Alternative title: Why Martina Hingis is the Legend
Since I hit the 20-images-per-post limit I cannot make any more edits to my original post so I have to open a new thread and split my post into 2 parts.
Please tell me if you got any more quotes that are not covered!
Serena Williams
"When I went and played in the final I knew there was no way I was going to lose. I had God on my side and I was just relaxed, and I knew there was only one black girl that day winning. Also I was the only black girl playing so I narrowed down that black girl to me!" – after the 2007 Australian Open
"I just pretty much stood back and let her take advantage of me. And I feel violated. I didn't take my opportunities and I didn't do anything I was supposed to do." – after losing to Justine Henin in 2007 French Open QF.
"She hit some lucky shots." – after losing to Justine Henin in 2007 US Open QF.
"She's a great framer, but obviously it's all talent." – after losing to Sam Stosur at 2009 Stanford.
"I think if you hold three Grand Slam titles then maybe you should be No.1, but not on the WTA Tour obviously. My motivation is maybe just to win another Grand Slam and stay No. 2, I guess." "I see myself as No. 2. That's where I am. I think Dinara [Safina] did a great job to get to No. 1. She won Rome and Madrid."
"Long before we came out here, Hingis was trash-talking everybody." "She's always been the type of person who just says things and just speaks her mind and I guess that has a little bit to do with not having a formal education." – on Martina Hingis
"I would never cheat you like that…Don't think I would do that – I'm not Justine. You know what I mean?" – to Jelena Jankovic after losing in the 2010 Rome SF, on the slight controversy in the third set tiebreaker over Serena putting her hand up when she was not ready to return Jankovic's serve.
"Fuck you bitch." – after being aced by Venus in the 2003 Australian Open final.
"That's the fucking way, Serena!" – in 2009 Australian Open 3R
"Get a fucking first serve in!" – in 2009 Australian Open 4R
"Come on" – in the 2015 Australian Open Final, after being docked a point for hindrance for yelling "come on" while the ball was still in play.
"I just think my problem is I'm a hypochondriac. [That's] someone that is always prone to get sick, prone to get hurt and injured, more prone than the next individual. That's me. Under hypochondriac, they should put: 'Serena Williams.'" – after losing to Jennifer Capriati in 2001 due to gastroenteritis.
Capriati responded: "Basically, every time I play (her), I'm pretty much used to something going on there."
Timea Bacsinszky drop shots one of Serena's serves in Rome 2010 2R. Serena responds the next point by getting a service winner and said "You wanna drop shot that?"
"I'm going to get you in the locker room for that. You don't know me." "(to the umpire) She better not come to the net again." "I'm from Compton, you know." – to Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez after she cheated in 2009 French Open 3R.
"Sorry about that." – to Justine Henin, after beating her in 2003 Wimbledon SF.
"Vengeance is for God, I'm just here to play tennis." – about avenging her 2002 YEC Final loss to Kim Clijsters during the Hopman Cup Final
"The ball landed here. That ball was not out. Are you kidding me? I'm trying to tell you: The ball was not out. Do I need to speak another language?" – to umpire Mariana Alves, in the controversial 2004 US Open QF.
"I swear to God I'll fucking take this ball and shove it down your fucking throat! Do you hear me? I swear to God. You better be glad – you better be fucking glad that I'm not, I swear." – to line judge Shino Tsurubuchi in the infamous 2009 US Open SF.
"You ever see me walking down the hall, look the other way. Because you're out of control – totally out of control. You're a hater and you're unattractive inside. Who would do such a thing? And I never complain. Wow. What a loser. You give a code violation because I expressed who I am? We're in America last I checked...don't look at me, I promise you don't look at me cause I am not the one. Don't look my way." – to umpire Eva Asderaki in the controversial 2011 US Open final.
"People who know me don't think so " – Eva Asderaki, when asked by a fan if she is really ugly inside.
"Don't try me." – to the booing crowd, during her match against Heather Watson in 2015 Wimbledon 3R.
"You'll pay for that." – when Maria Sharapova hit her with an overhead smash in the 2007 Australian Open final.
"Bitch" – in 2007 US Open QF against Justine Henin.
"Gimme More. It's Willy Bitch." – when asked about winning more slams.
"I'm excited because I haven't won a title since March and that's not like me." – after winning at the Beijing Olympics.
"Yeah it was there the whole time." – after losing to Martina Hingis in 1998 Lipton QF, when Pam Shriver asked Serena if the net played a factor.
Interviewer: "33 minutes to move through today, Serena. What took longer? The match or your hair?"
Serena: "You want the truth? My hair (laughs)."
"What's after 2 is 1 so I guess I better be careful (laughs)." – on new World No. 2 Angelique Kerber
"Yeah, I thought about that the whole time I was designing the dress. 'I can't beat these girls; I've got to think of every way to cheat.'" – after the 2007 Australian Open, when asked if she had chosen the colour of her dress so that it would be difficult for opponents to see the ball against it.
"Yeah, I'm pretty much ancient (laughter). Basically ready to have grandkids (laughter). I'm almost your age (laughter)." – when asked if it felt different to her that she was the oldest one in the locker room.
"I'm definitely in better shape than I get credit for. Just because I have large bosoms and I have a big ass. I swear my waist is 29-30 inches. I swear I have the smallest waist. And just because I have those two 'assets' it looks like I'm not fit. I was just in the locker room staring at my body and I'm like, 'Am I not fit? Am I really not fit? Or is it just because I have all these extra assets that I look not fit.' I think if I were not to eat for two years I still wouldn't be a size 2. No matter how slim I am, I always have this (points) and that (points). We're living in a Mary-Kate Olsen world. I'm just not built that way. I'm bootylicious and that's how it's always going to be."
"No athlete has boobs like me [sic]."
"If I lost 20lbs, I'm still going to have these knockers – forgive me – and I'm still going to have this ass. It's just the way it is. I'm the same size and the same weight I was five years ago." – at the 2007 Australian Open, on being called fat.
"I'm an actress, model and athlete, and I'd put athlete third on the list."
"My goal in a couple of years is to try to build a successful fashion house like Armani or Versace. I want that more than anything."
"I'm really exciting. I smile a lot, I win a lot, and I'm really sexy."
"I've been getting my reel together. I think they are looking at me more as an actress because I have a lot of potential and a lot of skills."
"It's amazing, but I guess that happens when you become overly famous. Every week now, I get more famous." – on the Bobblehead doll created in her image.
"Unfortunately, no!" – when asked if any of the other WTA players ask her for beauty tips.
"For her it is." – when asked if Mauresmo in the quarters was a difficult draw.
"She did the best she could today and hopefully she'll be able to do a little bit better." – after beating Amelie Mauresmo 6-1, 6-2 at the 2003 French Open.
"I don't want to be like some of those celebrities walking around, just so full of themselves. I always want to be down-to-earth, want to be a person like when you meet them, they're the same person that you think of them in the article or something."
"Maria doesn't cross my mind. She's not in my world right now. I have millions and millions of things to think about." – a month after losing to Maria Sharapova at 2004 Wimbledon.
"Unfortunately, I hate to say it, but sex sells." "I know a lot of people who are 12 and doing things they shouldn't be doing. Whether you're an actress or a singer, it's always the sexier ones that are selling more tickets or selling more albums." – on Maria Sharapova
"She won that one game, I could see her pumping her fists. I was like, Oh, boy, here she comes." – on Maria Sharapova, who avoided the double bagel in the 2012 Olympics final.
On Maria Sharapova before 2013 Wimbledon: "There are people who live, breathe and dress tennis. I mean, seriously, give it a rest. She begins every interview with 'I'm so happy. I'm so lucky'. It's so boring." "She's still not going to be invited to the cool parties. And, hey, if she wants to be with the guy with a black heart, go for it."
Sharapova responded in the pre-Wimbledon press conference: "If she wants to talk about something personal, maybe she should talk about her relationship and her boyfriend that was married and is getting a divorce and has kids. I just think she should be talking about her accomplishments, her achievements, rather than everything else that's just getting attention and controversy. Nobody really cares about what I have to say, my opinions. If I speak to my friends, that's one thing. But I don't go out and try to create things that shouldn't be really talked about."
(Later Sharapova lost to Michelle Larcher de Brito in 2R and Serena lost to Sabine Lisicki in 4R.)
In an interview with People Magazine:
A really embarrassing moment: A fellow tennis player hit on me – but in the same locker room as me! I was just like, "I like guys!"
Something overrated: Maria Sharapova
"Yeah, I watch it every day. Every night to get ready." – when asked if she ever watched the 2015 US Open SF match in which she lost to Roberta Vinci.
"That young girl" – referring to Melanie Oudin throughout her interview.
Reporter: "Daniela is obviously hurting for different reasons at the moment. How would you feel if you would have gone out and lost to a woman who was playing on one leg?"
Serena: "If she was Serena Williams, I wouldn't feel that bad (smiling)."
– after gutting out a 6-2, 6-7(2), 6-2 win in R16 at Wimbledon over Daniela Hantuchova.
"I used to want to be like John McEnroe. I wanted to be like him as a person. That controversy was very exciting for me back then."
"There are like 50 Russian players in the top 10."
"It's a lot of bling to play with. You got to have the bling." – on playing at the US Open wearing $40K diamond earrings.
"No, I don't read the papers. I just look at the pictures."
"I make people's careers."
"I have a wonderful white coat I can wear on the court and also in New York for those rainy days...it's lady-like and goes perfect with my personality."
When asked what was on her tennis bucket list after Cincy: "Stuttgart", then paused for so long that the entire room started laughing. (Source: @SI_BTBaseline)
"I can always blame her if things don't go right. I'm never wrong!" – on Venus after beating Pavlyuchenkova/Safarova 6-1, 7-6(3) at the 2013 US Open.
"What about her… I forgot it (laughs)" – when asked about Justine Henin and the infamous 2003 French Open SF.
"Question- I keep hearing about an admittance to someone cheating me & lying about it after at the French open? Did she confess finally?" – when told by fans that Justine Henin had admitted cheating in 2003 French Open SF.
