PETALING JAYA: After tennis, legend Andre Agassi has turned to pickleball, but the competitive fire still burns.
The eight-time Grand Slam winner, who is synonymous with the intensity and flair of professional tennis, has added a new chapter to his sport-defined career.
Adding a new chapter to his sport-defined life, the 55-year-old Agassi said the transition is less about a new beginning but more about continuity.
"I think what I bring to the table is the belief that tennis and pickleball can exist in the same sandbox. They can play well together," said Agassi.
The 1996 Atlanta Olympics gold medallist is in town for the Joola Titans Tour at Stadium Putra in Bukit Kiara and quickly dismissed any notion of rivalry between the two sports.
"I don’t see it as a zero-sum game. It’s not a case of one cannibalising the other.
"Instead, I see certain elements that translate. There’s a lot of nuance that is counterintuitive to tennis.
"For me, it has stimulated things that I’m good at and challenged me on things I need to unlearn, which actually fits into the process I’ve always used to become better in tennis," he said with a chuckle.
Despite the differences, Agassi said his love for having something in his hands remains unchanged.
For a player who built his legacy in tennis, he added that pickleball offers something both familiar and new at the same time.
"At every stage of my involvement in pickleball, it has been very illuminating.
"The enjoyment hasn’t decreased but it has only increased," he said.
