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Two-time US Open champion Pat Rafter has revealed his motivation behind his decision to become a tennis player.
Rafter, who won his two US Open titles in successive years in 1997 and 1998 was known for his dogged approach. However, the former World No. 1 didn’t believe he could achieve something big in the sport until he realized that anything is possible through sustained hard work.
Speaking to the Sports Illustrated, the Australian disclosed what led him to take up tennis as a career during his formative years.
He said: “What motivated me to be a tennis player was to win Grand Slams. What motivated me to be a tennis player when I was young? I just loved the game. How it was every different shot was a different shot and you had to learn different wind, different ball conditions, different court surfaces, different speeds. Everything was changing the whole time. It never got stale. So for me, I was motivated enough to try and master it and see how good I could get at it.”
On being asked whether he wanted to make a name for himself when he was 16, Rafter replied: “Yeah. I think so. I think one of the things that really motivated me was if I could afford my own house, wouldn’t’ that be just great? And that was all I really wanted. I grew up with mortgages and things all around you. So you sit there and you think, well I am going to try and break free of all that. I saw life as having a family living in the house and that was all cool and if I own my own house then that was successful.”