Andre Agassi to retire after the U.S. Open

Now that Andre is calling it quits. Where will he rank among the all-timers?

 

You can't deny the fact that he won a career grand slam. Does that made him better than Sampras? Maybe not, but he's certainly up there.

 

The career grand slam is a nice bonus that Sampras, McEnroe, Borg and Connors don't have when it comes to all-time ranking. A great player.

 

I think Connors could have done it, but he was banned from the French for a few years right in his prime.

Agassi: Maybe the cleanest ball striker ever. But there are a handful of better players.

 

I think Samparas was more consistently good, as where Agassi had a few rough stretches, injuries, etc.

 

He may not have been as good a player as Sampras, but I sure as hell know I enjoyed watching Andre play a lot more.

 

Agassi probably had more low points than any great player, some because of injury, some because he simply lost interest for extended periods of time.
But how many guys have had their ranking drop to about 140 and come back to be No. 1 in the world 18 months later?

 

Don't know of any guys offhand, but Kim Clijsters did it last year. And it only took her about 9 months.

It really isn't that hard, mathematically.

If your ranking drops that low (and you're really a top player), it's likely because of inactivity (injury, or in the case of Hingis, retirement).

When you come back, you don't have many (or any) points to defend, so you can pile them up pretty quickly as long as you are playing well.

 

True, BTE but Clijsters was hurt.
Agassi went through one of his funks and actually played a couple of the challenger events to determine if he really wanted to commit to being a top player again.

 

Who do you think feels more fulfilled, Agassi or Sampras? I would say Agassi because of the career grand slam. He won on every surface, proving that his all-around game was better than Sampras, who flamed out repeatedly in the French. I would think knowing that you defeated the world's best on hardcourts, grass AND clay would be more gratifying than racking up a bunch of Wimbledons, but that's just me.

 

He also has the personality of a baked potato, and looks like he could audition for the caveman role on those Geico commercials.

 

Touche. He should use that $43 million in career earnings to change his face.