Andre Agassi may have hung up his racket two decades ago, but his enthusiasm for being on the court is still intact. You don’t have to take our word for it. Look at the eight-time slam champion’s celebrations at Laver Cup. The day couldn’t have gone more perfectly for Team World this weekend. Captain Agassi’s energy was an infectious bouncy bubble – all over the place inside the Chase Center. Especially when your boys keep scoring one win after the other, including that roaring victory of Taylor Fritz over six-time slam winner Carlos Alcaraz. It was epic in monstrous proportions.

Talking to the Tennis Channel, Agassi spilled the beans on how his off-court approach had changed during the Laver Cup. Especially within the new role of a captain and not a player. He began saying, “I am having a great time,” before adding, “You know, I think what I have learned because I was asked leading up to this event, what do I expect from myself, how I am going to be and I am like, ‘I have no idea.'”

Explaining his enthusiastic side seen at Laver Cup, he concluded, “I barely know how I am going to be everyday in my own life, let alone something I haven’t done before, But one thing I can absolutely tell you is I have a bottled up competitiveness and channel that I used to just keep inside and direct at one person. Referring to his team as a bunch of mean machines, he said, “And now I got Ferraris and machines like this on the court. And I can just sort of, you know, I have to do something, and I am damn sure going to try. So all that energy has to come out somewhere.”

For the uninitiated, Team World had been trailing 1-3 on Day 1. However, Day 2 brought the most unexpected results as the team registered three-straight wins in three singles encounters against Team Europe. Firstly, Alex de Minaur bested Alexander Zverev followed by Francisco Cerundolo’s triumph over Holger Rune. If that wasn’t enough to generate the hype, American star Taylor Fritz stunned World No.1 Alcaraz in straight sets wrapping the entire game in an hour and 11 minutes.

Lastly, the duo of Minaur and Alex Michelsen confirmed the clean sweep on Day 2. Their pair beat Rune and Casper Ruud in doubles to register a fourth-straight match on Saturday. But do you know what was common in all these victories? Agassi’s unmatched, energetic celebration. He cheered on all his players’ tremendous performances against the opposition. Does this mean that the statement, ‘you’re only as good of a team as your cheerers’?

He even had the same energetic reaction on Day 1. It came out when Joao Fonseca scored the first win for Team World after two-straight losses in singles. He followed the same mantra for game 2, infusing the enthusiasm within his boys. Perhaps that’s the reason the blue army is currently on top, with a 9-3 lead.

But then again, Agassi knew exactly what he had to do coming in to the Laver Cup, taking over the reins as the team’s captain from John McEnroe this year. His strategy was already mapped out against Team Europe.

Andre Agassi’s plan for Team World at Laver Cup

Being the leader of a group of players from different nationalities, one would imagine it to be tough, maybe even a lack of cohesion. Andre Agassi had a clear head. He wasn’t here to make things too complicated. Rather, he focused on learning from his squad. That includes Taylor Fritz, Alex de Minaur, Alex Michelsen, Francisco Cerundolo, Reilly Opelka, and teenage sensation Joao Fonseca.

During the pre-event press conference, Agassi revealed, “Coaching is about what somebody hears, not what you say. It’s learning about people, about players, in real time,” as reported by the event’s website on September 18. “I think the most important thing is to understand how they process. We all work so differently,” he added. Per him, that is “going to be so important to understand in real-time what they’re looking for — information, clarity, focus, energy.”

Doubling down on a straightforward approach, he mentioned, “Everybody responds differently. I’ve had a chance to talk to a few of their coaches as well. It’s hard to parachute into these guys’ lives and act like you know everything. I don’t.” The captain concluded his thoughts, saying, “I’m trying not to interfere with what they already do so great that gets them here in the first place. Trying to learn is the first role of being the captain.” Ofcourse, a real leader first understands and absorbs before he imparts.

Going into the third and last day of Laver Cup, Andre Agassi’s Team World looks unshakeable with a 9-3. The winning squad needs to reach most amount of points out of 24. It will be intriguing to see whether the blue army can continue its winning streak and lift the trophy for a third time. What are your thoughts and predictions? Tell us in a comment.