Seeing the Olympics come to China made me want to get more involved.
— Michael Chang
I was always really strict on myself about doing everything possible to prepare for competition.
For me, at the French Open, if I wasn't playing my match I was glued to CNN watching the events unfold.
Nearly all of these Chinese girls that have had success have had coaching from foreign coaches.
I have lost a little bit of flexibility, but the doctors say with any kind of torn ligament it is not uncommon for the injury to take 16 months to be 100 percent healed.
It's like one of those dreams you have when someone is chasing you. You're running as fast as you can, and someone's trotting behind you, just out of range, trying to grab onto you.
I still have a belief and a faith that some great things are still going to happen in my career. If I didn't believe that, it makes no sense for me to be out there, and on top of that, I know this is a period of time that God wants me to persevere through.
I think when you've played at the level that I've played, anything outside the top 10 in certain aspects is just a number, unless you're obviously trying to get into tournaments and stuff.
I actually became a Christian in my rookie year on tour when I was 16 years old.
I am just trying to get biblically stronger.
The first initial feeling, at least for me, was to go out and play well and hopefully win and have the Asian community be even more proud.
As long as there's pasta and Chinese food in the world, I'm okay.
All of the Spaniards are really talented. I don't know what they eat.
I see tendencies, I see body language.
For me, I think the Lord wanted me to win to put a smile on Chinese people's faces.
That's what really seems to be the more difficult aspect - to have the men break through and challenge the best players in the world.
It's not that easy for some of these players in China to get the coaching they need.
My knee feels good right now. I am definitely able to move about whichever way.
If you quit once, it's so much easier to quit the second, third, fourth time.
You know, I feel like if I don't change something, then the results maybe are going to continue the way that they have. That for me is not something that I want to really be a part of.
It has been a difficult road this year, but still I look at every day as a new opportunity.
I look at tennis as a bit of a platform to hopefully touch lives and encourage people.
It's difficult sometimes when you have somebody who is of a different culture trying to make light of something that is maybe not quite something that they understand.
Obviously the Asian American community wants you to do well. They are cheering you on no matter what the circumstances.
I'm a competitive person and it is in my nature to try hard in every match I play. The only time I'm not competitive is when I'm playing against my mom.
I didn't have the ability to blow people off the court, so I needed my legs, my preparation and the ability to think on my feet.
As an athlete, I used my speed, agility and quickness to go out and play against the big guys.
You can work really hard, but if you're not training in the right way you're not going to improve and get to the level that you want to.
I think I could look back through the past few years at missed opportunities and stuff, but one thing I have learned is not to dwell on missed chances or times where you have failed.
I feel like I have as good a shot as anybody out there and I have gotten close in the past, so why not have the attitude that I can come out and play great tennis and maybe even win this tournament.
I just feel like it would be so against my personality to have this struggle in tennis and just give up. I know it's not me, not who I am, and that would probably affect other parts of my life.
I realize that I'm in the twilight of my career.
I think the French Open, in many ways, brought out a certain characteristic in me and in my game that was already there. Just the circumstances allowed for it to be able to show.
I am actually nondenominational.
In the tennis world, there weren't a whole lot of Asians playing. You see it a little bit more now. The same can really be said for basketball.
Maybe sometimes I'm such a thinker, I reevaluate too much. Sometimes when it comes down to it, I really don't need to do anything, I don't really need to change anything. I need to just keep plugging away, working at it.
If at first you don't succeed, try, try, try, try, try again.
