Reem's Diary: Australian Open press room full of laughs

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  • Djokovic, Federer and Williams have been keeping the press entertained.

    It may be the Melbourne sun, or Australia’s cheerful atmosphere in general – for one reason or another, the players have been delivering a series of gems each day in their interviews.

    Stan Wawrinka joked the other day when he was asked about his outfit – which is comprised of a neon reddish shirt that fades into orange and fluorescent yellow paired with neon red shorts – that “at least everyone could see me in the stadium”. And from space for that matter.

    The Swiss’ kit – yet another disaster from Yonex – has got people talking around the world and many have pointed out that the last time Wawrinka wore something controversial, namely his grey, red and white plaid shorts, he ended up winning the French Open.

    If fashion ever dictated victories then that certainly sounds like sound logic.

    Another Swiss, Belinda Bencic was in fine form in the interview room on Sunday despite coming off a tough loss to Maria Sharapova in the fourth round.

    Asked if there was anything that surprised her about Sharapova, since it was the first time they faced off, the 18-year-old Bencic said with a smile: “That her scream is not so loud.”

    She quickly said she was joking before giving a proper answer.

    On court after his tough win yesterday, Novak Djokovic was asked by Jim Courier about his upcoming quarter-final with Kei Nishikori, who shares the same clothing sponsor with the Serb – Japanese brand, Uniqlo.

    “Whoever loses, Uniqlo wins. I’m probably going to have a lot of pressure from Japan,” laughed Djokovic.

    Roger Federer had a fun chat with Jim Courier after his swift victory over David Goffin Sunday night in which the American spoke to him about his four children.

    Federer, known for his linguistic abilities, was asked how many languages his children could speak.

    “My twin boys are one and half so…” said Federer.

    Courier: “So three, four?”

    “Three or four words maybe. It’s the cutest thing ever. The girls are six and a half. They speak three languages,” replied Federer.

    Well of course they do!

    Meanwhile, Serena Williams was in a rather reflective mood in her press conference on Sunday after beating Margarita Gasparyan to reach the quarter-finals as she spoke about how she’s been spending her time in Melbourne.

    Turns out, the world No1 is a big fan of the city.

    “It’s this little world that no one can discover or appreciate unless you come. They have the best cafes; they have the best restaurants. I just learned a couple years ago that Melbourne is famous for its coffee, which I would have never even known,” said Williams.

    “I just love discovering those little places. I love like the really organic shops that are just around town that are just really cool. I just love this little – this world. It’s so many wonderful things that I’m always discovering every time I come here.”

    Asked what she’s enjoyed the most off court this fortnight, she added: “I went to the botanical gardens, just walking, one day. I went to a costume shop the other day. I found a sword that looked like He-Man’s. I tried to post on my Snapchat. I didn’t have service. It was a funny video.”

    Late Sunday night, Carla Suarez Navarro came off the court from a battling three-set win over local youngster Daria Gavrilova in which the Spaniard lost the first set 0-6 before rebounding.

    Suarez Navarro, who is from the Canary Islands, was asked by a journalist if perhaps it was siesta time back home at the time she stepped on the court, which would explain her slow start.

    The Spaniard laughed and responded: “They have now midday. So, yeah, maybe when I start, I was on Sunday morning, you know.”

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