Quotes of All Topics . Occasions . Authors
If I had to choose between a third Wimbledon title and the number one ranking, I would choose Wimbledon. The ranking just shows how you're doing in the year, so I think the Slams are first, and it shows in the number anyway.
I am now the Wimbledon champion, and I think that gives me even more confidence coming to the Olympics. And maybe in some ways, it maybe takes some pressure off the Olympics, because I already did win at Wimbledon this year.
My accomplishments do not live up to my tennis game. Most people have to work really hard and win some big matches, and then they get money and popularity. For me it has been the reverse of everybody else. The exact opposite.
Every week I'll be spending money on flights, accommodation, stringing and even things as simple as taxis, meals out and, of course, paying the other members of my team. I'm still very careful, though, with what I'm spending.
Earlier in my career, I used to spend a lot of time practising my tennis on court. Now I've learned that it's better to do just a couple of hours on court and two gym sessions a day. That's what's made me fitter and stronger.
My mum and dad are both sportspeople and know what's it all about. They know it's hard work, but they also know what it takes to become a professional athlete. I don't think - without their help, I wouldn't have got this far.
About three months after I had Kelly, I went and played in Canada. I felt great, I was ready to go and I was very energetic. But as soon as I started playing, I thought 'no, too soon.' I went back home and slept for two days.
They would go back and listen to my matches, and two days later, I'd be fined. Because no one heard it while it was being played, but they heard it on some mic behind the court. Is that the way it should be? I don't think so.
When you are dealing with two players who are almost mirror images, the contest often boils down to first-serve percentage. Who is getting more cheap points on their first serve? Who can dominate the other guy's second serve?
How do you build a relationship when you've hardly shared a word but suddenly share a child? How do you love a daughter you don't see for nearly two years? When does she become your daughter? How does she become your daughter?
But just maybe sometimes being even more patient. Even though I thought I did that much better this year, and sometimes, you know, make my opponents play that one extra ball, and just knowing how to play the big points better.
It was a great time here in the States this year, and definitely I feel like I'm playing well again. I gained a lot of confidence in the last couple of weeks, and I just have to, you know, keep going and keep the momentum now.
Well, I like to - the game of serve and volley, but it's very tough, you know, against the best players because they return so good and their passing shots are really good. So it's really tough to get there with those players.
Oh, I get pretty fired up on the court. I try to play with a lot of emotion, especially when I'm playing in front of a large crowd. I want to go out and do my best, and to do that, I have to play with the most energy possible.
I pastor a very large church in western Australia. We have about - over 2,000 people, which we have a Bible school, community services, a lot of things linked with it. So my life's very full today. Not enough days in the week.
It's always tough when you lose - you've worked so hard for that moment and it hasn't gone the way you wanted. But you have to realise there's always a bright side, you have to pick yourself up and get ready for the next game.
You know, a lot of things changed. What never changed is the illusion to keep playing tennis, the illusion to keep doing well the things, and the illusion to be in a good position of the ranking and play these kind of matches.
For me, being part of the WTA tour is a privilege. Every day I wake up, it's a privilege to be able to go outside and do what I love. It's a privilege to be able to make my own hours, even though they're long, but I make them.
When I see these kids 6 years old with a private coach, and at 7, they have a fitness coach, I'm like, 'Aw, come on.' At 12, it's for sure they will lose all the interest in tennis because they do not interact with other kids.
I think if you're put on a team as a child, like you are in soccer and other sports, I think the children are going to stay in the sport and have more fun if they're on a team. They want to play with their friends and have fun.
When you are thrown onto the stage at 17 in such an enormous way, it becomes living on the edge because every step you take, every word you speak, every action you do becomes headline news. And it became, for me, life or death.
The first thing I would do is create one office that controlled all of pro tennis so you had one central voice that spoke for tennis. Central governance is something that's really held the sport back and will continue to do so.
I like to listen to Congolese music because when I was a kid with my father, he took me to play some tournaments in the car and always put on this music. I always fell asleep with this music so it's good things that I remember.
I'm more in that Rafa Nadal high-energy high-octane mold out there. I wear that emotion on the court. That's how I play my best tennis. People either like that or not. And I can't change that: that's who I am on a tennis court.
More than half of the matches are won in the dressing room for him. The guy he's playing against is sitting in the locker-room thinking 'oh my God, I'm going to play Rafa Nadal on clay in five sets, that's going to be painful.'
But, it's because we have a harder way to succeed in life as Serbs because of the past that we had and because of the history that we had. We have to dig deeper and we have to do much more in order to be seen and to be spotted.
