Tim Henman

“Clay is so challenging as a surface because you want to be playing aggressively but the margins are so small and it's easy to get the balance wrong and start making errors. Getting your movement right and preparing correctly to hit your shots is key.”

“I think in terms of how my game developed on clay that was amazing.”

“Players need to look at their own tours, which are run separately from the slams, and ask why they haven't improved the funds on offer.”

“Volleying comes into grass-court tennis because it's a surface that favours the player who gets on the front foot. So if you've got an opportunity to come in and be aggressive, then finishing the points at the net is always going to be a good strategy.”

“If success is measured in maximising your potential and giving 100 per cent to what you do, enjoying it and making a good living then I'm very happy with what I've achieved. If other people wanted more than that from me, what could I do?”

“The side of me you see when I'm having a laugh is not the one most conducive to playing my best tennis.”

“It's always fun catching up with the other players because so many of them were really good mates when I was playing on the main tour. The thing you miss when you give up is that camaraderie that you experienced because, for 35 weeks of the year, it really is a travelling circus.”

“Movement on clay is totally different to every other surface and you have to have that balance and understanding of how to slide.”

“I love red meat.”

“It's a fact of life that there will always be people who try to cut corners.”

“The pressure I did feel before matches was self-inflicted. I didn't go out on court there thinking about what was being said in the papers and on TV about me.”

“The ATP is a difficult structure, it is 50% players, 50% tournaments. And so if you are the chairperson of that organization, it's very difficult to please everyone.”

“When I was 28, my wisdom teeth were coming through and I had all four out under general anaesthetic. I remember friends who'd had terrible experiences, but my teeth were removed at 8am and I ate steak and chips for lunch that day.”

“People need to know that they can make a living. We are losing a lot of the best athletes to other sports at the age of seven or eight, which is exactly the time when you want to get a racket into their hand.”

“I love a rack of lamb with a good bottle of red wine.”

“The players that always used to frighten me were the big servers so someone like John Isner if he gets on a roll with his serve, can be a nightmare to play against.”

“When you see players coming into the new season with injuries and already carrying strapping on various parts of their bodies in January, then it only serves to highlight how hard the sport is and how demanding the schedule can be. There really isn't an off-season and that's the nature of the beast.”

“For 15 years, I very rarely read anything about myself.”

“I've realised I've hit enough tennis balls to last me a lifetime.”

“Players have a very short window of opportunity and they're just interested in what they can earn.”