Tennis - Andre Agassi Retires

What more can be said about Andre Agassi, the American tennis legend who finally quits after his third-round loss in the U.S. Open? Not much more can be said about Agassi's unprecedented career both on and off the court.

IndeedAgassi enters the tennis stage in the late 1980s when aging veterans John McEnroe or Jimmy Connors retired and with a group including Pete Sampras, Jim Courier, and Michael Chang. It was like a passing of the torch. 21 years later, at the U.S. Open tournament in New York, the American tennis icon Andre Agassim ranked the world's 112th-ranked player, closed out therefore his career with a four set loss (7-6, 6-7, 6-4, 7-5) to German qualifier Benjamin Becker at the U.S. Open tournament in New York. During his career Agassi won 60 singles titles, including eight in Grand Slam tournaments, and two at the U.S. Open. But there was one opponent he could not overcome: his old back that makes him suffer for several years. The years of efforts and pain limited his speed and mobility to the point where shots he would have once easily returned, now flew by him untouched.

Undoubtedly it was the right time for the tennis player to retire. Agassi has come a long way from his beginnings from the long-haired bad-boy of tennis, to the colorful teen-aged rebel and to the matured statesman of American tennis. His contribution to professional tennis will be remembered.