RELIGION
You’re not religious in the conventional sense. At the same time, sport provides community, culture, history and a sense of belonging. Is sport your religion, in some ways? I think so, but I’m uncomfortable overestimating the importance of sport. In reality, it’s a game. But the way that you’ve outlined it – in terms of it being a community, and a place to explore yourself and learn new things – I think it’s a wonderful and safe environment to do all that. And the closest I’ve got to feeling I’m on a different plane are those rare, unique moments where you’re in the zone, where you feel like how you’re playing is beyond your level of consciousness. You’re doing it in an instinctive manner that requires no thought.
Musicians and performers talk about that, too. Experts refer to it as “flow” – an almost altered state. One hundred per cent. And those moments are quite transcendent. It becomes less about the actual game and more about this amazing interaction with everything around you. It all just seems to flow into harmony for a defined period of time; everything seems in sync, and the whole world makes sense. No postulating about the future or ruminating on the past. You’re just wholly present, which is really cool.
What are your commandments for being a good athlete? It’s really easy to overestimate your importance as an athlete. So for me, it’s about keeping perspective. Nothing’s ever as important as it feels. To win or lose with graciousness is so important because sport has a funny way of levelling things out over a long period of time. If you’re too reactive to losing or winning, it’ll always come back and bite you.
BODIES
What have your gnarliest injuries been? I’ve been really fortunate across my career. I’ve only had a couple of surgeries, and been out a couple of times with an injury. Understanding how resilient the body is and how capable it is of bouncing back, is really cool in itself.
How do you protect your mental health? A huge part is being active, being outdoors and using my body. I’m fortunate that my job lends itself to that. Also, it can be easy to define yourself in terms of outcomes of matches, or how you’ve gone on a particular day. But, in reality, sport’s just something you do: it’s not who you are. So a large part of staying mentally healthy is exploring life and pushing yourself to new places, to figure new things out.
When do you feel most comfortable in your own skin? When I’m being physically active.
When do you feel least comfortable in your own skin? At formal social functions.
Have you ever considered getting a tattoo? Yeah.
What would it be? Probably the word “prapañca”.
Wait, what does that mean? It’s a Sanskrit word that means “mental proliferation”. I think of it as a reminder for sport – but also for life in general – that you can only ever exist in the moment.
What is your superpower? Hmm, I find that question really hard. I can’t give the most humble-sounding answer.
Go for it. You’re Ellyse Perry. Maintaining perspective.