(Caroline Wozniacki responded: "hahahaha!!". Lindsay Davenport quoted Serena and added: "OMG-luv it")
Maria Sharapova
"That's so old." – when Craig Kilborn talked about Anna Kournikova in 2003.
"I'm not the next Kournikova. I want to win matches."
"People seem to forget that Anna [Kournikova] isn't in the picture anymore. It's Maria-time now." – in Sports Illustrated
Serena Williams: "Actually, I don't believe I played a Wimbledon final"
Sharapova responded: "In reality there was a match. She must not have been in reality."
"I don't care what they're selling." – when questioned by the L.A. Times as to whether the sexy WTA marketing campaign featuring the Russian at the WTA Championships was selling sex.
Nadia Petrova, who lost her momentum and match to Sharapova in 2012 US Open 4R due to rain relay: "Unfortunately, it was her lucky day."
Sharapova responded: "Great. I'm the winner, so whatever she wants to call it is fine with me."
"I just won a Grand Slam. The last thing I'm gonna talk about is some fingers or a banana, all right?" "You know, honestly I believe at the end of the day, personally, my life is not about a banana. It's not about what I wear; it's not about the friends I have. My career right now is about winning a tennis match. And right now I'm sitting here as a US Open champion, and the last thing people need to worry about is a banana." – on the illegal coaching incident in 2006 US Open SF.
"He won more points than Caroline did." – after beating Caroline Wozniacki in straight sets in an exhibition match at Madison Square Garden. Wozniacki called on her boyfriend Rory McIlroy to play a point late in the match.
"Are you fucking kidding me?" – to the umpire, during 2007 Australian Open 1R.
"That's the way baby!" – after beating Elena Dementieva 6-2, 6-0 at the 2008 Australian Open.
"This is my home" – after beating Daniela Hantuchova in 2008 Indian Wells QF. (Hantuchova, the defending champion, said in an earlier interview that she felt that Indian Wells was like a home to her.)
Sharapova lost in the next round.
"ALLEZ UP YOUR FUCKING ASS!" – to the crowd who booed her and cheered for Dinara Safina in 2008 French Open 4R.
Agnieszka Radwanska, after losing to Victoria Azarenka in 2012 Australian Open QF, on Sharapova's grunting: "About Maria, I mean, what can I say? For sure that is pretty annoying and it's just too loud."
Sharapova responded: "Isn't she back in Poland already?" "No one important enough has told me to change or do something different."
"RUN RUN!!!" – after hitting a drive volley winner at 3-4 30 all final set against Radwanska at 2012 YEC.
"Because I didn't do the dance after. I wasn't tired. More than anything, I sensed that she was tired – probably a lot of the dancing that she's been doing – and I took advantage of it." – after beating Andrea Petkovic in 2011 Miami SF, referring to Petkovic's victory dance.
Jelena Jankovic after losing to Sharapova at 2005 Wimbledon: "It was a question of whether I could continue and that's why the score was 6-1. If I play my best I can beat her but I wasn't even close to my previous level today."
Sharapova replied: "You are not the only one with a thigh problem. So I don't say I'm sorry in that way."
"Is her last name Jankovic?" – to the umpire, when Victoria Azarenka asked for a medical timeout for the second time in 2009 China Open 2R
"Check her blood pressure." – after Ana Ivanovic took a medical timeout and broke back in the final set of 2014 Western & Southern Open SF
"It was so unfortunate that Vika was extremely injured today and just couldn't really perform her game." – during the winner's speech after beating Azarenka 6-1, 6-4 in the 2012 Stuttgart final, referring to her medical timeout.
"It's pretty hard being a tennis player and Mother Teresa at the same time and that's just the way it is." – on being booed after her win over Patty Schnyder in the 2007 French Open for dubious gamesmanship.
"This girl that beat me today, she might not win the tournament but she beat me and it probably made her tournament." – on the shock defeat by Alla Kudryavtseva.
"Maybe if I was British, a semi-final would be incredible. I'd be on the front page of the paper. " – after losing to Serena Williams in 2015 Wimbledon SF.
Reporter: "Would you like a group of fans to follow your matches and sing all the way through them?"
Sharapova: "No, I actually prefer writing my own songs and singing them. I think I did a pretty good job of that today."
– after beating Eugenie Bouchard in Australian Open 2015 QF.
"If I was going to announce my retirement, it would probably not be in a downtown Los Angeles hotel with this fairly ugly carpet." – during the press conference in which she announced that she had tested positive for banned substance meldonium.
Q. What is your relationship with other Russian players? You help each other? What is your relationship?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: Help each other (laughing)?
Q. To lose (laughing).
MARIA SHARAPOVA: To lose, yeah (laughing).
"Who's in the top 8? I don't even"
"Who's ever measured their IQ?" – when being told that Marion Bartoli has an IQ of 175.
"Who is that?" "Sorry I don’t know who Judy Murray is."
"Take your pencils down, take your grunt-o-meters down, the fashion police, put it all away and just watch the match."
"Reading the newspapers, there's nothing I'm going to learn new about myself, because I know what I said, and you know, I don't need to read what I said, 'cause I know what I said. I like to look at the pictures."
Venus Williams
"Look, I know it's out, she knows it's out, EVERYONE HERE KNOWS IT'S OUT! You don't know it's out." – to the umpire, in 1998 Wimbledon QF against Jana Novotna.
After losing 6-3, 6-4 in 1998 French Open QF to Martina Hingis, who disputed several line calls: "It's her custom to dispute calls."
Hingis responded: "Yeah, it's my custom when she is standing there saying, 'This is out,' and it was, like, right on the line."
Reporter: "You made two mistakes in the last two points of the match, what happened?"
Venus: "Well, I guess I couldn't get the ball in."
Reporter: "What happened out there today?"
Venus: "Well, I went out there and lost the first set 6-0, and lost the second 6-4, then the awards ceremony."
– Venus after her loss to Hingis at the 1997 US Open
"If you wanna hit with me, that's what you get!" – after crushing Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario at the 1999 Pilot Pen tournament.
"I have speed, power, a huge serve, I move very well…those are a lot of things to go up against." – before her Wimbledon 2000 final against Lindsay Davenport.
"Definitely I think it was me, I was either making the points or breaking myself. Obviously, I think, anyone who saw the match would realize that I was the better player, I'm more athletic, I hit the ball harder, my serve is better, I move better……" "The disappointing part is this was a match I could have won, a match I normally would win, a match I definitely should have won, I think. I definitely think I'm better, I know that." – on her loss to Lindsay Davenport in US Open 4R.
"What are you here for if you can't call the ball? It's an outrage." "And you can't lie on that because that ball was real far out. Right is right and wrong is wrong. And I'm not a fool." – to umpire Eva Asderaki at the 2008 Australian Open during a doubles match with her sister Serena Williams, who did not overrule the call despite seeing that the ball was out.
"It would take an act of God for me to play there again." – on playing at Indian Wells.
"Anything which draws attention to me because I am so attractive." – on what works in her fashion world.
"I guess the bumblebee got me off to a bad start." – after a bee harassed her into losing her serve against Britain's Naomi Cavaday.
"I still don't fear anyone. The only things I fear in life are cockroaches."
"That's okay, because, if I would have listened to everyone else, then I would have never made it out of Compton, so I'm living in Palm Beach Gardens now – it's pretty nice." – when she was told that she was placed only sixth in the list of favourites to win the title prior to Wimbledon.
"Normally, I don't think she would beat me because she can't hurt me." – after losing 3-6, 4-6 to Anastasia Myskina at the 2004 French Open.
"Uhm, well, I think I was playing decent, you know. And she started playing like really bad, and it totally threw me off. She started hitting, like, these really weird shots and short balls and, like, just weird stuff. Just like it threw my game off. Next thing I knew, I was playing as bad as she was, and she was able to recover, it seemed like; I just wasn't. I guess maybe it was a good strategy (smiling)." – after losing to Kim Clijsters in 2005 US Open QF.
"I like seeing my name next to her name. I'm good with that." "I really do enjoy our matchups, obviously, because I usually come out on top." – after beating Francesca Schiavone at the 2010 US Open, who said that Venus is scared when she sees her name in the draw.
"She benefited from my largesse." – after losing to Tsvetana Pironkova at the 2006 Australian Open.
"It's a nice bonus but, you know, I have to pay taxes too." – after winning the Grand Slam Cup.
"I wouldn't consider myself cocky and arrogant. I'm confident and I tell the truth."
"I know every single person asking me a question can't play as well as I can and never will, so no matter what you say or what you write, you'll never light a candle to me." – when asked how she coped with media attention throughout her career.
Patty Schnyder
"You disgusting bitch" – to Conchita Martinez after 2004 Charlseton SF.
"No. I don't want to talk – I mean I don't need to talk to her. I don't need to get along or speak what happened. I mean I don't need that. She can do whatever she wants. I don't need her." – on Conchita Martinez
"I don't like playing against her, I can't stand her. Winning one set was enough." – after losing to Anna Kournikova at the 1999 French Open.
"I hate playing her. And I don't play if I'm on the court against her. It's her person and everything around her…It's not her game" – on Anna Kournikova
"Don't pay attention to all this garbage. We all like each other, except Kournikova. She is not nice. I don't talk to her. I don't need her." – in defence of her fellow countrywoman Martina Hingis.
Reporter: "Big challenge, maybe Kim Clijsters."
Schnyder: "Yeah, I don't know who I'm gonna pick tonight. It's a very tough one. I think for the first match after two years coming back it's Bartoli."
Reporter: "But she is Belgian."
Schnyder: "It's not that I hope that Bartoli wins."
– at the 2009 Western & Southern Open, the tournament where Kim Clijsters made her return after a two-year absence.
Reporter: "What was most difficult about playing her today?"
Schnyder: "No, she just had a great start, first of all. Then, yeah, she just is a great athlete. She's striking the ball great. Yeah, it was really tough to get the rallies going and to get some advantage in the rallies."
Reporter: "Is it more difficult since she's been off the tour for a while to know what to expect?"
Schnyder: "No."
Reporter: "So you had a good idea of what she…"
Schnyder: "Yeah."
