"We are in a free world and people can talk about anything. But in some way, it’s important that the people, when they talk about things, it’s important that the people have the chances to visit the places, to know the real thing of the places."
"I am lucky, that because of my sport, I have been able to know all different cultures, so probably I have a different vision about the world in general than the people who don’t have the luck to visit all these places around the world."
"And because of that, because I saw all the realities in the world I think I was able to see things with a different perspective. So I accept the critics, especially I respect the critics who criticise things while respecting other people. When they don’t respect, it’s a different story."
"But I really, in some way, at the end of the day, I know when I make the decision that’s going to be happening. But in some way I don’t care that much if I really achieve the goal that I want to achieve here. In the end it’s to improve the life, promoting sport in this country."
"If I am able with what I am doing and what I’m going to do here, improve and bring more kids to the world of tennis and to the world of sport, that’s my goal and that’s my motivation. And then if I’m not able to make that happen, then of course I will say to myself, OK, I got criticised and maybe they were right."
"But if I achieve my goal, maybe they’re going to be wrong and I’m going to achieve the goal and what I set out to do by being here. So, I don’t care that much. I’m just focused on doing things the best way possible, stay focused on the journey, and then let’s see."
"From experience, I see all these places, like Dubai, that I was there a long time ago, Doha, Abu Dhabi, Kuwait, and I see here the opportunity to create something beautiful for the people, and I’m excited about it."
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