I've had many ups and downs before, and I think it's always darkest before dawn.
— Angelique Kerber
To see that hard work paying off is very good.
To play against Serena in a final is something special. You know you must play your best tennis.
When I was a kid, I was always dreaming to one day be the No. 1 player in the world, to win Grand Slams.
Just follow your dreams and be patient.
You will always have ups and downs in your life and your career, but just stay positive and go for it.
For me, it's important to have a team and coach and manager that I know, and they know me, so they are not coming to me with everything.
Nobody has anything to lose against me. And everybody would like to beat me.
I did a few TV shows in Germany, lots of media.
At the end, I have to take the court I get scheduled on.
Of course, you have always the goal for years to go there and to reach the top, but then if you are there, you actually don't know what to expect.
I will always enjoy it, that I was one day the Number One, even, like, when I look back in five years.
Just do what you love. This is what I am doing.
Now I can say I'm a Grand Slam champion, and it sounds really crazy.
I have a team around me to support me.
I am proud that everybody is knowing me on the streets and airplanes and airports.
My dream was always to win a grand slam, and my second dream was to be No. 1.
I'm feeling good about my movement on grass courts; I can serve a little bit better. This makes me much more dangerous than on hard.
Of course it's tough to reach the number one place and also winning grand slams.
I think the message from me is that you can work very hard, and someday, the work will pay off.
Having a team that I trust is, for me, really important.
First-round matches are always tough.
