You know my dad pushed me to believe that I was going to be the best. I just never thought of life without tennis, even looking forward.- Andre Agassi
You do not cheat anybody out of their experience, whatever it is.
Yes, for a long time but I admired her and respected everything that I could sort of see in her from a distance, the pillars of her life, the loyalties, the relationships. It all got my interest and also the looks.
What makes something special is not just what you have to gain, but what you feel there is to lose.
Well, you know, I have bonded with a lot of people over the years, you know. We played the same tournaments year after year and we go back to the same place and many times the seats have been full and that has meant the world to me for sure.
Well, I actually tell my son that I do not have any hair because he asked me the same question that I gave it to him when he was born, so he actually still believes that. He's five years old.
Tennis was always sort of a - a learning. It was a vehicle for me to discover a lot about myself. And the things that I sort of discovered at times I not only didn't want to see it for myself but I certainly didn't want millions of people to see it.
Sometimes it's just harder to remind yourself about what you are doing and why you are doing it... Other times, you have a great desire for it, but physically you are not responding the way you want. That presents other challenges. Then sometimes it all comes together.
Some moments it feels longer, other moments it feels like it's flown by; you can't believe you've done it all that time... Overall, you have a strong sense for the full spectrum that you've sort of traveled.
Nothing can substitute for just plain hard work. I had to put in the time to get back. And it was a grind. It meant training and sweating every day. But I was completely committed to working out to prove to myself that I still could do it.
My father actually moved out from Chicago just so he could play tennis 365 days a year, so it was - it was a place we played every day. We played before school. We played after school. We woke up. We played tennis. We brushed our teeth in that order.
It means a lot to you, to be out there. The highs are pretty high, and the lows are pretty low. You know, it's easy to feel like you let the team down. I mean, at the end of the day we still got to figure out a way to get through the tie.
It has meant a lot to me to challenge the best players in the world and to beat them. And it means a lot to me to be out here and fighting for the title and, you know, it hurts not to win it.
If you do not practice you do not deserve to win.
I have been motivated by overcoming challenge and overcoming the hurdles and obstacles that face me. There still is plenty out there to get motivated by.
