Andre Agassi
Andre Agassi
Andre Kirk Agassiis an American retired professional tennis player and former World No. 1, who was one of the game's most dominant players from the early 1990s to the mid-2000s. Generally considered by critics and fellow players to be one of the greatest tennis players of all time, Agassi had been called the greatest service returner in the history of the game. Described by the BBC upon his retirement as "perhaps the biggest worldwide star in the sport's history", Agassi...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionTennis Player
Date of Birth29 April 1970
CityLas Vegas, NV
CountryUnited States of America
He's the best I've ever played against. Everything you try to do, he has an answer for. He plays the game in a very special way.
Gil has helped me make decisions that have put me in a position to still be out here letting my game be the most it can be. There's a lot of people who have to sacrifice for me to still be able to do this, and there's a lot of trust that goes into that.
It feels like there are not a lot of guys who play the game he (Dent) does and if you're not on your game he's one of the worst to play,
He was pulling triggers, and I could feel if I didn't step up my game he was going to control what was going on out there, ... It was a high quality first set. I snuck a break out of nowhere. I knew I had to lift my game, and I did as the match continued.
Other guys you play, and I've played a lot of them, there's a safety zone, there's a place to get to, there's something to focus on, there's a way. Anything you try to do, he (Federer) potentially has an answer for. He plays the game in a very special way. I haven't seen it before.
Anything you try to do, he potentially has an answer for, ... He plays the game in a way I haven't seen before. I mean, he's the only guy where you hold serve for 1-0, and you're thinking, 'All right ... good (laughter).' That's how it is. You've always got that sense of urgency. It's an incredible challenge.
I settled down on my service games and my ground strokes, put enough pressure on him to get that break.
The third and fourth set, I felt I was a bit living on the edge with my serve. He was getting a lot of good swings at it, had me under a lot of pressure. But the fifth, I had a few good easy hold games and started to relax a little bit more and hit my spots a little bit better, so that helped me to relax on my return games, as well.
Oh, how do you find words for what this means? This has been some of the greatest memories I've ever had on the court, ... I'll have these memories the rest of my life. Being in the finals at 35 just means you're going to have to put up with me a lot longer.
It took me a while after Paris to get healed up, a lot longer than I anticipated,
His serve was more awkward than I anticipated. If you don't get a good return, he immediately gets on the offense. That's the sign of a great player.
In the middle to late part of the third set, the sciatic nerve in my back started to get inflamed and it sent pain down my right leg and it got worse by the minute,
It's just been terrible this year for the number of players who haven't been ready to play here,
I threw myself in with eagerness and desire, but it was just too much, too soon.