Quotes from Stephen Hendry

For reasons I don't understand, I've always been relaxed at the table.

Since he was born, Mandy and I have hoped to give Blaine a brother or sister.

The best way to deal with aggression is to ignore it and try to get the match over as soon as possible.

The tip I would give is that once you play the shot, make sure your chin is touching the cue after you hit the cue ball.

I obviously know how good I was, and people refer to the modern game being tougher.

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.

Going into a tournament with 100 per cent belief you will win it - that's how I've always enjoyed snooker.

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.

The most I ever played was 12 or 13 tournaments. Now they're talking about almost 20, and it's all year round, playing through the summer as well.

Did I have a mis-spent youth? I suppose I did in that I left school early without any qualifications, having bunked off a few times for tournaments.

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.

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.

I remember far more shots that cost me matches than the ones that won me matches. That is maybe the way you think if you are someone who has won a lot of tournaments and had a successful career.

The thing is, with century breaks, maximums, ranking tournaments, these sorts of things are automatically going to be broken: it's not if but when.

I enjoy commentating on the big tournaments for the BBC, the occasional exhibition match, and my business interests.

When I was playing Jimmy White in those finals, I could tell when he was under pressure.

When you're young and you first come onto the scene, you're fearless. You just go for your shots and don't really think about the consequences. But as you play on through years and years, you get punished for those misses, and gradually, that leaves scars. It dents your confidence a bit.

When I didn't retain the world title after my first win, which no one's ever done, I was gutted and made my driver take me home straight away. We travelled through the night, and I didn't say a word all the way from Sheffield to South Queensferry.

I tried hard to create my own records when a lot of them belonged to Steve Davis, so to see someone else beat yours, you'd be lying if you said there wasn't a twinge of regret there.

When you get a trophy, why go jumping and crying? Winning's a great feeling, but everything else is an anti-climax.

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.

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.

I put on the tuxedo, and it's like putting on overalls - they're my work clothes. Then I go to work. I'm relaxed. I do my job.

The memories for the missed opportunities are stronger than for the ones I managed to get over the line in.