It is always in my mind still that I can crush anybody. That’s not an issue. But I think that is the same for most athletes. If you don’t believe you can win tournaments anymore, then you can’t do it.
I was aware of how incredible the match was. Unfortunately there had to be a winner. From my point of view many left feeling sorry for me instead of being happy for Rafa. Which hurts.
I always had the dream that, once I became No 1 in the world, that if I had a child I hoped I would have it early enough so the child can see me playing.
Success is a nice thing because it always means you’ve taken a step forward and it gives you a sense of pride, which in turn gives you confidence and experience-a positive circle, so to speak.
It doesn’t need to be the same every day, doesn’t need to be the same shower I use, the same restaurant I go to, the same hour I go to sleep. I’ve always been very flexible. I don’t care if I practice at nine in the morning or 10 P.M.
One of my big, big strengths I think early on in my career was that I could learn very quickly. You wouldn’t have to tell me the things 10 times or 50 times until I would understand them. You would only have to tell me two or three times.