– after being beaten 6-2, 7-5 by Kim Clijsters in the next round.
"Very funny. Perhaps in the next year Michael Jackson [can get] a gold exempt and Donald Duck a special silver exempt." – Schnyder, who was No. 18 at the time, responded in an e-mail to tour officials on the gold and silver exempt lists for 2003. The "winners" were Anna Kournikova, Amanda Coetzer, Alexandra Stevenson and Arantza Sánchez-Vicario, who all made the list despite being ranked outside the top 20.
Anna Kournikova
"I watched Serena and Venus play, and they're not that good. They've been given more attention than me and they don't know how to play points or how to win….I'm not worried about them."
"I'm not Venus Williams. I'm not Serena Williams. I'm feminine. I don't want to look like they do. I'm not masculine like they are."
"She (Venus) has a big serve, she's a big girl, so I have to just outthink her." "Grass is obviously not her surface, so we'll see."
"People think I'm stupid just because of my blond hair. But, blonds are actually smart."
"The copy is never as good as the original." – on Maria Sharapova
"When I was 12, every little girl in Russia was trying to wear her hair like mine and playing tennis."
"It's that I have a good personality and am a good tennis player."
"It's true I always try to be as seductive as possible but I wouldn't be here if I couldn't play tennis."
"I'm not here to talk about my personal life, I'm here to talk about bras."
"I worked very hard and I earned all the attention I'm getting."
"I think people like me for my tennis."
"A court is like a scene, people want to see attractive people."
"I have lost this battle but I will win the war."
"Please write that I have many boyfriends. In every country I visit, there is another boyfriend. And I kiss with all of them."
"God gives all to those who get up early."
"Boyfriends have to understand my needs. I shower four times a day."
"At this year’s Open, I’ll have five boyfriends."
"The world believes all blondes are stupid and brunettes are smarter. Well, I disagree."
"I am beautiful, famous and gorgeous. I could have any man in the world."
"I love to go to church, it's so beautiful and peaceful. When you leave the church, you feel clean, like everything dirty has gone."
"People ask me 'Why do you have to look good on court? Why don't you just play?' But, you know, when on court, I feel like I am in theatre and need to express myself. Why do I have to look ugly just because I am a sportsman?"
(In 1998) "In ten years, it will not be enough for ladies just to play tennis. People want to see more, crowd makes us stars and we earn money thanks to them. In ten years, female players will play in topless."
"If you saw me with my clothes off you'd see that my body is in great shape and ready to take on the world…I could snap my fingers and have any man I wanted but I have too much respect for myself for that…People can look then wonder about the taste and the sensuous delights of the dish, but when it comes down to it they simply can't afford such an expensive luxury."
Martina Hingis after beating Kournikova in 1997 Wimbledon SF: "I don't think it's such a big rivalry. Everybody is making a rivalry of it. I've always been better. I always beat her at the great tournaments, as I did this time again."
Kournikova's response: "You may be No. 1, but I'm more marketable than you."
"You may have won, but I'm more beautiful and attractive." – After clash with Martina Hingis.
"This gives me some confidence that I could play better. She didn't beat me. I lost. It's good she didn't really beat me because I made all the mistakes, right?" – after Venus beat her in the 1998 Miami final.
Reporter: "What happened today?"
Kournikova: "I played a match."
- after losing to Java Novotna at 1997 Miami
"You can't afford me boys." – in response to some wolf whistles she was getting from the Wimbledon crowd.
"There are a lot of pretty girls. I am a tennis player first of all, that is why I am here, and if wasn't producing results no one would notice me."
"It's not really a shorter skirt – I just have longer legs."
"Booo, I'm so scared." – responding to an umpire that threatened her with a delay of game for excessively arguing line calls at the Sea Island, Georgia, USTA Circuit event.
"You don't think people would go on about my looks if I was No. 500 in the world instead of No. 12, do you? Anyway, as I keep telling everyone, you can't blame me for looking like this on purpose."
Martina Hingis
"I'm glad you're doing this story on us and not on the WNBA. We're so much prettier than all the other women in sports." – to the journalist doing a feature on the WTA in Detour Magazine, 3/98 issue.
"Hi, Tracy. I'm the one who's breaking all your records." – to Tracy Austin
"They always have big mouths. They always talk a lot. It's happened before, so it's gonna happen again. I don't really worry about that." – on the Williams sisters.
"I don't think I'm that dumb – I'd like to see some other people talking in three languages." – in response to Serena's "formal education" comment.
Reporter: "Serena is outside practicing now. What are your plans for the rest of the evening?"
Hingis: "She's outside practicing?"
Reporter: "Yes."
Hingis: "Right. Go more and get cramps, too. Work really hard. I'm going to have a massage. That's what I'm going to do."
Reporter: "Happy to be playing Spirlea rather than Graf or doesn't it matter?"
Hingis: "Oh, Graf was on the other side of the draw, so far anyway."
Reporter: "How about the mental aspect and the competitiveness, are there things in there that you think about that you would like to duplicate?"
Hingis: "No, I am Martina Hingis. I don't want to duplicate anyone."
Reporter: "Do you feel a rivalry starting between you and Venus?"
Hingis: "With Williams or who?"
"Why should I be worried about the future? Right now, almost everything is perfect." – after the 1997 Lipton final
On being asked if she had find a few of Venus' beads: "Oh, yeah, there were like ten of them on the court, on the service line. Well, they were like little ones. Doesn't matter, you just put them away and you play. But it was kind of funny. When I played against Serena, there was like one orange one. Then, seven or eight in the same spot, like the blue ones, she had in her hair. Whatever."
Her response to a tennis official who handed her one of the colored beads that had fallen from Williams' braids and said she should tell people it was a souvenir: "I'll say something better than that."
She entered the press conference room, threw the bead into the crowd, and said with a giggle: "I have a nice present for you. One of Venus' pearls."
– after beating Venus in 1997 Lipton Championships 3R.
"I was very nervous and we were up 2-0 after the first day I saw that match. Patty [Schnyder] was playing against her and I thought, well, this girl can't really play. But she played a different level [against me]. She played so much better because she has nothing to lose against me. Once it came to be very close, she is very chokey." – on Amelie Mauresmo
On Amelie Mauresmo: "She's here with her girlfriend. She's half a man already."
Mauresmo responded: "I pity her, she lives in a golden cage."
Reporter: "There are some people who say Magnus [Norman] is not tough enough to win this tournament. Knowing how well you know him, what is your comment?"
Hingis: "I don't know how well I know him. It's been a short time. Not like we've been together forever."
Hingis: "(when asked if she felt unbeatable) Well, I am." "Arrogant? Sure. Exhausted? What does it mean – exhausted?"
Reporter: "Very tired."
Hingis: "Me?"
"A lot of these young girls, they don't even know what the game is about. They have never seen a drop shot, a slice and all the mixture and variety I have."
"Did you just compare me to Wozniacki?" – to a journalist in early 2013.
"You know, losing to her, losing to Mary [Pierce] at the French, I don't think that should have happened. I had a big chance to win the French Open this year, and I didn't take it. Playing Mary there, you know, she's very tough. But still I beat her the previous like seven times. Just shouldn't have happened."
"Do you want me to break your serve first or hold?" – to Lindsay Davenport before the coin toss.
"When I throw my racquet it helps me concentrate. It's just the way I am. It's better than to keep it inside."
"Anna [Kournikova] spends more time with make-up and stuff like that…I think movies would be a great job for her."
"Do you think you are the queen? Because I am the real queen!" – to Anna Kournikova, during an exhibition match in Santiago. Kournikova cried on court and afterwards they fought with trophies and vases in the locker room.
"What rivalry? I win all the matches." – when asked about her rivalry with Anna Kournikova.
"Anna would like to change places with me and win four Grand Slam titles." – when she lost to Kournikova for the first time in five meetings. Hingis said she'd have "lost to anybody that day", and she told the Swiss press she only played Berlin because her mother forced her to, that she didn't care whether she won or lost and that Kournikova's victory "didn't count."
"Rivalries? Look at the rankings. I'm like 3,000 points up. There are no rivalries for me."
"You haven't seen her without her make-up." – referring to her best friend Anna Kournikova, when asked about her beauty in the press conference.
Reporter: "Anna, how was your recent visit with the troops in Afghanistan and Iraq?"
Kournikova: "This was my third tour and I've been to..."
Hingis: "I'm sure the soldiers loved it (laughs)."
Kournikova on the popularity of tennis at Wimbledon in 2010: "A true tennis fan, he will know who Jankovic is, Wozniacki, people that are between [rank] 5 and 10."
Hingis added: "Even Ivanovic."
"(Spits out juice) My game is better." – on her game being compared to Justine Henin's.
"I'm not that surprised. I've beaten better players." – after winning her first tour match in Zurich in '94 over Patty Fendick.
"I'd play mixed doubles next year, but I should give someone else a chance to win an event." – after winning the 1997 Australian Open Women's title
"I've got to play two more matches. Sorry I had to make it short." – to Sabine Appelmans after beating her 6-1, 6-3 at 1997 Wimbledon.
"She's old and slow." – on terminating her doubles partnership with Jana Novotna. Novotna responded that Hingis was "stupid."
"I had a great year. You know, what can I improve? Sometimes I ask myself." – after winning 3 of the 4 Grand Slams at age 16 in 1997.
"Now that I beat Lindsay I feel much better. My technique is better, my forehand, serve, quickness. Everything is good now." – after beating Lindsay Davenport in the 2000 Ericsson Open final.
"It does bug me, being No. 2. When you are used to being a champion, it's like a drug – you want to be there again and again." – after losing the No. 1 ranking to Lindsay Davenport
"I did things I should not have done, but people make mistakes, especially at my age, when you feel you are so smart but in fact you are an asshole."
"I've always said I'm a good horse but I'm still an underdog."
"Sometimes I feel, been there, done it, now what? What more is there to prove?" – after ankle surgery
"It's a faster, more athletic game. She is old now. … Her time has passed." – on Steffi Graf in the July 1998 issue of "Tennis".
