'If you're playing someone you care about it's tough and I don't want to be in that situation. We are playing big matches for big points and prize money and I take it very seriously. I relax when I'm outside tennis.'
This involves trying to sightsee wherever she goes, going shopping and to the cinema. It is getting much harder to be while going unrecognised or having requests thrown at her, but there is a happy acceptance of all that, at least for now.
'I knew what I signed up for with my tennis. It's a good sign if people want to talk to you off court, it's part of the job. I learn from each photo shoot and interview. I'm a bit of a perfectionist, I try to do my best.'
You can see Wimbledon being another Grand Slam in which she excels, as the grass should suit her game, which she demonstrated in 2012. There may also be the strange sight of furry animals being lobbed onto the lawns of SW19, which has become something of a trademark this year thanks to her "Genie Army".
She explains its origins: 'I showed up in Australia, I was on court 15 which is the most remote court there, I walk on and start hearing this screaming and singing. They have these songs about me, they are basically students and decided to create this army.
