“Open: An Autobiography” by Andre Agassi
Andre Agassi had his life mapped out for him before he left the crib. Groomed to be a tennis champion by his moody and demanding father, by the age of twenty-two Agassi had won the first of his eight grand slams and achieved wealth, celebrity, and the game’s highest honors. But as he reveals in this searching autobiography, off the court he was often unhappy and confused, unfulfilled by his great achievements in a sport he had come to resent. Agassi writes candidly about his early success and his uncomfortable relationship with fame, his marriage to Brooke Shields, his growing interest in philanthropy, and—described in haunting, point-by-point detail—the highs and lows of his celebrated career.” (Open: An Autobiography by Andre Agassi – #Ad)
Top 28 best Quotes From “Open” by Andre Agassi
“It’s no accident, I think, that tennis uses the language of life. Advantage, service, fault, break, love, the basic elements of tennis are those of everyday existence, because every match is a life in miniature. Even the structure of tennis, the way the pieces fit inside one another like Russian nesting dolls, mimics the structure of our days. Points become games become sets become tournaments, and it’s all so tightly connected that any point can become the turning point. It reminds me of the way seconds become minutes become hours, and any hour can be our finest. Or darkest. It’s our choice.” ― Andre Agassi
“Remember this. Hold on to this. This is the only perfection there is, the perfection of helping others. This is the only thing we can do that has any lasting meaning. This is why we’re here. To make each other feel safe.” ― Andre Agassi
“Life is a tennis match between polar opposites. Winning and losing, love and hate, open and closed. It helps to recognize that painful fact early. Then recognize the polar opposites within yourself, and if you can’t embrace them, or reconcile them, at least accept them and move on. The only thing you cannot do is ignore them.” ― Andre Agassi
“Now that I’ve won a slam, I know something very few people on earth are permitted to know. A win doesn’t feel as good as a loss feels bad, and the good feeling doesn’t last long as the bad. Not even close.” ― Andre Agassi
“Only boxers can understand the loneliness of tennis players – and yet boxers have their corner men and managers. Even a boxer’s opponent provides a kind of companionship, someone he can grapple with and grunt at. In tennis you stand face-to-face with the enemy, trade blows with him, but never touch him or talk to him, or anyone else. The rules forbid a tennis player from even talking to his coach while on the court. People sometimes mention the track-and-field runner as a comparably lonely figure, but I have to laugh. At least the runner can feel and smell his opponents. They’re inches away. In tennis you’re on an island. Of all the games men and women play, tennis is the closest to solitary confinement….” ― Andre Agassi
“It took me twenty-two years to discover my talent, to win my first slam – and only two years to lose it.” ― Andre Agassi
“Life will throw everything but the kitchen sink in your path, and then it will throw the kitchen sink. It’s your job to avoid the obstacles. If you let them stop you or distract you, you’re not doing your job, and failing to do your job will cause regrets that paralyze you more than a bad back.” ― Andre Agassi
“What you feel doesn’t matter in the end; it’s what you do that makes you brave.” ― Andre Agassi
“There are many ways of getting strong, sometimes talking is the best way.” ― Andre Agassi
“There’s a lot of good waiting for you on the other side of tired. Get yourself tired..” ― Andre Agassi
“If I’ve learned nothing else, it’s that time and practice equal achievement.” ― Andre Agassi
“I play and keep playing because I choose to play. Even if it’s not your ideal life, you can always choose it. No matter what your life is, choosing it changes everything.” ― Andre Agassi
“To be inspired – that’s the secret.” ― Andre Agassi
“How lovely it is to dream while you are awake.” ― Andre Agassi
“I tell the players: You’ll hear a lot of applause in your life, fellas, but none will mean more to you than that applause-from your peers. I hope each of you hears that at the end.” ― Andre Agassi
“Big dreams, are so damn tiring.” ― Andre Agassi
“This is why we’re here. To fight through the pain and, when possible, to relieve the pain of others. So simple. So hard to see.” ― Andre Agassi
“That’s where you’re going to know yourself. On the other side of tired.” ― Andre Agassi
“Older people make this mistake all the time with younger people, treating them as a finished product when in fact they are in process.” ― Andre Agassi
“When you chase perfection, when you make perfection the ultimate goal, do you know what you’re doing? You’re chasing something that doesn’t exist. You’re making everyone around you miserable. You’re making yourself miserable. Perfection? There’s about five times a year you wake up perfect, when you can’t lose to anybody, but it’s not those five times a year that make a tennis player. Or a human being, for that matter. It’s the other times. It’s all about your head, man. -Brad Gilbert” ― Andre Agassi
“Few of us are granted the grace to know ourselves, and until we do, maybe the best we can do is be consistent.” ― Andre Agassi
“Walking to the net, I’m certain that I’ve lost to the better man, the Everest of the next generation. I pity the young players who will have to contend with him. I feel for the man who is fated to play Agassi to his Sampras. Though I don’t mention Pete by name, I have him uppermost in my mind when I tell reporters: It’s real simple. Most people have weaknesses. Federer has none.” ― Andre Agassi
“My father says that if I hit 2,500 balls each day, I’ll hit 17,500 balls each week, and at the end of one year I’ll have hit nearly one million balls. He believes in math. Numbers, he says, don’t lie. A child who hits one million balls each year will be unbeatable.” ― Andre Agassi
“Control what you can control.” ― Andre Agassi
“great things begin at the end of the comfort zone. It is all about exploring the bleeding edge in your own time or with someone who will not judge you for it being beyond your comfort zone” ― Andre Agassi
“we must all care for one another—this is our task in life. But also we must care for ourselves, which means we must be careful in our decisions, careful in our relationships, careful in our statements. We must manage our lives carefully, in order to avoid becoming victims.” ― Andre Agassi
“You know everything you need to know about people when you see their faces at the moments of your greatest triumph.” ― Andre Agassi
“You don’t have to be the best in the world every time you go out there. You just have to be better than one guy.” ― Andre Agassi
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About Andre Agassi
Andre Kirk Agassi is an American former world No. 1 tennis player. He is an eight-time major champion and an Olympic gold medalist, as well as a runner-up in seven other majors. Agassi is the second of five men to achieve the career Grand Slam in the Open Era and the fifth of eight overall to make the achievement. (Wikipedia)
Born: April 29, 1970, Las Vegas, NV
Height: 5′ 11″
Spouse: Steffi Graf (m. 2001), Brooke Shields (m. 1997–1999)
