"I consider myself a big kid " "I love my toy's. I love just having fun. I'm mature when I have to be, but I don't like to be mature too much."

Mark Philippoussis, one of the hardest servers in tennis, on his technique:

"It's pretty much all rhythm. I can tell straightaway when I walk out there if I've got rhythm or not. I felt it today at my practice session that my serve was there."

Philippoussis on the controversy created in Australia when he decided not to play for his country in Davis Cup competition:

"I made a decision not to play. I stuck by that. Something like that can make me a stronger person, which it has. A lot of things I turned positive for myself. I pumped myself up. I trained a lot harder. That's what happened."...

Philippoussis on his change in attitude toward training:

"It was probably after I got my hair cut off after losing in Queens. I was in a bad state of my life there. I was really upset, having doubts whether to play Wimbledon. I just thought that I'm fortunate to be doing what I am at such a young age. I started working extremely hard. Ever since Wimbledon, I've pretty much doubled my hours on the court. I just really tried to knuckle down. Maybe a lot has to do with Pat (Rafter) doing well. He's had a lot of success, but it's just because he worked so hard. The guy gives a lot of hours on the court. That opened my eyes up. I've got a lot of talent but I've got to show it. It's not going to come out unless I work hard. That's what I'm willing to do and have been doing."

Q: That was pretty impressive out there?

A:Yeah. You know, I started off very nervous in the first set. I think Tim maybe was a bit nervous too. That 6-5 game, I just wanted to hold, do anything to hold, even if I had to serve under hand. Thank goodness I got through that. Second set, I just broke down. Again, thank God for the rain. Went inside the room, Pat Cash was there, Gavin was there, we talked about it. When play resumed I just relaxed and came out firing for the remainder of the match. [MP after defeating Tim Henman 1998 US Open]

"Pat Cash tells me to attack, come in, attack, all the time," Philippoussis said. "I'm a big guy, and I'll be OK."

'You turned into a man tonight, I think I showed I got some guts out there." - Mark's dad

"I've just worked on hitting everything as hard as I possibly can."

"I really wanted to be a soccer player."

Coaching guru Bollettieri, who has worked with Andre Agassi and Philippoussis's idol, Boris Becker, and until recently worked with Mark, says,"He's a big animal, but he needs to be nurtured like a young colt."

Mark Philippoussis on his year so far:
 "You have a loss which you do not expect - you expect to win, you come off court and straight into a press room. You know, there is a lot of anger inside of you, you are saying something you do not mean,  just out of anger. I think I just said too much. Afterwards I relaxed, I talked to my father, and I brought him down earlier, and my sister came from
Australia, and I have had that family support, and we're staying in a house, we are just having fun. We are working extremely hard every day."
-Wimbeldon