"She (Steffi Graf) is just a runner who never gives up." "The French crowd did not understand my tennis because I make it look so easy." – after her defeat in the 1999 French Open final.
"(This match was like) a warmup – the second week of a Grand Slam is like the real tournament for the stars." "I was watching her run from side to side trying to get everything back, and I was like: Why on earth do you tire yourself out like that? It's not like you have a chance to beat me." – after beating Anna Smashnova in 1998 French Open 4R
"I don't regret any relationship. It was good for my English anyway." – after breaking up with her boyfriend.
"I'm not a very good morning person. I'm No. 1 in the world, so I should have the right to say what time I want to play on the Centre Court." – on her displeasure over an early French Open starting time.
"I am number one in the world, so I have the right to be arrogant!"
"I heard this morning that a certain person always asking for my autograph over and over at every tournament. I'd like to give something to that certain person, it's important to me, to Richard [Williams]." "It's pretty big, huh? I'm sure it's going to fit you. It's extra-large. You don't have to ask me anymore."
"I beat a two-handed monster." – on Venus Williams, at 1997 Miami
Reporter: "When you see a player like Venus and she's still playing singles and obviously with what she's had to go through, did that motivate you that maybe I can still come back and play too?"
Hingis: "No, not really, because, when you lose as a player like her, it's not really encouraging because she plays well like first or second set and losing to players that she's not used to losing. So, no, that's not encouraging at all. Serena, yeah, it's a different story. She's got so much willpower, it's amazing. I really admire how she can still get out there and motivate herself all the time over and over all these years. But they were always – like they had many more breaks. I mean, I had my break for three years, but, yeah, I was out there a lot younger. And I don't have the same body as them too. So it's a little bit different when you can hit four aces in a game. I mean, I don't have that weapon."
– after losing to Errani/Vinci at 2013 Western & Southern Open.
"How would she know about boyfriends?" – on being told that Serena said Hingis won't be able to concentrate on tennis with her new boyfriend Magnus Norman.
"Being black only helps them. Many times they get sponsors because they are black. And they have had a lot of advantages because they can always say, 'It's racism.' They can always come back and say, 'Because we are this color, things happen.'" "I think they've been treated with kid gloves." "People have been afraid to criticise them because they don't want to be called racist." – on William sisters' complaints of discrimination against them in 2001.
"I'm better than them so far. I have won 5 Slams, they have none. I'm the No. 1, and not them." – on the Williams sisters.
"Playing (Serena) it always felt like playing a steamroller. No subtlety, no finesse, just raw, loud power. To respect this style of play was always a bit tough for me, but of course I had to, because the rules of tennis don't state that having a beautiful game is required to become No. 1."
"Playing one of the Williamses is like playing the three of them at the same time."
"I wish he had broken both hands." – after Marc Rosset lost the Swiss team the Hopman Cup when he punched an advertising board.
"I'm going to face two opponents in one time." – After playing the pregnant Tami Jones at the 1997 US Open
"I played like … I want to say a bad word!" – after narrowly defeating Gloria Pizzichini at the 1997 French Open.
"I don't know actually how I won this match. Maybe because I always beat her." – on beating Monica Seles for the fifth straight time.
"And serving it out with an ace, now that's fashion." – on Petra Kvitova.
"Maybe he needs the rooms for all of his women." – after being removed from her hotel suite in Berlin by President Clinton, who as a US president rented the whole top floor of the hotel. At the time it was at the height of the Lewinski scandal.
"It's all the time, 'Tiger Woods, Tiger Woods, Tiger Woods.' I am better than he is. I've been on top longer and I am younger. I'm just better." – on frequent comparisons to Tiger Woods.
"I need oxygen to survive, but not the French Open."
"It's hard to find a horse." – on the down side of indoor tournaments.
"I saw her when she was 12 and she was very good even then. You could hear her from like 10 courts further down." – on Maria Sharapova
"She's as mean as a snake. She reminds me of me." – on Maria Sharapova
"It's always been, 'I wonder what she's got, Sharapova?', because I don't see that she's got something that special… Or do you know? Can you tell? What's so exceptional about her?"
"I had to re-focus then, she was playing to my forehand which took me by surprise a bit. At one point I even believed she had a chance." – after beating Olga Poutchkova in 2006 Kolkata final.
"What is compassion?" – when asked if she has any compassion for Monica Seles after beating her 6-0, 6-0 in 2000 Ericsson Open SF.
"You know, I just beat Lisa Raymond 6-2 6-2, I don't know if that's an indication of good or bad form." – after beating Lisa Raymond in 2006 French Open 1R, during her comeback from retirement.
"It's like a shooting gallery." – after surviving an onslaught of Pierce's winners and errors.
"When I saw a marginal player like Myskina win a major, it inspired me to return." – on the true motivation behind her comeback in 2006.
"I've never had big problems about being long on the court. During the US Open I played three events (singles, doubles, mixed doubles) and some people asked me if I want to stay overnight on the court."
"If only we had the Heineken Beer in the cooler, maybe it helped me to make the final point…"
"I know how to boil an egg." – when asked about her cooking skills.
"It was civilization and the third world coming together. If you looked one way you would see cows, dogs, people just laying in the street and then if you looked in the opposite direction you would see a fake Donna Karan bag for $30." – on a post-Japan trip to Nepal, sponsored by the World Health Organization.
"Well, I'm surrounded by people, you know, and manners and things like that are important to me, of course. It's important that I feel proud of them [her escorts]. You don't have to be ashamed. It's a kind of a different society. I don't want to name anybody, but it was sometimes a problem. I mean, the people I meet are the top people - whether it's Hollywood people, or the princess of Qatar or the Emir. And when I was in Colombia [on a charity visit in aid of the street children] it was the First Lady. Or the top people at Unesco or Unicef. It's wherever I go. And they are looking at me [thinking] like, 'Who's this guy?', if they don't know how to speak." – when asked about the inability of her boyfriends to 'behave' properly in certain social situations.
"Whoever invented the signature autographs, I don't like that person. It's just a signature, what is that? You know, where are you gonna put it? Or is it gonna end up somewhere in the next garbage can?"
"Before I was the hunter. Now I'm the hunted." – after the 1998 Lipton Championships.
"Chris Evert was my mentor (provided by the WTA Tour) when I turned pro. The main thing I asked her was, 'How do you handle men?'"
"Not much." – when asked about the influence Chris Evert had on her game.
"YOU? No. 3?" – to Pam Shriver.
"How are you doing, Terminator?" – to Svetlana Kuznetsova.
"It was a very solid performance, I almost felt sorry for her." – after her 6-1, 6-3 win over Zuzana Ondraskova at the 2006 French Open.
"I lost my concentration in the second set because I got bored." – after beating Barbara Rittner 6-0, 6-4 at 1997 Hilton Head.
Here are some more funny Q&A sessions with Martina Hingis (thanks to my sister catcat33 who found these for me):
Q. I know Jelena Dokic came to your house a long time ago to practice once. Have you spoken to her since Wimbledon or talked at all?
MARTINA HINGIS: Yeah, I saw her. She was in Toronto.
Q. Are you friendly at all with her now?
MARTINA HINGIS: Why should I just turn around and say, Bye, you know, I don't want to see you again because I lost to her? No way. I mean, come on. I know who I am –
Q. I didn't know how good friends you were before. I wasn't sure.
MARTINA HINGIS: I wouldn't be friends with someone, I would invite them to come to my house. Not everybody can get there (laughter).
Q. Do you have any of your grade school report cards or anything to show us? They were saying that you didn't have any education.
MARTINA HINGIS: I don't have any education (laughter)? I mean, I chose something else, education, going every day into the school. I think I learned still enough on traveling. I don't think I'm that dumb (laughter). I'd like to see some other people talking in three languages. It's not always easy. It's a little misunderstanding sometimes what I say. I don't always mean like to hurt anybody.
Q. Do you ever miss actually having gone to school on a regular basis and having a formal education?
MARTINA HINGIS: Never missed that. I was always very happy about, you know, the thing I'm doing right now. I don't think the money's too bad either (laughter).
Q. Their father said that they shouldn't play doubles; they should each focus just on the singles. What's your philosophy about playing doubles, and why aren't you playing doubles here?
MARTINA HINGIS: I think I figured that thing out already, not playing the doubles. I didn't play at the California tournaments, and I'm not playing now also. So… I'm a step ahead, I guess. For once.
Q. Can you describe why, though?
MARTINA HINGIS: It's just too much waiting around. I mean, you got better things to do than waiting for your doubles match, I guess. If some players, you know, they fit – it fits their schedule, they want to play doubles. I used to be like that, too, I was like gives me some more attention to do something, and I'd rather play doubles in practice too much, but I think I change in that way a little bit. Practice is better. You get your times and then you just leave the stadium; it's not like sitting around and waiting for a doubles match.
Q. Martina, the past couple months obviously have been a time for real growth, real learning for you. If you could step back and say what the one thing you really learned during this period was, what would that be? Could you reflect on that?
MARTINA HINGIS: Which period?
Q. Since Paris.
MARTINA HINGIS: Since Paris?
Q. And London.
MARTINA HINGIS: Just basically knowing what I want more. Just focus on my tennis and that's all I want to do right now. And that became, you know, better player since then. I think more on the court, physically I got better, I can last longer in a match, in a three-setter, and I still feel good. And not just, I guess, things happen or go a different way, a wrong way, and then you can try to resolve everything. A lot of conversation, I'd say, also with my mom and Mario. That's what you learn from. It's like education. You know, you have to grow. One day. Mature.
Q. Informal education?
MARTINA HINGIS: Right. (Laughter). I still think it's true you have a better school in here. Maybe not later on, but what I've learned.
Q. What about the tan lines?
MARTINA HINGIS: Well, the sun wasn't out there, so not yet. No. (Laughing.) I'm trying to practice in just like the two sleeves, just regular shirts or something which — but I'm not a very tan person in general so… (Laughing.) I'm just snow white from Switzerland.
Q. I could see on your hand something red. Did you hurt yourself?
MARTINA HINGIS: It was from signing autographs.
