My mother made the same brilliant impression upon my childhood's eye. She shone for me like the Evening Star. I loved her dearly—but at a distance. My nurse was my confidante. Mrs. Everest it was who looked after me and tended all my wants. It was to her I poured out my many troubles, both now and in my schooldays.

Anyhow, I talked it over with my mother, and she said, “Well, if that’s what you want, go right ahead.” She was a wonderful woman. And so I did.

I prayed a lot about it. I sought a lot of advice from my dad.

As for his internationally renowned wife, professional tennis player and four-time Olympic gold medalist Serena Williams, he said he often asks her for advice on mastering a field.

People pity me for being around in this era, but I believe it has made me a better player, because each year the bar is raised. It’s like being Real Madrid or Manchester United behind Barcelona. Maybe the teams that come second won’t be remembered, but what can they do but try their hardest?

I think my left, but I don't really know. I haven't thought about it before. I think my left - I'll let you know.

I used to be more. No, I don't. The problem with having superstitions is, you know, you become very sort of attached to them. Then, you know, if you always go in the same shower and then you finish your practice and you go to have a shower and someone's in it, you're not obviously going to jump in there. Well, you could, but I choose not to. (Smiling.) So, yeah, I try not to have any superstitions.

Overthinking.

I bite my fingernails and the skin around them.

I've never set out to be a spokesperson for women's equality. My experience of working with Amelie Mauresmo gave me a small insight into attitudes to women in sport and, because it was unusual for a male tennis player to work with a female coach, I am often asked about that. Working with Amelie was, for me, because she was the right person for the job, and not a question of her sex at all. However, it became clear to me that she wasn't always treated the same as men in similar jobs, and so I felt I had to speak out about that.