When a player joins Real Madrid's first team, they're often under pressure to be an instant success. By joining Castilla, I had the chance to understand the club and get to know the players, the culture, the country and the language.
When you bring in a player with a big reputation for a big fee, and he's coming from a different championship, and it starts badly, then you can be worried - we had an example of that with Andriy Shevchenko.
Sometimes it can feel like my bad days in Test cricket get amplified or singled out more than other players, while my good ones can fly under the radar. I'm not making excuses but over time this can get to you a little bit.
Obviously there are a lot of expectations when you come to a club for a record fee but you can't change that. You just need to perform and show it on the pitch and gain respect through that.
I'm not a fan of early commitments. I just think people right now are handcuffing players, pressuring players and I don't want to do that.
We know the history of players at Real Madrid and things are not easy at that club.
We know the transfer market is not an easy period for players, for their minds, for their preparations, too, for their bodies.
You always expect to hit for more power.
I'm not the first player to have their home Grand Slam and not perform. There have been a few Australians and French players, you name it. It's a tough thing. But it is one of those things. Would I rather have a Grand Slam in my country than not? I would.
It's really annoying for me. That's not what I'm playing for, to be the face of the NBA or to be this or that or to take LeBron's throne or whatever.
Every week's a job interview for us as players.
It's tough in the NHL; you have to produce on a high level. And everybody expects you to do it because you make a lot of money. And I never minded it. I always want to be that guy.
It's always better for the players being injured to come back to a winning team; it takes pressure off their shoulders.
To be a supersub is mentally hard.
You hear players, media people, say that it's tough to play in Philly in front of these fans, to those people I say: you didn't have the guts to succeed here!
Too many people asking too many questions in tennis. Golf is better.
Do I feel pressure being a young player with high expectations? Nah.
Obviously, every player wants to keep their spot in the starting line-up, and I'm the same.
The 24-hour news cycle is kind of insatiable. Players in the '80s and '90s didn't have to deal with that scrutiny.
It takes the pressure off of your better players to know they don't always have to be on top of their game for the team to do well.
You have to cope with expectation if you want to play for England.
In the IPL, you are often single-handedly responsible for the fortunes of your team. It makes you more responsible as a player.
Mourinho was always very strong for his players, and you needed to deliver for him. For me, it was good.
The problem is that when Argentina doesn't play well - and the same is true of Barcelona - the press think it is easy to blame Messi. We have seen time and time again that he wins games on his own when the team is not performing - but the media expect him to always be the hero.
I started playing when I was 16. Year in, year out, people expect 20 goals from me.