Bottom line: Read her interviews. For example, this one.
Since I hit the 20-images-per-post limit I cannot make any more edits to my original post so I have to open a new thread and split my post into 2 parts.
Please tell me if you got any more quotes that are not covered!
Serena Williams
"When I went and played in the final I knew there was no way I was going to lose. I had God on my side and I was just relaxed, and I knew there was only one black girl that day winning. Also I was the only black girl playing so I narrowed down that black girl to me!" – after the 2007 Australian Open
"I just pretty much stood back and let her take advantage of me. And I feel violated. I didn't take my opportunities and I didn't do anything I was supposed to do." – after losing to Justine Henin in 2007 French Open QF.
"She hit some lucky shots." – after losing to Justine Henin in 2007 US Open QF.
"She's a great framer, but obviously it's all talent." – after losing to Sam Stosur at 2009 Stanford.
"I think if you hold three Grand Slam titles then maybe you should be No.1, but not on the WTA Tour obviously. My motivation is maybe just to win another Grand Slam and stay No. 2, I guess." "I see myself as No. 2. That's where I am. I think Dinara [Safina] did a great job to get to No. 1. She won Rome and Madrid."
"Long before we came out here, Hingis was trash-talking everybody." "She's always been the type of person who just says things and just speaks her mind and I guess that has a little bit to do with not having a formal education." – on Martina Hingis
"I would never cheat you like that…Don't think I would do that – I'm not Justine. You know what I mean?" – to Jelena Jankovic after losing in the 2010 Rome SF, on the slight controversy in the third set tiebreaker over Serena putting her hand up when she was not ready to return Jankovic's serve.
"Fuck you bitch." – after being aced by Venus in the 2003 Australian Open final.
"That's the fucking way, Serena!" – in 2009 Australian Open 3R
"Get a fucking first serve in!" – in 2009 Australian Open 4R
"Come on" – in the 2015 Australian Open Final, after being docked a point for hindrance for yelling "come on" while the ball was still in play.
"I just think my problem is I'm a hypochondriac. [That's] someone that is always prone to get sick, prone to get hurt and injured, more prone than the next individual. That's me. Under hypochondriac, they should put: 'Serena Williams.'" – after losing to Jennifer Capriati in 2001 due to gastroenteritis.
Capriati responded: "Basically, every time I play (her), I'm pretty much used to something going on there."
Timea Bacsinszky drop shots one of Serena's serves in Rome 2010 2R. Serena responds the next point by getting a service winner and said "You wanna drop shot that?"
"I'm going to get you in the locker room for that. You don't know me." "(to the umpire) She better not come to the net again." "I'm from Compton, you know." – to Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez after she cheated in 2009 French Open 3R.
"Sorry about that." – to Justine Henin, after beating her in 2003 Wimbledon SF.
"Vengeance is for God, I'm just here to play tennis." – about avenging her 2002 YEC Final loss to Kim Clijsters during the Hopman Cup Final
"The ball landed here. That ball was not out. Are you kidding me? I'm trying to tell you: The ball was not out. Do I need to speak another language?" – to umpire Mariana Alves, in the controversial 2004 US Open QF.
"I swear to God I'll fucking take this ball and shove it down your fucking throat! Do you hear me? I swear to God. You better be glad – you better be fucking glad that I'm not, I swear." – to line judge Shino Tsurubuchi in the infamous 2009 US Open SF.
"You ever see me walking down the hall, look the other way. Because you're out of control – totally out of control. You're a hater and you're unattractive inside. Who would do such a thing? And I never complain. Wow. What a loser. You give a code violation because I expressed who I am? We're in America last I checked...don't look at me, I promise you don't look at me cause I am not the one. Don't look my way." – to umpire Eva Asderaki in the controversial 2011 US Open final.
"People who know me don't think so " – Eva Asderaki, when asked by a fan if she is really ugly inside.
"Don't try me." – to the booing crowd, during her match against Heather Watson in 2015 Wimbledon 3R.
"You'll pay for that." – when Maria Sharapova hit her with an overhead smash in the 2007 Australian Open final.
"Bitch" – in 2007 US Open QF against Justine Henin.
"Gimme More. It's Willy Bitch." – when asked about winning more slams.
"I'm excited because I haven't won a title since March and that's not like me." – after winning at the Beijing Olympics.
"Yeah it was there the whole time." – after losing to Martina Hingis in 1998 Lipton QF, when Pam Shriver asked Serena if the net played a factor.
Interviewer: "33 minutes to move through today, Serena. What took longer? The match or your hair?"
Serena: "You want the truth? My hair (laughs)."
"What's after 2 is 1 so I guess I better be careful (laughs)." – on new World No. 2 Angelique Kerber
"Yeah, I thought about that the whole time I was designing the dress. 'I can't beat these girls; I've got to think of every way to cheat.'" – after the 2007 Australian Open, when asked if she had chosen the colour of her dress so that it would be difficult for opponents to see the ball against it.
"Yeah, I'm pretty much ancient (laughter). Basically ready to have grandkids (laughter). I'm almost your age (laughter)." – when asked if it felt different to her that she was the oldest one in the locker room.
"I'm definitely in better shape than I get credit for. Just because I have large bosoms and I have a big ass. I swear my waist is 29-30 inches. I swear I have the smallest waist. And just because I have those two 'assets' it looks like I'm not fit. I was just in the locker room staring at my body and I'm like, 'Am I not fit? Am I really not fit? Or is it just because I have all these extra assets that I look not fit.' I think if I were not to eat for two years I still wouldn't be a size 2. No matter how slim I am, I always have this (points) and that (points). We're living in a Mary-Kate Olsen world. I'm just not built that way. I'm bootylicious and that's how it's always going to be."
"No athlete has boobs like me [sic]."
"If I lost 20lbs, I'm still going to have these knockers – forgive me – and I'm still going to have this ass. It's just the way it is. I'm the same size and the same weight I was five years ago." – at the 2007 Australian Open, on being called fat.
"I'm an actress, model and athlete, and I'd put athlete third on the list."
"My goal in a couple of years is to try to build a successful fashion house like Armani or Versace. I want that more than anything."
"I'm really exciting. I smile a lot, I win a lot, and I'm really sexy."
"I've been getting my reel together. I think they are looking at me more as an actress because I have a lot of potential and a lot of skills."
"It's amazing, but I guess that happens when you become overly famous. Every week now, I get more famous." – on the Bobblehead doll created in her image.
"Unfortunately, no!" – when asked if any of the other WTA players ask her for beauty tips.
"For her it is." – when asked if Mauresmo in the quarters was a difficult draw.
"She did the best she could today and hopefully she'll be able to do a little bit better." – after beating Amelie Mauresmo 6-1, 6-2 at the 2003 French Open.
"I don't want to be like some of those celebrities walking around, just so full of themselves. I always want to be down-to-earth, want to be a person like when you meet them, they're the same person that you think of them in the article or something."
"Maria doesn't cross my mind. She's not in my world right now. I have millions and millions of things to think about." – a month after losing to Maria Sharapova at 2004 Wimbledon.
"Unfortunately, I hate to say it, but sex sells." "I know a lot of people who are 12 and doing things they shouldn't be doing. Whether you're an actress or a singer, it's always the sexier ones that are selling more tickets or selling more albums." – on Maria Sharapova
"She won that one game, I could see her pumping her fists. I was like, Oh, boy, here she comes." – on Maria Sharapova, who avoided the double bagel in the 2012 Olympics final.
On Maria Sharapova before 2013 Wimbledon: "There are people who live, breathe and dress tennis. I mean, seriously, give it a rest. She begins every interview with 'I'm so happy. I'm so lucky'. It's so boring." "She's still not going to be invited to the cool parties. And, hey, if she wants to be with the guy with a black heart, go for it."
Sharapova responded in the pre-Wimbledon press conference: "If she wants to talk about something personal, maybe she should talk about her relationship and her boyfriend that was married and is getting a divorce and has kids. I just think she should be talking about her accomplishments, her achievements, rather than everything else that's just getting attention and controversy. Nobody really cares about what I have to say, my opinions. If I speak to my friends, that's one thing. But I don't go out and try to create things that shouldn't be really talked about."
(Later Sharapova lost to Michelle Larcher de Brito in 2R and Serena lost to Sabine Lisicki in 4R.)
In an interview with People Magazine:
A really embarrassing moment: A fellow tennis player hit on me – but in the same locker room as me! I was just like, "I like guys!"
Something overrated: Maria Sharapova
"Yeah, I watch it every day. Every night to get ready." – when asked if she ever watched the 2015 US Open SF match in which she lost to Roberta Vinci.
"That young girl" – referring to Melanie Oudin throughout her interview.
Reporter: "Daniela is obviously hurting for different reasons at the moment. How would you feel if you would have gone out and lost to a woman who was playing on one leg?"
Serena: "If she was Serena Williams, I wouldn't feel that bad (smiling)."
– after gutting out a 6-2, 6-7(2), 6-2 win in R16 at Wimbledon over Daniela Hantuchova.
"I used to want to be like John McEnroe. I wanted to be like him as a person. That controversy was very exciting for me back then."
"There are like 50 Russian players in the top 10."
"It's a lot of bling to play with. You got to have the bling." – on playing at the US Open wearing $40K diamond earrings.
"No, I don't read the papers. I just look at the pictures."
"I make people's careers."
"I have a wonderful white coat I can wear on the court and also in New York for those rainy days...it's lady-like and goes perfect with my personality."
When asked what was on her tennis bucket list after Cincy: "Stuttgart", then paused for so long that the entire room started laughing. (Source: @SI_BTBaseline)
"I can always blame her if things don't go right. I'm never wrong!" – on Venus after beating Pavlyuchenkova/Safarova 6-1, 7-6(3) at the 2013 US Open.
"What about her… I forgot it (laughs)" – when asked about Justine Henin and the infamous 2003 French Open SF.
"Question- I keep hearing about an admittance to someone cheating me & lying about it after at the French open? Did she confess finally?" – when told by fans that Justine Henin had admitted cheating in 2003 French Open SF.
