You have to be extreme to be exceptional. I couldn't revel in being number one. I had to get to zero. When my fitness was at its peak, I was intimidating. I made guys cave in. They'd be dejected in the locker room after matches, and I'd go out for a run, as if it wasn't enough. I'd rub it in their faces. I meant to do that.
If they had rankings in baseball, maybe I would have been able to do the math and figure out my chances of being a professional baseball player versus a tennis player. But that was the decision-maker for me, I just thought I was better in tennis.
It's really easy to find your friends when you're playing away. You have a close-knit group with you and everyone else is cheering hard for their side. There's more satisfaction coming away with a road victory.
Without a doubt, there's huge satisfaction when a relatively smaller nation can take on a bigger nation and defeat them. There's a lot of pride in that.