“In the next five years, you’re gonna see, it is crazy.” Former tennis icon and 8-time slam king Andre Agassi said these words previously while showing confidence in pickleball’s potential to grow as a sport. Agassi, who turned 55 this week, has been a huge advocate of pickleball.

After all, he’s participated in the Pickleball Slam thrice, winning on all three occasions. Well, exhibitions are cool, on an amateur level, how about some professional action? Guess what? Agassi is all geared up to embrace this transition going forward. So much so, that he’s already begun his ‘pro’ journey in this rapidly growing sport in the US. Where though?

For the uninitiated, Agassi kicked off his pro pickleball career this week at the Minto US Open Pickleball Championships. Teaming up with the 18-year-old, No.1 pro player of the paddle sport, and compatriot Anna Leigh Waters, he made a winning debut. In the mixed doubles category, the pair beat 13-year-old Stevie Petropouleas and 16-year-old Tristan Dussault on Wednesday, with a score line of 11-8, 9-11, 11-7. “Tennis was relief, pickleball is joy, this is absolute joy,” said Agassi after making his pro debut in Florida, as reported by Tennis Channel on April 30. But what about his feelings of going professional in this sport now?

Before making his debut at the US Open Pickleball Championships, the ex-ATP pro shared his thoughts. In a clip by The National Desk on IG, dated April 30, Agassi let his feelings be known about going pro in pickleball. “I have to say it’s pretty interesting being out here on the US Open Pickleball Championships on my birthday. When was the last time you’ve done something for the first time? It gets fewer and fewer and further and further between. So I figured why not. Gave me an excuse to bring the family out and do something I love doing. And hopefully put myself in an environment that can help me even enjoy it more.”

Continuing further he added, “People are the best part. You know? So I don’t know, the people won’t be the part that makes me nervous. You know, it would be any opponent living up to not messing things up for my partner Anna Leigh (Waters). So, yeah, I just, you know, I just follow the ripples in my life, and, they’ve led me here and I’m going to just enjoy it by the day.”

Showing excitement for his first-ever experience in a live pickleball event, Agassi said, “Like live pickleball, right, with where you get the taste of the whole community both from a playing perspective and also a fan based perspective. So, you know, I can’t wait to get the feel of the vibe. Is it really like, you know, Woodstock come meet? You know, I don’t know, Olympics come meet, you know, it’s like it’s weird. It’s like there’s some intensity.”

“Players obviously care about it. There’s nerves, there’s competitiveness. The crowd sometimes goes a little tennisy. I saw the first match I saw out there was a little bit one the quiet side. I thought it would be a little rowdier, but maybe they’re just building up ahead of steam. So I don’t know, I just I look forward to experience how this all kind of comes together in real time.”

Being hopeful for further growth of professional pickleball, especially on TV, Agassi concluded, “I mean watching this grow on the TV would be a great thing. But the reason why the sport is growing so much is the participation side, which includes every fan that’s out there.” This isn’t the first time, though, that he’s vouched for the success of pickleball. On a previous instance, he extended his huge support for the paddle sport.

When Andre Agassi revealed his growing love for pickleball

To understand how huge pickleball has become lately, one can take a look at some stats. More than sixty years ago, the sport began as a kids’ backyard game in the Washington state. By 2023, it had amassed 13.6 million players already. It was a jump by 52 percent compared to the year before. After seeing how appealing it was, Andre Agassi eventually opted to invest in Dynamic Universal Pickleball Rating (DUPR). It’s a platform that ranks players and connects them with others having similar skill levels.

In a previous promotional clip, ahead of Pickleball Slam 3, Agassi emphasized on pushing the sport’s popularity further. He said, “I’m a big supporter of (pickleball), and I want to grow the game, not just in the United States but globally. I’m honest with tennis. I’m honest with pickleball. Tennis is the Everest of any racket sport. And I will proudly say there’s no question about it, but I will also say that pickle offers something to so many people that you have to appreciate it.”

For the uninitiated, the former tennis legend is also going to kick off the Pickleball World Rankings league in Asia. To be precise, it will take place in India this year. Any specific reason? Well, the sport has grown a lot there in recent years. There are 15,000 participants in 2025’s tournament alone. It’s 12,000 more compared to the figure in 2020 (3,000), according to the All-India Pickleball Association.

Agassi’s passion for pickleball is simply undeniable. However, his pro start at the US Open Pickleball Championships has already come to an end after two matches. Following the victory with his partner Anna Leigh Waters, the pair competed in their next match in Naples. Unfortunately, they fell to Len Yang and Trang Huynh-McClain who won with a score line of 7-11, 11-4, 11-7.

While his pro debut failed to last longer, Agassi will look to make more such appearances to get better in long term. What are your thoughts on his prospects in taking his professional pickleball endeavors forward? Let us know in the comments below.