Andre Agassi: "The biggest controversy of my book came on page one, where I talked about hating tennis... it took me a long time to understand myself"

Andre Agassi has opened up about his love-hate relationship with tennis, revealing how he ultimately came to terms with the sport with support from his brother and coaching team.

Agassi's biography 'Open' is widely regarded as one of the best memoirs in tennis and is recommended as a must-read for fans of the sport. It stands out due to the American's openness when discussing the highs and lows of his personal and professional life, beginning with his candid admission of 'hating tennis' while discussing the final tournament of his illustrious career, the 2006 US Open.

"I play tennis for a living, even though I hate tennis, hate it with a dark and secret passion, and always have," he wrote.

During an appearance on 'The AO Show' podcast, Andre Agassi reflected on his early years and the influence his team had on him. The American singled out his brother Philip as his earliest mentor.

The former World No. 1 delved into his initial disconnect from the sport, citing the controversy that arose when he discussed his hatred for tennis in his book 'Open.' The 53-year-old admitted that it took a long time for him to understand himself while navigating his feelings on a global stage.

"For me, it started with my brother obviously because I turned pro at 16 years old. And I had a real disconnect with the game. I mean, it’s no surprise to anybody because the biggest controversy of my book came on page one, where I talked about hating tennis," Andre Agassi said (at 4:35).

"So, it’s not a love-hate, it kind of was a hate love. It took me a long time to come to terms with myself, to understand myself. And there I was on the world stage, acting out this rebellion and this exploration of who I was and trying to solve those contradictions," he added.

Agassi also shed light on the crucial role his team played in ensuring that tennis didn't take over his identity.

"But being on the tennis court, sometimes it was an escape and other times it was full of land mines. So, I never quite knew at that age. So, my team was really important to me, not so much from a tennis side, just from a humanity side. I wanted to know there are things I could count on. I didn’t want tennis to be as important as it seemed to everybody. Sometimes as important as I treated it," Andre Agassi said.

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Andre Agassi: "I put so much pressure on myself that being able to escape that with my team meant a lot"

Andre Agassi

Andre Agassi went on to credit his coaching team for providing him with a safe space to escape the immense pressure he put on himself, reiterating his brother's pivotal support in the formative years of his career.

The eight-time Grand Slam champion also spoke highly of his fitness trainer, Gil Reyes, likening Reyes' influence in his life to that of a "surrogate father."

"I put so much pressure on myself that being able to escape that with my team meant a lot. So, my brother early on, when I turned pro, was a big deal," Andre Agassi said (at 5:58).

"Then came my trainer a few years later, that basically was my surrogate father. He was the first one to really teach me that I was worth caring about, which is never the way I really felt. He made my body strong but he really made my mind and my heart strong and I always felt understood. It was like family, again some of the themes," he added.

Andre Agassi also disclosed that his game reached another level when he began working with Brad Gilbert, who currently coaches Coco Gauff.

"And really the tennis didn’t hit a new level till my coach Brad Gilbert, who was able to simplify all the tools that I had and give me a clear path of clarity when I was out there, of conviction of this is who you are on the tennis court, this is what you need to do. And all of a sudden, the game got simpler for me and I started to get proactive with the things I was doing as opposed to more reactive," Andre Agassi said.