Say what?! The best quotes from Roland Garros day five

Published by tennismash

2016 French Open - Day Five

Day five of Roland Garros dished up some scintillating tennis – and the press conferences proved just as entertaining…

“I actually really like it. The cut is beautiful in the dress, and I think it looks very feminine…It’s different, and, yeah, I enjoy it, actually. I know the opinions are split, but I’m for (smiling).”
Ana Ivanovic on adidas’ ‘Zebra’ print outfits

“When you lose the first set you know it’s going to be tough because it’s a real downer. He took me exactly down the road he wanted to. It was just what I did ten years ago. I used to exhaust the guys in the first two sets and then finish them off. That’s what he did to me.”
French veteran Paul-Henri Mathieu reflects on his second round loss

“I don’t have the power to be in the minds of other people. I’m working on it, but it’s very difficult to have this power.”
Timea Bacsinszky reveals she wants to be a mind reader

“I think the top players try to find new ways of inspiring themselves and, you know, sharing the experience and learning from the all-time greats.”
World No.1 Novak Djokovic on high-profile coaches in the game

“There are surprises. For us it’s really good because then we believe in things we didn’t believe in before. As far as I’m concerned, I’d say when I look around, all of the top 10 players we can defeat at the beginning of the tournament, so you think, when you see this, you think, why not me?”
Frenchwoman Pauline Parmentier on how the state of women’s tennis is boosting her self-belief

“I’m very happy with what happens, win, lose, or draw. Of course I like to win and I prepare for wins, but it’s been beautiful to do what I love for a long time.”
Venus Williams on reaching the third round in Paris for the first time since 2010

“Most satisfaction is having a dream, working towards it, putting the work in and seeing the results. There is nothing like that than, you know, building the blocks and then seeing the house go up. It’s an awesome feeling.”
Venus Williams on what drives her

“I’m still very young and I’m not in the rush. I don’t have to achieve – I mean, of course I want to achieve it as soon as possible and as quick as possible, but I’m not going to go into the panic mode if I don’t do it.”
Borna Coric on living up to high expectations

“I think it was just a no-show. I don’t know”
Andrea Petkovic reflects on her second round loss

“People expect a victory. Expect me to win. They think it’s normal for me to win in three straight sets, and that’s what I do at the end of the day. That proves that, No. 1, that people trust me; and No. 2, that I can manage this, manage pressure, deal with pressure, and play two good matches here.”
David Goffin is getting used to being a top player

“I’m just on it because it’s super fun. I just – I don’t really have a lot to do. I just get bored so I just kind of just play on my phone. I guess I post a lot of stories. It’s fun, though.”
Serena Williams on using social media platform Snapchat

“It’s going to be the third match in just four weeks, I think. Munich, Nice, and here. He’s a very nice guy. We are good friends. He’s an excellent player, so it’s going to be a real tough match on Saturday for me. For him, too, I hope.”
Dominic Thiem on playing Alexander Zverev in the third round

“I really pushed the limits to the last drop the juice I had.”
Virginie Razzano gave it her all against Daria Kasatkina

“It’s my 100th victory. It’s an anecdote, it’s a number. The match itself is something I’ll remember, because to recover after two sets to zero, it’s not something you do daily.”
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga isn’t getting swept up in his 100th Grand Slam win milestone

“I think the biggest thing is not the confidence so much as just being calm on the court and knowing that if things aren’t going perfectly I can figure it out. I don’t have to hit 70 winners in order to figure out how to win a match.”
Madison Keys is adopting a more mature approach to her matches

“My youngest one actually called me yesterday and I answered the phone and she was just like, Where are you? I’m in Paris. Are you in the French Open? Yeah, I am. Oh. The teacher asked me about it and I wasn’t sure. Yeah, no, I’m here.”
Madison Keys’ 14-year-old sister is apparently not keeping a close eye on her French Open campaign

“It was extremely difficult to prepare this match. And she is a girl I know by heart. She’s one of my best friends. We have known each other since we were really kids. We practice together, we played throughout the year together, doubles last year. It was not easy.”
Kristina Mladenovic after defeating Timea Babos

“Why should I be frightened? No, I want this challenge. I’m looking forward to it.”
Kristina Mladenovic on her next opponent – Serena Williams

“The most positive thing, in all of that, is the support I got from the crowd, from the audience, and mainly during the third set. That was totally magical, completely magical. I couldn’t even believe this, to have such an atmosphere. I carried them with me into my world. It was wonderful. It’s only at Roland Garros that these things do happen.”
Alize Cornet on the crowd in her dramatic three-set victory

“Please rest assured there is good future for women’s tennis, and you’re not going to fall asleep. And the people who watched this match can tell you that this is correct.”
Alize Cornet dismisses claims women’s tennis would be boring without Serena Williams

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