By James Martin

Making a splash at Stratton Mountain, 1986
In his rookie season, a 16-year-old Agassi showed up at Stratton Mountain, Vt., brandishing the most lethal forehand—and hairstyle— the game had ever seen. He blasted his way to the quarters, where he lost to John McEnroe.

Beating Jimmy Connors at the U.S. Open, 1989
What made Agassi’s victory over Jimmy Connors in the 1989 Open quarterfi nals so memorable wasn’t that it was Agassi’s fi rst fi ve-set win. It was how the match unfolded, a drama worthy of any tennis mythology. The year before, in the same round, Agassi schooled Connors in straights and boasted afterward that he’d predicted an easy victory. Jimbo swore revenge, and his chance came a year later. With the crowd behind him, Connors overcame dizziness due to the heat and sprinted to a twosets- to-one lead after cruising through the third at love. Did Agassi tank? He denied it. But during the third set he fl ashed an open palm to his coach, Nick Bollettieri, and reportedly said the match was going fi ve. It did. Agassi won.

Saying three immortal words, 1990
Ah, the power of advertising. Canon’s “Image Is Everything” campaign might not have sold a single camera, but it set in stone Agassi’s reputation as a punk who was all fl ash and no substance. Looking into the camera, Agassi coolly pulled his shades down and uttered those now-infamous words—and spent the better part of a decade living them down.

Winning Wimbledon, 1992
At the start of ’92, Agassi failed to get past the third round in eight of 10 events. But he won Wimbledon, shocking fans— and himself—by defeating Goran Ivanisevic in fi ve sets. Priceless moment: Agassi’s coach, Bollettieri, motioning to his charge to hit the ground, and stay there, after he clinched the title.

Going Hollywood at the U.S. Open, 1992
Agassi has had some choice quotes, but it was his “special friend” who delivered the most unforgettable line about his career. Barbra Streisand showed up at the U.S. Open amid rumors of a budding romance between the two stars. What was the attraction? Babs was about as clear as a Buddhist koan when she said Agassi is “very, very sensitive, very evolved. He plays like a Zen master.”

Losing the point, and the match, to Pete Sampras, 1995
The rivalry between Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras peaked in ’95. Agassi beat Sampras in the Australian Open fi nal, Nike broadcast their “guerrilla tennis” ads, and Andre bested Pete again in the Canadian Open fi nal. It was the perfect setup for their big showdown, the championship match at the U.S. Open, where they played the point of their careers: a thrilling, 22-stroke, fi rst-set exchange in which they took turns scorching would-be winners until Sampras fi nally put away the point, and the set, with a crosscourt backhand winner. Agassi, who had come into the match with a four-tournament, 26-match win streak, was crushed after the fi nal. “It was a heartbreaker,” he said years later. “I’ve never felt more lonely on a court, or more disappointed in the game.”

Capturing the gold medal, 1996
Tennis in the Olympics seems about as important as rhythmic gymnastics, but not to Agassi. He holds his gold medal, which he captured in Atlanta after crushing Sergi Bruguera in the fi nal, as one of his proudest moments. The medal also complements his wife Steffi Graf’s gold, which she nabbed at the ’88 Games.

Completing a career Grand Slam, 1999
If there’s one moment that solidifi ed Agassi as an all-timer, it was this one. He came back from the brink, down two sets to love in the French fi nal against Andrei Medvedev, to wrap up a career Slam and join the distinguished list of men who have accomplished the feat— Rod Laver, Don Budge, Roy Emerson, and Fred Perry.

Finding love with Steffi Graf, 1999
Are they or aren’t they dating? That was the question on everyone’s mind when Graf showed up as a spectator at the 1999 U.S. Open fi nal between Agassi and Todd Martin. Agassi and Graf were then photographed together in Las Vegas, offi cially turning their super-couple romance into a very public affair. Seven years later, they’re married and have two children. The courtship was a gradual one, according to Agassi. “She’s like a tennis match,” he said about his better half. “I had to take it one point at a time.”

Coming back to beat James Blake at the U.S. Open, 2005
Some argue that Agassi should have retired after his improbable run to the U.S. Open fi nal last year, believing that it’s better to go out on top (or close to it). The topic is good barroom fodder, but in the meantime let’s appreciate his Connors-esque accomplishment. Playing his 20th consecutive Open, the 35-year-old Agassi turned back the clock and looked every bit the champion he was in ’94 and ’99, until he ran into Roger Federer in the fi nal. The highlight, of course, was his quarterfi nal, where Agassi came roaring back from two sets down to defeat James Blake 8-6 in a fi fth-set tiebreaker. “This is what it’s about,” Agassi said. “It’s about just authentic competition, just getting out there and having respect for each other’s game. . . . and letting it be just about tennis.” That, in word and spirit, is what Agassi’s career has come to mean.

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