I'm an athlete and I'm black, and a lot of black athletes go broke. I do not want to become a statistic, so maybe I overcompensate. But I'm paranoid. Oprah told me a long time ago, 'You sign every check. Never let anyone sign any checks.'

It's remarkable she [Venus Williams] plays at all, given her Sjögren's syndrome [an autoimmune disorder that can cause joint pain]. She's back, winning tournaments. She didn't allow society to tell her, "You have this disease; you can't do that anymore." I look at her, like, "She's not playing at 100 percent. You are. You don't have excuses." Knowing what she went through helped me try to be a more positive person.

I was glad to watch the soccer because it helps my tennis game, realize maybe they're just rooting for the underdog.

When you travel so much, the best and most relaxing thing is to just sit on the couch and not move.

My dad is the nicest guy you'll ever meet, and the easiest going.

When I first started really playing, in '98, I was super excited to see all the people I grew up watching. ... I loved Monica Seles, Steffi Graf, and Pete Sampras.

I've been writing, but I haven't been writing. In my mind I've been saying I want to write, but I haven't actually physically picked up a pencil and started writing.