(Caroline Wozniacki responded: "hahahaha!!". Lindsay Davenport quoted Serena and added: "OMG-luv it")
Maria Sharapova
"That's so old." – when Craig Kilborn talked about Anna Kournikova in 2003.
"I'm not the next Kournikova. I want to win matches."
"People seem to forget that Anna [Kournikova] isn't in the picture anymore. It's Maria-time now." – in Sports Illustrated
Serena Williams: "Actually, I don't believe I played a Wimbledon final"
Sharapova responded: "In reality there was a match. She must not have been in reality."
"I don't care what they're selling." – when questioned by the L.A. Times as to whether the sexy WTA marketing campaign featuring the Russian at the WTA Championships was selling sex.
Nadia Petrova, who lost her momentum and match to Sharapova in 2012 US Open 4R due to rain relay: "Unfortunately, it was her lucky day."
Sharapova responded: "Great. I'm the winner, so whatever she wants to call it is fine with me."
"I just won a Grand Slam. The last thing I'm gonna talk about is some fingers or a banana, all right?" "You know, honestly I believe at the end of the day, personally, my life is not about a banana. It's not about what I wear; it's not about the friends I have. My career right now is about winning a tennis match. And right now I'm sitting here as a US Open champion, and the last thing people need to worry about is a banana." – on the illegal coaching incident in 2006 US Open SF.
"He won more points than Caroline did." – after beating Caroline Wozniacki in straight sets in an exhibition match at Madison Square Garden. Wozniacki called on her boyfriend Rory McIlroy to play a point late in the match.
"Are you fucking kidding me?" – to the umpire, during 2007 Australian Open 1R.
"That's the way baby!" – after beating Elena Dementieva 6-2, 6-0 at the 2008 Australian Open.
"This is my home" – after beating Daniela Hantuchova in 2008 Indian Wells QF. (Hantuchova, the defending champion, said in an earlier interview that she felt that Indian Wells was like a home to her.)
Sharapova lost in the next round.
"ALLEZ UP YOUR FUCKING ASS!" – to the crowd who booed her and cheered for Dinara Safina in 2008 French Open 4R.
Agnieszka Radwanska, after losing to Victoria Azarenka in 2012 Australian Open QF, on Sharapova's grunting: "About Maria, I mean, what can I say? For sure that is pretty annoying and it's just too loud."
Sharapova responded: "Isn't she back in Poland already?" "No one important enough has told me to change or do something different."
"RUN RUN!!!" – after hitting a drive volley winner at 3-4 30 all final set against Radwanska at 2012 YEC.
"Because I didn't do the dance after. I wasn't tired. More than anything, I sensed that she was tired – probably a lot of the dancing that she's been doing – and I took advantage of it." – after beating Andrea Petkovic in 2011 Miami SF, referring to Petkovic's victory dance.
Jelena Jankovic after losing to Sharapova at 2005 Wimbledon: "It was a question of whether I could continue and that's why the score was 6-1. If I play my best I can beat her but I wasn't even close to my previous level today."
Sharapova replied: "You are not the only one with a thigh problem. So I don't say I'm sorry in that way."
"Is her last name Jankovic?" – to the umpire, when Victoria Azarenka asked for a medical timeout for the second time in 2009 China Open 2R
"Check her blood pressure." – after Ana Ivanovic took a medical timeout and broke back in the final set of 2014 Western & Southern Open SF
"It was so unfortunate that Vika was extremely injured today and just couldn't really perform her game." – during the winner's speech after beating Azarenka 6-1, 6-4 in the 2012 Stuttgart final, referring to her medical timeout.
"It's pretty hard being a tennis player and Mother Teresa at the same time and that's just the way it is." – on being booed after her win over Patty Schnyder in the 2007 French Open for dubious gamesmanship.
"This girl that beat me today, she might not win the tournament but she beat me and it probably made her tournament." – on the shock defeat by Alla Kudryavtseva.
"Maybe if I was British, a semi-final would be incredible. I'd be on the front page of the paper. " – after losing to Serena Williams in 2015 Wimbledon SF.
Reporter: "Would you like a group of fans to follow your matches and sing all the way through them?"
Sharapova: "No, I actually prefer writing my own songs and singing them. I think I did a pretty good job of that today."
– after beating Eugenie Bouchard in Australian Open 2015 QF.
"If I was going to announce my retirement, it would probably not be in a downtown Los Angeles hotel with this fairly ugly carpet." – during the press conference in which she announced that she had tested positive for banned substance meldonium.
Q. What is your relationship with other Russian players? You help each other? What is your relationship?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: Help each other (laughing)?
Q. To lose (laughing).
MARIA SHARAPOVA: To lose, yeah (laughing).
"Who's in the top 8? I don't even"
"Who's ever measured their IQ?" – when being told that Marion Bartoli has an IQ of 175.
"Who is that?" "Sorry I don’t know who Judy Murray is."
"Take your pencils down, take your grunt-o-meters down, the fashion police, put it all away and just watch the match."
"Reading the newspapers, there's nothing I'm going to learn new about myself, because I know what I said, and you know, I don't need to read what I said, 'cause I know what I said. I like to look at the pictures."
Venus Williams
"Look, I know it's out, she knows it's out, EVERYONE HERE KNOWS IT'S OUT! You don't know it's out." – to the umpire, in 1998 Wimbledon QF against Jana Novotna.
After losing 6-3, 6-4 in 1998 French Open QF to Martina Hingis, who disputed several line calls: "It's her custom to dispute calls."
Hingis responded: "Yeah, it's my custom when she is standing there saying, 'This is out,' and it was, like, right on the line."
Reporter: "You made two mistakes in the last two points of the match, what happened?"
Venus: "Well, I guess I couldn't get the ball in."
Reporter: "What happened out there today?"
Venus: "Well, I went out there and lost the first set 6-0, and lost the second 6-4, then the awards ceremony."
– Venus after her loss to Hingis at the 1997 US Open
"If you wanna hit with me, that's what you get!" – after crushing Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario at the 1999 Pilot Pen tournament.
"I have speed, power, a huge serve, I move very well…those are a lot of things to go up against." – before her Wimbledon 2000 final against Lindsay Davenport.
"Definitely I think it was me, I was either making the points or breaking myself. Obviously, I think, anyone who saw the match would realize that I was the better player, I'm more athletic, I hit the ball harder, my serve is better, I move better……" "The disappointing part is this was a match I could have won, a match I normally would win, a match I definitely should have won, I think. I definitely think I'm better, I know that." – on her loss to Lindsay Davenport in US Open 4R.
"What are you here for if you can't call the ball? It's an outrage." "And you can't lie on that because that ball was real far out. Right is right and wrong is wrong. And I'm not a fool." – to umpire Eva Asderaki at the 2008 Australian Open during a doubles match with her sister Serena Williams, who did not overrule the call despite seeing that the ball was out.
"It would take an act of God for me to play there again." – on playing at Indian Wells.
"Anything which draws attention to me because I am so attractive." – on what works in her fashion world.
"I guess the bumblebee got me off to a bad start." – after a bee harassed her into losing her serve against Britain's Naomi Cavaday.
"I still don't fear anyone. The only things I fear in life are cockroaches."
"That's okay, because, if I would have listened to everyone else, then I would have never made it out of Compton, so I'm living in Palm Beach Gardens now – it's pretty nice." – when she was told that she was placed only sixth in the list of favourites to win the title prior to Wimbledon.
"Normally, I don't think she would beat me because she can't hurt me." – after losing 3-6, 4-6 to Anastasia Myskina at the 2004 French Open.
"Uhm, well, I think I was playing decent, you know. And she started playing like really bad, and it totally threw me off. She started hitting, like, these really weird shots and short balls and, like, just weird stuff. Just like it threw my game off. Next thing I knew, I was playing as bad as she was, and she was able to recover, it seemed like; I just wasn't. I guess maybe it was a good strategy (smiling)." – after losing to Kim Clijsters in 2005 US Open QF.
"I like seeing my name next to her name. I'm good with that." "I really do enjoy our matchups, obviously, because I usually come out on top." – after beating Francesca Schiavone at the 2010 US Open, who said that Venus is scared when she sees her name in the draw.
"She benefited from my largesse." – after losing to Tsvetana Pironkova at the 2006 Australian Open.
"It's a nice bonus but, you know, I have to pay taxes too." – after winning the Grand Slam Cup.
"I wouldn't consider myself cocky and arrogant. I'm confident and I tell the truth."
"I know every single person asking me a question can't play as well as I can and never will, so no matter what you say or what you write, you'll never light a candle to me." – when asked how she coped with media attention throughout her career.
Patty Schnyder
"You disgusting bitch" – to Conchita Martinez after 2004 Charlseton SF.
"No. I don't want to talk – I mean I don't need to talk to her. I don't need to get along or speak what happened. I mean I don't need that. She can do whatever she wants. I don't need her." – on Conchita Martinez
"I don't like playing against her, I can't stand her. Winning one set was enough." – after losing to Anna Kournikova at the 1999 French Open.
"I hate playing her. And I don't play if I'm on the court against her. It's her person and everything around her…It's not her game" – on Anna Kournikova
"Don't pay attention to all this garbage. We all like each other, except Kournikova. She is not nice. I don't talk to her. I don't need her." – in defence of her fellow countrywoman Martina Hingis.
Reporter: "Big challenge, maybe Kim Clijsters."
Schnyder: "Yeah, I don't know who I'm gonna pick tonight. It's a very tough one. I think for the first match after two years coming back it's Bartoli."
Reporter: "But she is Belgian."
Schnyder: "It's not that I hope that Bartoli wins."
– at the 2009 Western & Southern Open, the tournament where Kim Clijsters made her return after a two-year absence.
Reporter: "What was most difficult about playing her today?"
Schnyder: "No, she just had a great start, first of all. Then, yeah, she just is a great athlete. She's striking the ball great. Yeah, it was really tough to get the rallies going and to get some advantage in the rallies."
Reporter: "Is it more difficult since she's been off the tour for a while to know what to expect?"
Schnyder: "No."
Reporter: "So you had a good idea of what she…"
Schnyder: "Yeah."