A final of a grand slam is always a matter of details. Maybe a point here, a point there will make the difference. Maybe someone who is a bit more gutsy than the other player, someone who is having a better day than the others.
When I say that I want to win Roland-Garros, it's hard because I have practically as many chances of winning at EuroMillions. You have to beat Rafa who has never really lost at Roland Garros and whom I have never beaten on clay.
When I felt I was rejected by my first wife, and she said, 'Some day you will thank me for this,' you know what? I do. And so, sometimes it is darkest before the dawn. You can think it is bleak and you can't see. You never know.
One of the things I respected about Connors was that one second he would be spewing a four-letter word, the next second he would do something that had people falling off the aisles. Yet he never seemed to lose his concentration.
I liked Pat Cash, and I loved Mats Wilander. I went to the Australian Open with my parents, and I used to watch Wilander being cheered on by the Swedish fans, and with his game style being like mine, I drew comparisons with him.
I really couldn't come out until after I got my citizenship, because it was a disclaim - back then, it could have been a disqualifier. I could have been denied my U.S. citizenship because I was gay. So I didn't - I stayed quiet.
I did always dream of being a professional player. I think every kid does dream of being a pro, but to last the journey you have to love tennis as a sport and if you are lucky enough to make it in the pros, it is really a bonus.
As far as fitness is concerned, you have to enjoy it, do good exercises, and integrate them into your tennis practice. The preparation for the season is as crucial as doing good blocks when switching from one surface to another.
There is always disappointment, heartache. You are losing almost every tournament. You need to just accept it and be positive because you are going to lose and fail. We're not all Nadal or Djokovic, who can win most tournaments.
Awkward gestures, clumsy gestures, fist pumps. I just do whatever I feel like is right in the moment. If I need to be hyped, I'm hyped. If I need to talk to myself, I talk to myself. Whatever it takes to win, I'm going to do it.
When we were kids, I remember we'd use lemon in our hair and go into the sun, hoping it would make us blond. Obviously, I have very dark hair and olive skin, and when I was a kid, I wanted to be blond, of course. It never worked.
In a tiebreaker, you generally have a lot of adrenaline running through. It's all about just holding your serve, trying to hold two serves at a time, trying to stay ahead in the tiebreaker, constantly put pressure on my opponent.
When you come off the court and you feel like you were losing the whole match, and all of a sudden you pulled it out, you know, it's those moments that you feel you've trained for and you work hard for. Just lucky to get through.
One or two years ago, I didn't know who I was on court and I used to swear a lot. But now I've learned how to cope and can therefore win 10 matches in a row. I want to be remembered as a good player rather than an idiot on court.
I think my family needs me more than anybody else, and tennis doesn't need me anymore. I respect my wife a lot for taking all that in. She said, 'I didn't marry a tennis player; you'd retired.' Now it's time to do something else.
I just want to be able to show who I really am, what I can do, bring awareness, create something because I want to take tennis, women's tennis, into an even more exciting path because I believe we have a lot more things to offer.
If somebody knows me, they know for sure I'm from Poland because I'm playing for my country every tournament, every match. I'm staying in my hometown and my home country because that is where I feel comfortable. I feel good there.
Even when I was much younger, whatever I did, I wanted to do it to the best of my abilities. When I came home from school, I would be the one doing my homework while my siblings would be watching TV and putting it off until later.
You can drill down on where hunger comes from and figure it out from there, but there absolutely has to be a sense of urgency if you're going to play tennis because you're the team - there's no one for you to rely on but yourself.
When I came on the tour, I thought, 'Why don't they treat tennis players the same way they look at football players?' Because I've got news for you: when they are on the pitch, they are not saying, 'Hello, how are you?' out there.
People talk about the drama of the set that goes on and on. But it leaves one guy exhausted for the next round, it's horrible for the players waiting to come on court, and it has the potential to mess up the schedule for everyone.
I don't mind fans coming up in a friendly, respectful way. That's all part of the fun of being a top tennis player. But if people take pictures without permission, particularly if my children are in the shot, I feel uncomfortable.
You can't measure success if you have never failed. My father has taught me that if you really do want to reach your goals, you can't spend any time worrying about whether you're going to win or lose. Focus only on getting better.
When I was 28, my wisdom teeth were coming through and I had all four out under general anaesthetic. I remember friends who'd had terrible experiences, but my teeth were removed at 8am and I ate steak and chips for lunch that day.