Ana Ivanovic

I am constantly trying to improve my playing and hope to get more and more mental strength. I think these are two of the success keys.

I try not to think about the person, just their tactics, their weaknesses and strengths. I play against the ball.

I'm very determined, and I know I can achieve, so I don't let little setbacks put me down.

Even if I play backgammon with my coach, I hate to lose. I won't talk to him for, like, an hour. So imagine how it feels when you lose at tennis. That makes me determined not to lose because I hate it so much. Even at a set down and match point, I always believe I can come back.

You'd be surprised at how many times I'd hit the ball, and the hair would go straight into my eyes. That's why, even when I play indoors, I wear a visor, because it stops that, and I'll apply a lot of gel and hairspray to keep it tight.

In tennis, a lot of parents are accused of driving their kids into tennis. I would say I'm the opposite: I drove my parents into it. They didn't take it that seriously until I was about 11 or 12 years old, when they realised I had an opportunity to go pro.

When we were kids, I remember we'd use lemon in our hair and go into the sun, hoping it would make us blond. Obviously, I have very dark hair and olive skin, and when I was a kid, I wanted to be blond, of course. It never worked.

There aren't many woman coaches in general, and I actually think it's good to have a male coach. Guys and girls have different mentalities. Girls are so stressed about everything. Guys take everything much more lightly. That's great, and it's something we have to learn from. I think one woman on a team is enough!

For my hair, I like to use different leave-in moisturizing sprays.

Being from Serbia makes us tough and eager to prove that we can come from this country that has been through so much and still be successful.

My parents were very protective of me and my brother, so they never talked to us about the situation in our country.

I have always liked my hair when it's braided, because if I don't, it kind of runs in my eyes when I hit.