Chris Evert

“Every time, all the time, I'm a perfectionist. I feel I should never lose.”

“If you can react the same way to winning and losing, that's a big accomplishment. That quality is important because it stays with you the rest of your life, and there's going to be a life after tennis that's a lot longer than your tennis life.”

“My first U.S. Open I think was just very special for me because that was sort of the beginning of what was a 'Cinderella' story for me.”

“I still have this image: I can't be controversial, I can't say things.”

“Tennis helped give me an identity and made me feel like somebody.”

“You've got to take the initiative and play your game. In a decisive set, confidence is the difference.”

“Find something that you're really interested in doing in your life. Pursue it, set goals, and commit yourself to excellence. Do the best you can.”

“I was very, very shy as a younger girl, just petrified of people.”

“Even though there are a lot of bright tennis players out there, you still have to protect yourself and save all your mental and emotional energies for tennis.”

“I'm not getting within 20 feet of a married man ever again - not even talking to one!”

“To be a tennis champion, you have to be inflexible. You have to be stubborn. You have to be arrogant. You have to be selfish and self-absorbed. Kind of tunnel vision almost.”

“I think team sports probably teach you more about giving - about being unselfish and being flexible.”

“Relationships are give-and-take, and when you're a tennis player, you're certainly not giving. You have to be self-absorbed. It has to be about you.”

“I was labeled at a young age - Miss Unemotional, Miss Cool, and that would carry over to my press conferences.”

“If you're a champion, you have to have it in your heart.”

“I'm not an overly ambitious person; I don't feel like I have to excel.”

“Ninety percent of my game is mental. It's my concentration that has gotten me this far.”

“You pay a price for everything in life.”

“Not every child is cut out for an individual sport.”

“When you're a famous, successful person at 16 years old, the rules change for you. Everybody is doing things for you to make life easier so you can go out and play. And I think you miss out on lot of growing up and a lot of reality checks.”