Comeback nearly complete for Agassi
Posted: Saturday January 23, 1999 09:12 AM
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Agassi: "I feel good out there. As strong as I have ever felt" AP |
MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) -- There was a time not that long ago
when Andre Agassi thought his comeback plans were futile.
"If you really got the truth out of me, I would have told you I
didn't believe I could do it," the former world No. 1 said
Saturday.
But after a comfortable ride to the fourth round of the
Australian Open, and with no end to his winning streak in sight, Agassi
said Saturday he has not felt as good since 1995, when he blasted
his way to the world No. 1 ranking and stayed there for 30 weeks.
"The last Grand Slam I played where I felt this good would have
to be all the way back to the [Australian] Open in 95," Agassi said after
defeating the Czech Republic's Jiri Novak in his third
straight-sets victory of the tournament 6-3, 6-2, 6-1.
"I feel good out there. As strong as I have ever felt."
Agassi's career peaked in 1995, when he won the Australian Open,
was runnerup in the other three
Grand Slams as well as compiling an unbroken run of 26 consecutive
wins and a 73-9 match record for the year.
But then came the fall.
Agassi held the top spot for two weeks in 1996, but his career
on court declined throughout 1997, apparently as he concentrated
more on his personal life.
He married actress Brooke Shields in April 1997 and didn't play
in three of the four Grand Slams. Playing his 12th U.S. Open, he
was knocked out in the fourth round.
He finished 1997 ranked 122nd, after slipping as low as 141, the
first time in 10 years he finished outside the top 25 -- and
declared that he would be making a comeback.
The restoration of his game came quickly. He posted only one
first round loss in 22 tournaments and his wins included two
victories over world No. 1 Pete Sampras and one over 7th ranked Tim
Henman in a year in which he made the biggest one-year jump into
the top ten since ATP rankings began in 1973 -- from 122 to No. 6.
He entered this year's first Grand Slam seeded fifth and the Las
Vegas native has reveled in the warmth of the Australian summer and
the bounce of the Melbourne Park's Rebound Ace surface.
"Last year was a good year for me in a lot of respects, I
always felt like I was a sniff away the whole year," he said.
"I played some great matches, I just didn't play those matches
at the right time. I knew my game was there, but it's about
bringing it about at the right time.
"Now I have the luxury of showing up at these big tournaments a
bit more focused on winning them and that feels pretty good."
In his next match, Agassi will play countryman Vincent Spadea,
ranked 44th and playing for only the second time in the fourth
round of a Grand Slam.
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