Andre Agassi was my rival in the '90s, and I think as we got older we sort of transcended the game. He was probably the best player I ever played over my career. There's a list of players that were tough, but Andre, certainly, he was the most unique.
People know me. I'm not going to produce any cartwheels out there. I'm not going to belong on Comedy Central. I'll always be a tennis player, not a celebrity.
If Davis Cup was a little bit less or once every two years, I would be more inclined to play. But the way it is now, it is too much tennis for me.
In tennis, you can make a couple of mistakes and still win. Not in golf. I played three rounds in that Tahoe event, and I was drained. Mentally, not physically.
When I committed to playing a little tennis in some exhibitions, it was the best thing for me. It got me in shape. It got me out of the house. It got me doing something I love to do.
Golfers are forever working on mechanics. My tennis swing hasn't changed in 10 years.
For so long people have just taken what I do for granted. It is not easy to do year-in, year-out, to win Grand Slams and be No. 1.
I never wanted to be the great guy or the colorful guy or the interesting guy. I wanted to be the guy who won titles.
I've got a great wife, a great life.
I could be a jerk and get a lot more publicity, but that's not who I am.
I am going to hold serve the majority of the time. It is nice to have a little time to return serve.
I did it my way, and I have no regrets when I look back on my career that it was just a big focus for me.
It is nice to walk out on a court to have it packed.
I let my racket do the talking. That's what I am all about, really. I just go out and win tennis matches.
It's not easy to retire at 31. In one respect I was glad I was done. But after a few years of having fun, I got a little restless. When you're 33, 34, and you don't have a focus, you can get kind of lost. As a man, you feel a little bit unfulfilled.
After I went through two years of not winning an event, what kept me going was winning one more major. Once I won that last U.S. Open, I spent the next six months trying to figure out what was next. Slowly my passion for the sport just vanished. I had nothing left to prove.
I loved Wimbledon and what it meant, but the surface felt uncomfortable. I just didn't like it, I was a hard-court guy, a Californian kid.
Where I fall down is my short game. I don't practice enough, and when I have to take a half swing from 50 yards out, that's trouble.
