John Newcombe Quotes (21 Quotes)


    It's good that he's come back to the roost, everyone's pretty happy (about the decision).

    So there was a fire inside me. And that fire inside you, it can be turned into a negative form or a positive form. And I gradually realised that I had this fire and that it had to be used in a positive way.

    You know, I eat, I ate pretty well anyway so, I'm basically living the same, I just curtailed the stupidity.

    I tried out for the cricket team, then found out I had to play Saturday mornings... or Saturday afternoons and practice twice a week.

    I'd also made the first tennis team. I was number two player in the school at 11 years of age and that didn't sit very well with people.


    I wouldn't, a little bit frightened but throughout my life I'd learnt that when you're in the serious situations, you've got to try to stay calm. Because that's the way you get out of them.

    A few of us who are around the sixty mark don't play that much these days and if you are taking on a couple of guys in their forties it is very difficult.

    There was kind of a code that you had as an Australian that you never left the court losing unless you had blood all over you. That's the sort of toughness you need to compete on the world stage and I feel that our kids today just don't have it.

    I was not able to play in 1972 because I was under contract to World Championship Tennis and in 1973 there was the player boycott.

    Well, he can't be dumb, I mean, because he's been president for four years and he's president again, so you're going to get caught out if you're really bad, aren't you? Unless millions and millions of Americans are dumb.

    At Wimbledon, the ladies are simply the candles on the cake.

    You know, I was a regular on the Friday afternoon drill squad. Um, which... The year after I left school, I went back and thanked the sergeant major because I was so fit.

    I chose to stay with tennis and they didn't understand that at the school.

    That match was late evening and I had the experience of the electricity of the Centre Court because it was packed, a full house for the whole match. It had been a great year for me, first time there and I had the full taste of Wimbledon.

    I was in the main draw from the start, my opening match was on Court One against Jan Eric Lundquist of Sweden who was about eight in the world at the time.

    By the time I got to the hospital, I certainly realised that I had a problem because I couldn't write or print at that time, which lasted luckily only about four months. I'd gone numb here and on my tongue and the right foot a little bit.


    In the morning of course, I'd have to, John would have to go round and apologise to everyone for what Jack had done or said to them.

    So he has to overcome this attitude and go out on the court and say 'Roger, I don't care what I'm going to have to do ... if I have to rip your throat out I'm going to beat you.

    They wrote it that my moustache was insured for 13 million.



    More John Newcombe Quotations (Based on Topics)


    Education - World - Time - Age - Stupidity - Fire - Decision Making - Morning - Toughness - People - Experience - View All John Newcombe Quotations

    Related Authors


    Michael Johnson - Magic Johnson - Kobe Bryant - Sugar Ray Leonard - Marion Jones - Johan Cruijff - Jahangir Khan - Ivan Lendl - Ichiro Suzuki - Gabriela Sabatini


Authors (by First Name)

A - B - C - D - E - F - G - H - I - J - K - L - M
N - O - P - Q - R - S - T - U - V - W - X - Y - Z

Other Inspiring Sections