that people look up to me. When I’m feeling down and I hear someone cheering me on the court, it makes me feel that much better and makes me want to do better.”

I mentioned pulling the plug on all that noise on social media since her Wimbledon win over Sharpova, but I think she meant I wanted to talk about grunting.

On twitter: “I did have an account but I closed the account. I did it for fun and I enjoyed it. Now I know what it’s about. I kind of got bored with it. There’s no privacy. Maybe one day I’ll get it back.”

Toronto and US Open Qualifying await after her main draw business is concluded in Washington. She faces Madison Keys in the first round.

—Steve Fogleman