“Well, fans always root for the underdog.”

As an individual, I take every match seriously, no matter who I’m going to play.

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.

I’d probably start charging for medical timeouts. I think we’d all see who really uses them and who doesn’t.

When I come into a tournament, I’m expecting to win. That’s my philosophy. I can’t go to a tournament thinking, ‘I’m going to get my ass kicked today, so I might as well leave.’

If everything was going smoothly you would never build character.

I love to collect modern art.

I can’t say I don’t like acting, but I can’t imagine a career when I have to spend 70 percent of my time in a trailer eating Snickers bars.

Within a few years the name ‘Maria Sharapova’ will be a brand as universally recognized as Calvin Klein, BMW and Rolex.

If you’re able to help some people and make them smile and make them realize that life is good, then that’s worth so much more than buying a pair of shoes.

My family and I built my whole career from scratch.

I don’t follow other players or the tournaments they play. I have my own schedule and do my own thing. I never really think, ‘Oh, I want to be or play like so-and-so.’ I just like being myself.

No matter what you study, the thing that you know best is what you grew up with.

I always have a Sharpie, because usually when someone asks me for an autograph, they don’t have a pen. I carry one in my purse, as well as in my tennis bag.

I look forward to the challenges.

Tennis has never been the most important thing in my life. My family, my health, my happiness they are more important to me. On court, I want to win. Off court, I want to be a better person. Tennis is a path to my future.

I want to be different. If everyone is wearing black, I want to be wearing red.

My fans mean more to me than they will ever know. I call these people my friends and my confidence and if they are here to see me and they are here to support me, then that’s all I need in life.

It was so much easier to connect with my fans when I was smaller. I could answer every message, and I enjoyed that.

I make sure to use both Twitter and Facebook a lot which helps me connect to the fans.

I think my fans inspire me a lot. They’re a huge part of my career. I wouldn’t be where I am without them, so I try to feed off what they’re going through. I read their tweets and Instagrams.

I am not a fan of politics.

You pick up some fans and a handful of haters along the way.

The most beautiful people are those who are truly themselves, and that’s what I want to show my fans.

I just know that I’m a fan of all different kinds of genres. You’re supposed to be free doing music, and that’s how I feel.