“I don’t want to be remembered for my tennis accomplishments. That’s no contribution to society. Tennis was purely selfish; that was for me.”

I don’t care who you are, you’re going to choke in certain matches. You get to a point where your legs don’t move and you can’t take a deep breath. You start to hit the ball about a yard wide, instead of inches.

I strongly believe the black culture spends too much time, energy and effort raising, praising, and teasing our black children about the dubious glories of professional sports.

You’ve got to make a lot of sacrifices and spend a lot of time if you really want to achieve with this sport, or in any sport, or in anything truly worthwhile.

Sometimes, a defeat can be more beautiful and satisfying than certain victories. The English have a point in insisting that it matters not who won or lost, but how you played the game.

I have always tried to be true to myself, to pick those battles I felt were important. My ultimate responsibility is to myself. I could never be anything else.

If I didn’t play tennis I probably would have to see a psychiatrist.

I have always drawn strength from being close to home.

If one’s reputation is a possession, then of all my possessions, my reputation means most to me.

True heroism is remarkably sober, very undramatic. It is not the urge to surpass all others at whatever cost, but the urge to serve others at whatever cost.

If I were to say, ‘God, why me?’ about the bad things, then I should have said, ‘God, why me?’ about the good things that happened in my life.

Someone once told me that God figured that I was a pretty good juggler. I could keep a lot of balls in the air at one time. So He said, “Let’s see if he can juggle another one.”

I may not be walking with you all the way, or even much of the way, as I walk with you now.

Seven out of 10 black faces you see on television are athletes. The black athlete carries the image of the black community. He carries the cross, in a way, until blacks make inroads in other dimensions.

It’s an abnormal world I live in. I don’t belong anywhere. It’s like I’m floating down the middle. I’m never quite sure where I am.

A wise person decides slowly but abides by these decisions.

The best way to judge a life is to ask yourself, “Did I make the best use of the time I had?

Leadership is the art of accomplishing more than the science of management says is possible.

I go to bed every night and the list of what I’ve accomplished is astounding.

I could not deprive you of the revelation of all that you could accomplish together, of a friendship that will define you both in ways you cannot yet realize.

All who have accomplished great things have had a great aim, have fixed their gaze on a goal which was high, one which sometimes seemed impossible.

We may not be able to do any great thing; but if each of us will do something, however small it may be, a good deal will be accomplised for God.

Your greatest accomplishment may not be something you do but someone you raise.

High moral character is not a precondition for great moral accomplishments.

Republicans always try to paint Democrats as weak on defense. This time, they can’t. After all, Mitt Romney’s idea of an overseas accomplishment is sending U.S. jobs there.