It can be a daunting prospect for any player to know that his opponent will never, ever quit. Rod Laver More Quotes by Rod Laver More Quotes From Rod Laver The next point - that's all you must think about. Rod Laver tennisfocusthinking The time your game is most vulnerable is when you're ahead; never let up. Rod Laver competitiongamessports I like to let my racket do the talking. Rod Laver rackettalking I often surprise myself. You can't plan some shots that go in, not unless you're on marijuana, and the only grass I'm partial to is Wimbledon's. Rod Laver marijuanatenniswimbledon Roger Federer certainly is my claim to be the best of all time - if there is such a thing. With Rafael Nadal not far behind. Rod Laver nadalrogerbeing-the-best When you have the opportunity, you strike. Rod Laver strikesopportunity The roughest thing I ever said to an umpire was, 'Are you sure?' Rod Laver umpirestennissaid When you've got your man down, rub him out. Rod Laver men There's a lot of ingredients go into being a good tennis player. Rod Laver tennisingredientsplayer An otherwise happily married couple may turn a mixed doubles game into a scene from Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf. Rod Laver virginiacouplegames Manners are manners. Jimmy Connors and Ilie Nastase have no respect. I don't want my kid seeing Nastase play. The demeanor you show on the court is important to tennis.... Maybe we (yesterday's stars) were too stereotyped. But we were told to behave or they'd take our racket away. Rod Laver starsplaykids Staying interested in a match is a lot harder than many people think. Throughout my career, I've always had trouble in the early rounds of a tournament mainly because it was hard for me to psychologically get up until I got to the quarters or the semis. What happened a lot of times is that I would fall behind early, maybe even lose the first couple of sets in a five-set match and then begin to concentrate. Still it wasn't something I could control from the start. Rod Laver couplefallthinking I was pretty fortunate this happened for the five years, then when Open tennis came along, and I got a chance to play in the Open ranks, I was a different player, all the amateur guys said: 'Who is this guy now? He doesn't miss too many, he doesn't make mistakes, his second service is as good as his first.'. Rod Laver sports Forty years ago, the players were like a travelling circus - we went everywhere together and were pretty good friends. Rod Laver good-friendsgoodfriendstogether As a tennis player, you have a record, and that is what counts. I feel like I enjoyed myself, and I'm proud of what I accomplished. Rod Laver feelmyselfyouproud I saw Kyrgios down in Australia. He played some very good tennis, won two or three matches, and has done the same here at Wimbledon. I think Australia's got a good prospect in Kyrgios. Rod Laver downgoodthinkdone I don't know much about Mauresmo apart from the fact she played great tennis. Is she a good technician? I don't know those parameters. Rod Laver shegreatgoodknow Yes, I hit with heavy top-spin, but when you look at the little rackets I played with, the Maxply Dunlop, you had to hit the very centre all the time. I had my share of miss-hits. Rod Laver lookyousharetime We were pretty darn good - fit and ready to play - but today's level is different. Those ground strokes are ever so much faster, coming back at you at a pretty good speed. Footwork-wise, you've got to be ready to hit that next shot. It's a tough time. Rod Laver goodyoutimetoday I wasn't embarrassed that I'd had a stroke, but I just didn't want people to think I was milking it or looking for sympathy. It happened, and I dealt with it. Afterwards, I tried to do what I could for other people who had strokes, speaking at hospitals that treated stroke victims. Rod Laver lookingthinksympathypeople
