A biography for Stephen Hendryhasn’t been written yet.
“In the late '80s and early '90s, I took success for granted, winning four or five tournaments a year. I just expected to win them.”
“For reasons I don't understand, I've always been relaxed at the table.”
“I think the word 'yips' trivialises it; it is completely debilitating, like a cancer spreading through your game and just destroying it.”
“I would never be one to go striding over to any woman who caught my eye - after all, I'm the person who got to know my wife's parents before I plucked up the courage to talk to her.”
“It is quite surreal when you go to places up the north, like Inner Mongolia, and you are getting mobbed at the airport.”
“In both snooker and poker, you have to play your best under pressure; I was always able to do that. I don't think it is something you can teach. Your mental strength, your confidence, your self-belief has got to be very strong. That is the common denominator.”
“I always liked to take on the middle pockets. They're much harder.”
“When I was 13, my parents bought me a mini snooker set for my birthday. From the moment I first held a cue in my hands, I was transfixed.”
“One of my biggest sponsors is based in China, and I probably spend as much time there as I do in the U.K. Over the years, I have really grown to love it, but the first time I went was a different story.”
“In snooker, it's very important to keep very still on the shot and allow the cue to do the work.”
“When I'm practising on my own, my game feels great, but there's a big difference between practising on your own and playing against people.”
“In China, they appreciate someone who has worked hard. They say it is incredible to win seven world championships. I know it is, but it's a shame I have to go 10,000 miles to get the whole crowd behind me.”
“Even when I used to play Jimmy White in Scotland, he would have the majority of the support. That's the only time it would irk me, coming back to Scotland and people still wanting me to lose.”
“I always loved playing in front of big audiences; now I'm jittery if one person is in the room watching me.”
“I got into poker in the early 2000s. In snooker tournaments, you are always looking for things to pass the time between matches, so we'd play together, or I would play online.”
“I have always really loved clothes, although I am glad to say that my tastes have mellowed somewhat over the years. When I first played professionally and started to earn big money, almost everything I bought was by Versace.”
“It's the worst feeling in the world - to lose in the first round at Sheffield and then have to go home - because it's such a long tournament, and it's hard to avoid it. It's on the TV all day every day, and if I lost, I didn't want to be anywhere near snooker.”
“Larry David, he's my hero. I want to be him - I want to act like him - everything.”
“If I'm going to play, I'm going to have to give it 100%, which means I'm going to have to play in all of the tournaments that I don't like.”
“It's nice to have genuine appreciation for what you've achieved in the game. You don't often get it in Britain.”