Quotes from Gael Monfils

For me, tennis is a sport. It's not a job, it's a sport.

I think I want to show fans what it is actually like to be an athlete. Tennis is a part of it, but there is also another job that people are not aware of, the media commitments we have, and I want them to understand this.

I think everything I do in my life I try to have fun, and I try to be creative on the tennis court, outside the tennis court.

I'm a good tennis player, and I've never done so good on grass.

When I fight for a cause and I know it, I fight for it. I'm not scared to say something. I think some tennis player, maybe they're a bit scared, whatever is the reason. Definitely, some athletes, they fight for big cause. They speak it loud. I think it's great. It's great for sport. It's great for life.

Football is definitely present in the tennis world. Given the mix of nationalities that exists in the changing rooms, there's inevitably a bit of a rivalry between the players, especially in terms of the UEFA Champions League or competitions in which national teams compete.

I think I'm a guy always pumped up.

You have to push yourself.

I'm a competitor so when I need to, I just fly.

France is my home.

I love London and Wimbledon but the problem is that I'm not very good on grass, that was the hardest in the juniors for me, but the 02 should be fine as it's on hard court.

I'm very blessed genetically, you know.

I always ran very fast and jumped very high but when I was about thirteen it was more of a choice between football and tennis, and I went for tennis.

I don't really like to run on grass.

Basically every match I receive some racist comment, and you can cross some racist person.

I have always known about the quality of Asics products, so when they approached me, I was really receptive. They explained what they would like to do with me, both in terms of design and marketing activities around the world. They came with a long-term approach, which is very rare in this industry, which appealed to me a great deal.

It's not easy to recover from jet lag.

I am strong, the crowd makes me even stronger when they are on fire, I love to be with them, they give me focus so I just relax and play.

For me, it is easy, I love sport. Tennis is something I enjoy. I love playing tennis. For me, working out is pure pleasure, every day if I could play tennis, I would love it. I have been doing this since I was 2 1/2-years-old, it is quite easy.

I play very tough tennis, you know.

Everybody's talking a lot in my ear, so it's tough sometimes. I try to stay with my team in my bubble.

Now that I get to be more consistent with the winning, it's tougher for some people to say that I'm just a showman.

In juniors, you travel with about 12 other players and you all go to the same tournaments and practise together so it's like being with your friends.

There are so many tournaments when I started this way. I was so shy. I didn't really play well. And then all of a sudden I found the very strong, powerful Gael Monfils.