– after being beaten 6-2, 7-5 by Kim Clijsters in the next round.
"Very funny. Perhaps in the next year Michael Jackson [can get] a gold exempt and Donald Duck a special silver exempt." – Schnyder, who was No. 18 at the time, responded in an e-mail to tour officials on the gold and silver exempt lists for 2003. The "winners" were Anna Kournikova, Amanda Coetzer, Alexandra Stevenson and Arantza Sánchez-Vicario, who all made the list despite being ranked outside the top 20.
Anna Kournikova
"I watched Serena and Venus play, and they're not that good. They've been given more attention than me and they don't know how to play points or how to win….I'm not worried about them."
"I'm not Venus Williams. I'm not Serena Williams. I'm feminine. I don't want to look like they do. I'm not masculine like they are."
"She (Venus) has a big serve, she's a big girl, so I have to just outthink her." "Grass is obviously not her surface, so we'll see."
"People think I'm stupid just because of my blond hair. But, blonds are actually smart."
"The copy is never as good as the original." – on Maria Sharapova
"When I was 12, every little girl in Russia was trying to wear her hair like mine and playing tennis."
"It's that I have a good personality and am a good tennis player."
"It's true I always try to be as seductive as possible but I wouldn't be here if I couldn't play tennis."
"I'm not here to talk about my personal life, I'm here to talk about bras."
"I worked very hard and I earned all the attention I'm getting."
"I think people like me for my tennis."
"A court is like a scene, people want to see attractive people."
"I have lost this battle but I will win the war."
"Please write that I have many boyfriends. In every country I visit, there is another boyfriend. And I kiss with all of them."
"God gives all to those who get up early."
"Boyfriends have to understand my needs. I shower four times a day."
"At this year’s Open, I’ll have five boyfriends."
"The world believes all blondes are stupid and brunettes are smarter. Well, I disagree."
"I am beautiful, famous and gorgeous. I could have any man in the world."
"I love to go to church, it's so beautiful and peaceful. When you leave the church, you feel clean, like everything dirty has gone."
"People ask me 'Why do you have to look good on court? Why don't you just play?' But, you know, when on court, I feel like I am in theatre and need to express myself. Why do I have to look ugly just because I am a sportsman?"
(In 1998) "In ten years, it will not be enough for ladies just to play tennis. People want to see more, crowd makes us stars and we earn money thanks to them. In ten years, female players will play in topless."
"If you saw me with my clothes off you'd see that my body is in great shape and ready to take on the world…I could snap my fingers and have any man I wanted but I have too much respect for myself for that…People can look then wonder about the taste and the sensuous delights of the dish, but when it comes down to it they simply can't afford such an expensive luxury."
Martina Hingis after beating Kournikova in 1997 Wimbledon SF: "I don't think it's such a big rivalry. Everybody is making a rivalry of it. I've always been better. I always beat her at the great tournaments, as I did this time again."
Kournikova's response: "You may be No. 1, but I'm more marketable than you."
"You may have won, but I'm more beautiful and attractive." – After clash with Martina Hingis.
"This gives me some confidence that I could play better. She didn't beat me. I lost. It's good she didn't really beat me because I made all the mistakes, right?" – after Venus beat her in the 1998 Miami final.
Reporter: "What happened today?"
Kournikova: "I played a match."
- after losing to Java Novotna at 1997 Miami
"You can't afford me boys." – in response to some wolf whistles she was getting from the Wimbledon crowd.
"There are a lot of pretty girls. I am a tennis player first of all, that is why I am here, and if wasn't producing results no one would notice me."
"It's not really a shorter skirt – I just have longer legs."
"Booo, I'm so scared." – responding to an umpire that threatened her with a delay of game for excessively arguing line calls at the Sea Island, Georgia, USTA Circuit event.
"You don't think people would go on about my looks if I was No. 500 in the world instead of No. 12, do you? Anyway, as I keep telling everyone, you can't blame me for looking like this on purpose."
Martina Hingis
"I'm glad you're doing this story on us and not on the WNBA. We're so much prettier than all the other women in sports." – to the journalist doing a feature on the WTA in Detour Magazine, 3/98 issue.
"Hi, Tracy. I'm the one who's breaking all your records." – to Tracy Austin
"They always have big mouths. They always talk a lot. It's happened before, so it's gonna happen again. I don't really worry about that." – on the Williams sisters.
"I don't think I'm that dumb – I'd like to see some other people talking in three languages." – in response to Serena's "formal education" comment.
Reporter: "Serena is outside practicing now. What are your plans for the rest of the evening?"
Hingis: "She's outside practicing?"
Reporter: "Yes."
Hingis: "Right. Go more and get cramps, too. Work really hard. I'm going to have a massage. That's what I'm going to do."
Reporter: "Happy to be playing Spirlea rather than Graf or doesn't it matter?"
Hingis: "Oh, Graf was on the other side of the draw, so far anyway."
Reporter: "How about the mental aspect and the competitiveness, are there things in there that you think about that you would like to duplicate?"
Hingis: "No, I am Martina Hingis. I don't want to duplicate anyone."
Reporter: "Do you feel a rivalry starting between you and Venus?"
Hingis: "With Williams or who?"
"Why should I be worried about the future? Right now, almost everything is perfect." – after the 1997 Lipton final
On being asked if she had find a few of Venus' beads: "Oh, yeah, there were like ten of them on the court, on the service line. Well, they were like little ones. Doesn't matter, you just put them away and you play. But it was kind of funny. When I played against Serena, there was like one orange one. Then, seven or eight in the same spot, like the blue ones, she had in her hair. Whatever."
Her response to a tennis official who handed her one of the colored beads that had fallen from Williams' braids and said she should tell people it was a souvenir: "I'll say something better than that."
She entered the press conference room, threw the bead into the crowd, and said with a giggle: "I have a nice present for you. One of Venus' pearls."
– after beating Venus in 1997 Lipton Championships 3R.
"I was very nervous and we were up 2-0 after the first day I saw that match. Patty [Schnyder] was playing against her and I thought, well, this girl can't really play. But she played a different level [against me]. She played so much better because she has nothing to lose against me. Once it came to be very close, she is very chokey." – on Amelie Mauresmo
On Amelie Mauresmo: "She's here with her girlfriend. She's half a man already."
Mauresmo responded: "I pity her, she lives in a golden cage."
Reporter: "There are some people who say Magnus [Norman] is not tough enough to win this tournament. Knowing how well you know him, what is your comment?"
Hingis: "I don't know how well I know him. It's been a short time. Not like we've been together forever."
Hingis: "(when asked if she felt unbeatable) Well, I am." "Arrogant? Sure. Exhausted? What does it mean – exhausted?"
Reporter: "Very tired."
Hingis: "Me?"
"A lot of these young girls, they don't even know what the game is about. They have never seen a drop shot, a slice and all the mixture and variety I have."
"Did you just compare me to Wozniacki?" – to a journalist in early 2013.
"You know, losing to her, losing to Mary [Pierce] at the French, I don't think that should have happened. I had a big chance to win the French Open this year, and I didn't take it. Playing Mary there, you know, she's very tough. But still I beat her the previous like seven times. Just shouldn't have happened."
"Do you want me to break your serve first or hold?" – to Lindsay Davenport before the coin toss.
"When I throw my racquet it helps me concentrate. It's just the way I am. It's better than to keep it inside."
"Anna [Kournikova] spends more time with make-up and stuff like that…I think movies would be a great job for her."
"Do you think you are the queen? Because I am the real queen!" – to Anna Kournikova, during an exhibition match in Santiago. Kournikova cried on court and afterwards they fought with trophies and vases in the locker room.
"What rivalry? I win all the matches." – when asked about her rivalry with Anna Kournikova.
"Anna would like to change places with me and win four Grand Slam titles." – when she lost to Kournikova for the first time in five meetings. Hingis said she'd have "lost to anybody that day", and she told the Swiss press she only played Berlin because her mother forced her to, that she didn't care whether she won or lost and that Kournikova's victory "didn't count."
"Rivalries? Look at the rankings. I'm like 3,000 points up. There are no rivalries for me."
"You haven't seen her without her make-up." – referring to her best friend Anna Kournikova, when asked about her beauty in the press conference.
Reporter: "Anna, how was your recent visit with the troops in Afghanistan and Iraq?"
Kournikova: "This was my third tour and I've been to..."
Hingis: "I'm sure the soldiers loved it (laughs)."
Kournikova on the popularity of tennis at Wimbledon in 2010: "A true tennis fan, he will know who Jankovic is, Wozniacki, people that are between [rank] 5 and 10."
Hingis added: "Even Ivanovic."
"(Spits out juice) My game is better." – on her game being compared to Justine Henin's.
"I'm not that surprised. I've beaten better players." – after winning her first tour match in Zurich in '94 over Patty Fendick.
"I'd play mixed doubles next year, but I should give someone else a chance to win an event." – after winning the 1997 Australian Open Women's title
"I've got to play two more matches. Sorry I had to make it short." – to Sabine Appelmans after beating her 6-1, 6-3 at 1997 Wimbledon.
"She's old and slow." – on terminating her doubles partnership with Jana Novotna. Novotna responded that Hingis was "stupid."
"I had a great year. You know, what can I improve? Sometimes I ask myself." – after winning 3 of the 4 Grand Slams at age 16 in 1997.
"Now that I beat Lindsay I feel much better. My technique is better, my forehand, serve, quickness. Everything is good now." – after beating Lindsay Davenport in the 2000 Ericsson Open final.
"It does bug me, being No. 2. When you are used to being a champion, it's like a drug – you want to be there again and again." – after losing the No. 1 ranking to Lindsay Davenport
"I did things I should not have done, but people make mistakes, especially at my age, when you feel you are so smart but in fact you are an asshole."
"I've always said I'm a good horse but I'm still an underdog."
"Sometimes I feel, been there, done it, now what? What more is there to prove?" – after ankle surgery
"It's a faster, more athletic game. She is old now. … Her time has passed." – on Steffi Graf in the July 1998 issue of "Tennis".
