#tennis

Only boxers can understand the loneliness of tennis players - and yet boxers have their corner men and managers. Even a boxer's opponent provides a kind of companionship, someone he can grapple with and grunt at. In tennis you stand face-to-face with the enemy, trade blows with him, but never touch him or talk to him, or anyone else. The rules forbid a tennis player from even talking to his coach while on the court. People sometimes mention the track-and-field runner as a comparably lonely figure, but I have to laugh. At least the runner can feel and smell his opponents. They're inches away. In tennis you're on an island. Of all the games men and women play, tennis is the closest to solitary confinement.... ↗

— Andre Agassi

#loneliness #opponents #solitary-confinement #tennis #men

That $27,000 that a young player will now get just for making the main draw at the Australian Open is huge. It can set them up for a couple of months which at that level you really do need that kind of help. It sounds like a lot of money, but when you're travelling the world trying to make it as a tennis player, it doesn't last long. ↗

— Samantha Stosur

#couple #draw #get #help #huge

Stop trying to treat music like it's a tennis shoe, something to be branded. If the music industry wants to save money, they should take a look at some of their six-figure executive expense accounts. All those lawsuits can't be cheap, either. ↗

— Jeff Tweedy

#branded #cheap #either #executive #expense

Tennis is a psychological sport, you have to keep a clear head. That is why I stopped playing. ↗

— Boris Becker

#head #i #keep #playing #psychological

I was in the tennis bubble. I wasn't thinking about the big picture. I didn't notice what they said on television, I wasn't reading any papers. I had a coach and a manager, and they kept me in the bubble. ↗

— Boris Becker

#any #big #big picture #bubble #coach

I play tennis five hours a week, from Monday to Friday, for one hour every day. I like to be fit. If I can't exercise, I feel bad - I need to sweat and run to feel like I'm in good shape. ↗

— Bjorn Borg

#day #every #every day #exercise #feel

You know growing up in Sweden meant we had a lot of rain when we played tennis. We were taught on clay courts but because of the weather, we had to go indoors a lot. ↗

— Bjorn Borg

#clay #courts #go #growing #growing up

There was endless action - not just football, but sailboats, tennis and other things: movement. There was endless talk - the ambassador at the head of the table laying out the prevailing wisdom, but everyone else weighing in with their opinions and taking part. ↗

— Charles Spalding

#action #ambassador #else #endless #everyone

I got picked on a lot. I was a complete geek in school. I had braces. I didn't have the hot girlfriend. I wasn't ever sought after. I was a stocky, awkward kid who got laughed off the tennis court when I tried that. ↗

— Josh Brolin

#awkward #braces #complete #court #ever

What I want out of tennis is not necessarily just winning. ↗

— Jennifer Capriati

#just #necessarily #out #tennis #want