COULD IT BE ANDRE VS. ANDY IN US OPEN FINAL?

Old man Agassi goes for one more Slam

By Matthew Cronin
tennisreporters.net

Fred Mullane/Camerawork USA, Inc.

If it’s possible to be a virtual ghost and the most popular men’s player of all time, top-ranked Andre Agassi has achieved that goal. The 33-year-old is coming off an undistinguished last four months and for the first time in three years, is not the player who has tongues wagging going into the US Open.

That accolade would go to his young countryman, Andy Roddick, who won three hardcourt titles this summer, or to a lesser degree to Wimbledon champion Roger Federer, who played well enough on hardcourts to keep him near the top of everyone’s lists.

Like he did going into Roland Garros in May, Agassi played a very light schedule coming into the Open, playing only two tournaments. In Washington, he was stunned in the semis by Chilean big hitter Fernando Gonzalez and, in Montreal, German Rainer Schuettler stopped him in the quarters. He skipped the Tennis Masters Series Cincinnati so he could get his body pumped up for the Open, but is seven matches in seven weeks enough play even for a legend?

Agassi seems to think so and with eight Grand Slams titles under his belt, who’s to question to him? He doesn’t put as much stock into match play as he used to and given that he’s won the Open twice and reached the final another three times, it’s hard to doubt his strategy.

"I spend less time thinking about the Open and more time on where my game is," he said. "When I feel I'm about to hit my top level, then I look to sort of maintain it and to hit the gears as I need it come the U.S. Open time."

But the Las Vegan hasn’t won a crown since April and it’s very clear that even though he’s always competitive, he’s not knocking anyone’s socks off anymore. He was out run by Argentine Guillermo Coria in Paris and Aussie Mark Philippoussis bombed his way past him at Wimbledon. He has not clicked on all cylinders since the first three months of the year, when he won his fourth Australian Open title, San Jose, Miami and Houston.

TRAINING CAN'T SLOW THE CLOCK
It’s not too forward to suggest that much of his success was due to an excellent off-season training program. But once the year progresses and the players don’t have the convenience of spending two months in the gym and running hills, his older body may be wearing down faster than his younger foes. Agassi’ hip has been giving him problems on and off all year. But now in his 17th year on tour with a wife, child and another kid on the way, Agassi says the day-in, day-out grind is taking more of a toll on his mind.

"It’s tougher mentally," he said. "If it's tougher physically, you've got problems. The body needs to hold up. There are times where you question if it's doing that. I went through stages with my shoulder earlier this year and my wrist last year. You're never sure when your body's going to say, ‘That's enough.’ But assuming your body's healthy, I think mentally getting yourself to rise to that level every day is crucial."

GETTING LONELY OUT THERE
It has to be especially hard for Agassi to get up for Slams now that he knows two of his greatest boyhood rivals will retire at the Open, Pete Sampras and Michael Chang. Chang will play, while Sampras – who hasn’t competed since taking out Agassi in a wonderfully played final last year – will simply bask in the limelight of a retirement ceremony. Unless Chang pulls off a miracle, all of Agassi’s peers who used to get his dander up will be kicking back at home by the time the second week rolls around.

Susan Mullane/Camerawork USA, Inc.

"It is weird when I think about it," Agassi said. "You've got to remember a lot of people always talked about me and Pete leading up to Slams. I had to deal with him maybe once at that tournament and if I did it was going to be in the final and it was going to be on Sunday and it was still a long ways away. I didn't spend my time thinking about it except when I had to. Now the fact that I don't have to, I don't unless I'm being a little nostalgic about it. Then I pull myself back and say, ‘Yes, I'll miss playing against him and competing against him.’"

You can bet that Agassi would love a chance to stride purposefully out onto Ashe Stadium again for a final against Roddick and show him who the king still is, just like Sampras did to Roddick last year. But Agassi has a very long and tortuous road to the final. First up will be two-time Roland Garros finalist Alex Corretja. Should he make it to the fourth round, Belarussian Max "The Beast" Mirnyi or the fast rising Gonzalez could be waiting.

American and Cincinnati finalist Mardy Fish could be Agassi's quarterfinal opponent, but so could old foe Sebastien Grosjean of France or the lightening quick Coria. Another man who has had success against Agassi in the past could be his semifinal foe – reigning French champ Juan Carlos Ferrero.
It will take all of Agassi’s wiles to even reach the final, but should he get there, he will no longer be an apparition, but a very real threat to pass Jimmy Connors in the record books with his ninth Grand Slam title.