"She (Steffi Graf) is just a runner who never gives up." "The French crowd did not understand my tennis because I make it look so easy." – after her defeat in the 1999 French Open final.
"(This match was like) a warmup – the second week of a Grand Slam is like the real tournament for the stars." "I was watching her run from side to side trying to get everything back, and I was like: Why on earth do you tire yourself out like that? It's not like you have a chance to beat me." – after beating Anna Smashnova in 1998 French Open 4R
"I don't regret any relationship. It was good for my English anyway." – after breaking up with her boyfriend.
"I'm not a very good morning person. I'm No. 1 in the world, so I should have the right to say what time I want to play on the Centre Court." – on her displeasure over an early French Open starting time.
"I am number one in the world, so I have the right to be arrogant!"
"I heard this morning that a certain person always asking for my autograph over and over at every tournament. I'd like to give something to that certain person, it's important to me, to Richard [Williams]." "It's pretty big, huh? I'm sure it's going to fit you. It's extra-large. You don't have to ask me anymore."
"I beat a two-handed monster." – on Venus Williams, at 1997 Miami
Reporter: "When you see a player like Venus and she's still playing singles and obviously with what she's had to go through, did that motivate you that maybe I can still come back and play too?"
Hingis: "No, not really, because, when you lose as a player like her, it's not really encouraging because she plays well like first or second set and losing to players that she's not used to losing. So, no, that's not encouraging at all. Serena, yeah, it's a different story. She's got so much willpower, it's amazing. I really admire how she can still get out there and motivate herself all the time over and over all these years. But they were always – like they had many more breaks. I mean, I had my break for three years, but, yeah, I was out there a lot younger. And I don't have the same body as them too. So it's a little bit different when you can hit four aces in a game. I mean, I don't have that weapon."
– after losing to Errani/Vinci at 2013 Western & Southern Open.
"How would she know about boyfriends?" – on being told that Serena said Hingis won't be able to concentrate on tennis with her new boyfriend Magnus Norman.
"Being black only helps them. Many times they get sponsors because they are black. And they have had a lot of advantages because they can always say, 'It's racism.' They can always come back and say, 'Because we are this color, things happen.'" "I think they've been treated with kid gloves." "People have been afraid to criticise them because they don't want to be called racist." – on William sisters' complaints of discrimination against them in 2001.
"I'm better than them so far. I have won 5 Slams, they have none. I'm the No. 1, and not them." – on the Williams sisters.
"Playing (Serena) it always felt like playing a steamroller. No subtlety, no finesse, just raw, loud power. To respect this style of play was always a bit tough for me, but of course I had to, because the rules of tennis don't state that having a beautiful game is required to become No. 1."
"Playing one of the Williamses is like playing the three of them at the same time."
"I wish he had broken both hands." – after Marc Rosset lost the Swiss team the Hopman Cup when he punched an advertising board.
"I'm going to face two opponents in one time." – After playing the pregnant Tami Jones at the 1997 US Open
"I played like … I want to say a bad word!" – after narrowly defeating Gloria Pizzichini at the 1997 French Open.
"I don't know actually how I won this match. Maybe because I always beat her." – on beating Monica Seles for the fifth straight time.
"And serving it out with an ace, now that's fashion." – on Petra Kvitova.
"Maybe he needs the rooms for all of his women." – after being removed from her hotel suite in Berlin by President Clinton, who as a US president rented the whole top floor of the hotel. At the time it was at the height of the Lewinski scandal.
"It's all the time, 'Tiger Woods, Tiger Woods, Tiger Woods.' I am better than he is. I've been on top longer and I am younger. I'm just better." – on frequent comparisons to Tiger Woods.
"I need oxygen to survive, but not the French Open."
"It's hard to find a horse." – on the down side of indoor tournaments.
"I saw her when she was 12 and she was very good even then. You could hear her from like 10 courts further down." – on Maria Sharapova
"She's as mean as a snake. She reminds me of me." – on Maria Sharapova
"It's always been, 'I wonder what she's got, Sharapova?', because I don't see that she's got something that special… Or do you know? Can you tell? What's so exceptional about her?"
"I had to re-focus then, she was playing to my forehand which took me by surprise a bit. At one point I even believed she had a chance." – after beating Olga Poutchkova in 2006 Kolkata final.
"What is compassion?" – when asked if she has any compassion for Monica Seles after beating her 6-0, 6-0 in 2000 Ericsson Open SF.
"You know, I just beat Lisa Raymond 6-2 6-2, I don't know if that's an indication of good or bad form." – after beating Lisa Raymond in 2006 French Open 1R, during her comeback from retirement.
"It's like a shooting gallery." – after surviving an onslaught of Pierce's winners and errors.
"When I saw a marginal player like Myskina win a major, it inspired me to return." – on the true motivation behind her comeback in 2006.
"I've never had big problems about being long on the court. During the US Open I played three events (singles, doubles, mixed doubles) and some people asked me if I want to stay overnight on the court."
"If only we had the Heineken Beer in the cooler, maybe it helped me to make the final point…"
"I know how to boil an egg." – when asked about her cooking skills.
"It was civilization and the third world coming together. If you looked one way you would see cows, dogs, people just laying in the street and then if you looked in the opposite direction you would see a fake Donna Karan bag for $30." – on a post-Japan trip to Nepal, sponsored by the World Health Organization.
"Well, I'm surrounded by people, you know, and manners and things like that are important to me, of course. It's important that I feel proud of them [her escorts]. You don't have to be ashamed. It's a kind of a different society. I don't want to name anybody, but it was sometimes a problem. I mean, the people I meet are the top people - whether it's Hollywood people, or the princess of Qatar or the Emir. And when I was in Colombia [on a charity visit in aid of the street children] it was the First Lady. Or the top people at Unesco or Unicef. It's wherever I go. And they are looking at me [thinking] like, 'Who's this guy?', if they don't know how to speak." – when asked about the inability of her boyfriends to 'behave' properly in certain social situations.
"Whoever invented the signature autographs, I don't like that person. It's just a signature, what is that? You know, where are you gonna put it? Or is it gonna end up somewhere in the next garbage can?"
"Before I was the hunter. Now I'm the hunted." – after the 1998 Lipton Championships.
"Chris Evert was my mentor (provided by the WTA Tour) when I turned pro. The main thing I asked her was, 'How do you handle men?'"
"Not much." – when asked about the influence Chris Evert had on her game.
"YOU? No. 3?" – to Pam Shriver.
"How are you doing, Terminator?" – to Svetlana Kuznetsova.
"It was a very solid performance, I almost felt sorry for her." – after her 6-1, 6-3 win over Zuzana Ondraskova at the 2006 French Open.
"I lost my concentration in the second set because I got bored." – after beating Barbara Rittner 6-0, 6-4 at 1997 Hilton Head.
Here are some more funny Q&A sessions with Martina Hingis (thanks to my sister catcat33 who found these for me):
Q. I know Jelena Dokic came to your house a long time ago to practice once. Have you spoken to her since Wimbledon or talked at all?
MARTINA HINGIS: Yeah, I saw her. She was in Toronto.
Q. Are you friendly at all with her now?
MARTINA HINGIS: Why should I just turn around and say, Bye, you know, I don't want to see you again because I lost to her? No way. I mean, come on. I know who I am –
Q. I didn't know how good friends you were before. I wasn't sure.
MARTINA HINGIS: I wouldn't be friends with someone, I would invite them to come to my house. Not everybody can get there (laughter).
Q. Do you have any of your grade school report cards or anything to show us? They were saying that you didn't have any education.
MARTINA HINGIS: I don't have any education (laughter)? I mean, I chose something else, education, going every day into the school. I think I learned still enough on traveling. I don't think I'm that dumb (laughter). I'd like to see some other people talking in three languages. It's not always easy. It's a little misunderstanding sometimes what I say. I don't always mean like to hurt anybody.
Q. Do you ever miss actually having gone to school on a regular basis and having a formal education?
MARTINA HINGIS: Never missed that. I was always very happy about, you know, the thing I'm doing right now. I don't think the money's too bad either (laughter).
Q. Their father said that they shouldn't play doubles; they should each focus just on the singles. What's your philosophy about playing doubles, and why aren't you playing doubles here?
MARTINA HINGIS: I think I figured that thing out already, not playing the doubles. I didn't play at the California tournaments, and I'm not playing now also. So… I'm a step ahead, I guess. For once.
Q. Can you describe why, though?
MARTINA HINGIS: It's just too much waiting around. I mean, you got better things to do than waiting for your doubles match, I guess. If some players, you know, they fit – it fits their schedule, they want to play doubles. I used to be like that, too, I was like gives me some more attention to do something, and I'd rather play doubles in practice too much, but I think I change in that way a little bit. Practice is better. You get your times and then you just leave the stadium; it's not like sitting around and waiting for a doubles match.
Q. Martina, the past couple months obviously have been a time for real growth, real learning for you. If you could step back and say what the one thing you really learned during this period was, what would that be? Could you reflect on that?
MARTINA HINGIS: Which period?
Q. Since Paris.
MARTINA HINGIS: Since Paris?
Q. And London.
MARTINA HINGIS: Just basically knowing what I want more. Just focus on my tennis and that's all I want to do right now. And that became, you know, better player since then. I think more on the court, physically I got better, I can last longer in a match, in a three-setter, and I still feel good. And not just, I guess, things happen or go a different way, a wrong way, and then you can try to resolve everything. A lot of conversation, I'd say, also with my mom and Mario. That's what you learn from. It's like education. You know, you have to grow. One day. Mature.
Q. Informal education?
MARTINA HINGIS: Right. (Laughter). I still think it's true you have a better school in here. Maybe not later on, but what I've learned.
Q. What about the tan lines?
MARTINA HINGIS: Well, the sun wasn't out there, so not yet. No. (Laughing.) I'm trying to practice in just like the two sleeves, just regular shirts or something which — but I'm not a very tan person in general so… (Laughing.) I'm just snow white from Switzerland.
Q. I could see on your hand something red. Did you hurt yourself?
MARTINA HINGIS: It was from signing autographs.
Bottom line: Read her interviews. For example, this one.