Quotes from Kevin Anderson

When a match doesn't go your way, people tend to take to social media and just say very inappropriate things.

I think what's really important from a player is to understand what you did well in that match and see maybe if there's a few areas that you could have done a little bit better, identify them, try to implement it, and keep getting better as the tournament goes on.

I think a lot of people fail to work on their sight, even though it's probably one of the most important sides to tennis. It's also about reactions and concentration and focus, and I think it's all very closely related.

Of course, on the road with me, I've got my coach, my own private physiotherapist. Back home, I have another coach who coaches me and also does all my racquets. I have a fitness trainer. I have a mental coach. It's a pretty big team.

There haven't been that many players, both men and women, from South Africa breaking through on the pro level. It's not easy because you have to really start playing tennis at a young age and be exposed to the right competitions and other players from around the world.

I've had my wife traveling with me full time for four or five years, which has been huge for me, and we have our dog traveling with me as well, which I think is a really important part. We do travel so much, and we're away from home so often, it makes it feel like it's home a little bit, too.

If you try to simplify it as much as possible, I guess you could say if a guy who is my size can move around the same as a guy who is much smaller, you would think there are maybe going to be a few more advantages.

The work I do with my physiotherapist has been instrumental in keeping me healthy, and it's a big reason why I'm able to continue to improve my game.

I try and focus on the youth coming up, and I think tennis is a great sport regardless of how far you make it: just, obviously, a lot of good life lessons.

Something I worked very hard on, especially last year, was being more outgoing on the court: recognising good points I'd played and trusting myself and my skills on the court. The fist pumps weren't necessarily to let my opponent know I was here, more to let myself know that I'm here.

The more mental strength you have, the better. If you look at some of the best players that we have seen over the years and that I have been playing with, mentally they are the best competitors as well, something I have worked hard on.

Especially at Indian Wells, Miami, the hard courts are what I grew up on, so I'm probably most used to it.

I am definitely very excited to continue, and even though I will be turning 32 next year, I feel I am playing my best tennis, and I definitely feel my best results are still ahead of me.

I try not to get too political. But coming from South Africa, where apartheid was a huge problem, and there was lots of inequality, has shaped me in terms of how I view certain issues.

No. 1 is definitely staying healthy. That is always going to be the biggest priority. I think when I am healthy, it gives me the opportunity to go out there and play the tennis I know that I can play.

Once our season finishes in November, a lot of players maybe take a couple of weeks off and start training for the next year. You often usually have only a little time to work on your game and stuff.

If you go out there with doubts or unsure what's going to happen, it's not going to go your way.

Sometimes I use a bungee, one of those bungee cords that offer resistance training. I find that useful. Like, I'll go out and hit a backhand or a forehand with resistance. Because when you get rid of the resistance, you've recruited more muscle fibers, and it definitely helps with speed.

For me myself, I feel it's always interesting gathering data. I have my team who do that. I think they feed me through specific things that I might find valuable.

In a sport that's as close as tennis, I feel like anything that you can do to give yourself an edge is definitely worth doing.

It's funny because, growing up, I found inspiration from watching Steffi Graf and Amanda Coetzer, a South African who was in the top 10 for many years. Oh, and then there's someone I've gotten to know over the last few years: Martina Navratilova.