Rod Laver Quotations

The time your game is most vulnerable is when you're ahead, never let up.

The next point - that's all you must think about.

There's a lot of ingredients go into being a good tennis player.

When you've got your man down, rub him out.

I wouldn't bet against him. He's got so much talent.

He wasn't his usual self, with that desire to win points and how he says to players: 'You have to beat me', ... Maybe he was concerned on getting himself right for the US Open.

I think age is not really an issue when you're looking at someone like Roger. He could be 31, 32 and be winning matches if the desire's there.

As soon as they make a mistake, he sits on top of them and he's got a wide-open court because he's not back very far.

Speaking about Roger Federer: "The best way to beat him would be to hit him over the head with a racquet.

There's a lot of competition now and a lot of the players have adapted his game to what they do, keeping the ball in play and chasing balls down.

That's a pretty good start, and he's 24. It's certainly amazing how well he plays in the finals. I wouldn't bet against him.

When you have the opportunity, you strike.

An otherwise happily married couple may turn a mixed doubles game into a scene from Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf.

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.

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.

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.

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,

The roughest thing I ever said to an umpire was, 'Are you sure?'

I like to let my racket do the talking.