Andre Agassi once disclosed who would come out on top when he and his wife Steffi Graf played tennis together after their respective retirements. The American also opened up about their different fitness levels.
Agassi ended his professional career in 2006 after winning eight Major titles and completing the career Grand Slam. Although his wife retired from tennis seven years before him in 1999 and gave birth to their two children, the American still found it difficult to win a set against Graf when they competed against one another.
In a 2020 interview with Sportstar, Andre Agassi admitted that Steffi Graf always defeated him, crediting his wife’s “healthy ambition”. The American also revealed that staying in shape came easier to Graf compared to himself, sharing that the German played sports effortlessly on a daily basis.
“She always wins. She has this healthy ambition. It’s also easier for Steffi to stay in shape than for me. She gets up in the morning, does sports and doesn’t even have to think about it. Everything looks so easy with her,” Agassi said.
Agassi’s remarks weren’t surprising, since Graf told FürSie in 2011 that she reserved 45 minutes a day for exercise because she didn’t feel good without working out.
“I rarely need motivation because I don’t feel good without exercise anyway. I try to plan 45 minutes for it every day,” Graf said.
In the years since, Steffi Graf and Andre Agassi have started playing pickleball together instead of tennis. In 2024 and 2025, the couple teamed up for the Pickleball Slam and emerged victorious on both occasions.
Steffi Graf: “I prefer being thinner than I often was during my career”
During an interview with Sportstar in 2000, Steffi Graf opened up about how she preferred to be thinner than she had been during her tennis career.
“I’ve always been scared of having too many muscles, and I prefer being thinner than I often was during my career,” Graf said.
The former World No. 1 also disclosed that retirement had given her respite from the bigger diet she had during her playing days, expressing relief that she no longer had to weigh more than she liked to.
“One of the nice things about retiring is that I don’t have to eat so much anymore. To play my best, I always had to weigh more than I wanted. I always felt I had to eat; I was always trying to get the energy back. I’ve lost a few kilos now and I feel better,” she added.
Since turning to pickleball, Steffi Graf has shared that she and Andre Agassi enjoyed learning how to play a new sport together. The 22-time Grand Slam champion also revealed that they never squared off against one another and preferred to share the court as doubles partners instead.