Among the sport’s all-time greats, Andre Agassi ranks among some of the best players ever. He has won eight major Grand Slam titles, an Olympic gold medal, and many other titles. He was considered the best player in the world at one point. After retiring from professional tennis in 2009, Agassi launched his memoir, Open: An Autobiography.

Agassi’s plan to write an autobiography was a good one because it demonstrated important parts of his life and career. He mentioned some crucial aspects and details in his memoir. He also mentioned his crystal meth use, fake hair, dropping out of high school, and, most importantly, his distaste for tennis and his father. In a previous interview, the 52-year-old talked about how proud he was of what he wrote in his memoir.

Andre Agassi on how proud he was of things mentioned in his memoir

In 2012, Andre Agassi and Gil Reyes discussed their BILT, a brand which makes fitness machines with ergonomics in mind) with Club Industry. During the conversation, Agassi talked about his autobiography ‘Open’ and that he was proud of it.

“I have no regrets with what I did, absolutely, to get to the core of your question. It was something I’m very proud of,” said Agassi. He further said, “I took three years, I took a magnifying glass to myself and I was able to put my life into a literary focus and believe that it has relevance in a lot of people’s lives for a lot of different reasons. And I think that process also helped lead to what we’re doing now because you start to put your life in context.” 

READ MORE: ‘Going to Live on My Own’- Andre Agassi Once Took an Extreme Step to Rebel Against a Traditional Grand Slam Tournament

The book ‘Open’ is refreshingly free of jingoistic preaching and star-studded adulation. It is one of the most vehemently anti-sports books ever written by a celebrity athlete.

Agassi despised tennis despite his success 

Agassi, in his autobiography, had once acknowledged his despise for tennis. The American is among the sport’s all-time greats, yet he never really liked playing tennis all that much.

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The eight-time Grand Slam winner, notably, fought with low self-esteem. He was highly competitive as well. He wanted to do well in tennis less because he loved the game than because he hated losing so much. The fact that Agassi achieved so much success in tennis despite his dislike for the game is astounding.