Once You've Been Number One, You Can

I Think Team Sports Probably Teach You More About Giving - About Being Unselfish And Being Flexible.

When I Was In Grade School And We Had To Write Papers About What We Wanted To Be When We Grew Up, I Wanted To Be A Social Worker Or A Missionary Or A Teacher... Then I Got Involved With Tennis, And Everything Was Just Me, Me, Me. I Was Totally Selfish And Thought About Myself And Nobody Else, Because If You Let Up For One Minute, Someone Was Going To Come Along And Beat You. I Really Wouldn't Let Anyone Or Any Slice Of Happiness Enter... I Didn't Like The Characteristics That It Took To Become A Champion.

Now That I'm Losing Some, I Can See How Tough I Was -- The Killer Instinct, The Single-mindedness, Playing Like A Machine. Boy, That's What Made Me A Champion.

Single-mindedness. I Hate To Say It Because I Don't Think It's The Best Thing For Developing A Person, But The Single-mindedness - Just Concentrating In The One Area - That's What It Takes To Be A Champion.

I'm Not An Overly Ambitious Person; I Don't Feel Like I Have To Excel.