Andre Agassi recently spoke about his pickleball partner for the 2025 U.S. Open Pickleball Championships, Anna Leigh Waters, and her experience of feeling “lonely” while playing tennis. He also shared how pickleball has helped him and his wife, Steffi Graf, make new friends.
The U.S. Open Pickleball Championships begin on Saturday, April 26, 2025, in Naples, Florida. Agassi and Waters have paired up, and they will compete in the mixed doubles event scheduled for April 30, 2025.
Andre Agassi Discusses How Pickleball Helped Anna Leigh Waters
While speaking to The Athletic before his mixed doubles match with Waters at the U.S. Open Pickleball Championships, Agassi humorously mentioned that the 18-year-old wanted to team up with him because she was tired of always winning.
The eight-time Grand Slam champion mentioned how Waters started her career by playing tennis but shifted to pickleball once she presumably noticed how “lonely” and “daunting” the sport is. Agassi also praised Waters as one of the “greatest ever” pickleball players.
“Anna Leigh probably experienced at a very young age just how daunting tennis is and how lonely it can be out there against somebody that far away from you on the court, yet you’re so connected to. She’s right up there with the greatest ever in what she does, and the idea of challenging myself to not screw things up for her is daunting,” he said.
Andre Agassi Reveals Pickleball’s Impact on Him and His Wife Steffi Graf
Agassi revealed that pickleball has helped him and his wife, Steffi Graf, expand their social circle, which he mentioned can be challenging at this stage of their lives.
“I don’t know if this says more about me than I care to admit, but through pickleball, my wife and I are actually making friends, and that’s not an easy thing to do at this stage of life,” Agassi added.
Agassi and Graf previously teamed up for the Pickleball Slam’s second and third editions. They defeated Maria Sharapova and John McEnroe in the second year and Andy Roddick and Eugenie Bouchard in the third edition.
Agassi retired from professional tennis in 2006 after winning eight Grand Slam singles titles—four Australian Open titles, two US Open titles, and one each at the French Open and the Wimbledon Championships. He won a gold medal for the United States of America at the Olympics and was also ranked World No. 1 in the ATP rankings.
On the other hand, Graf bid farewell to the sport in 1999, concluding her career with 23 Grand Slam titles. She won 22 Majors in singles and won her sole doubles Slam title alongside Gabriela Sabatini. She secured multiple medals for her country and was also ranked World No. 1 in the WTA rankings.
