Legendary Italian-American tennis coach Nick Bollettieri passed away after battling health issues for a long time. The late 91-year-old was the former coach of many legendary tennis players like Andre Agassi, Maria Sharapova, and Monica Seles, among others.

The Williams sisters were also among his top students who have gone on to achieve historic feats in the sport. The legendary coach passed away on Sunday, December 4th.

Tommy Haas pays heartfelt tribute to his coach

Like many other players, Haas also owes his career to Bollettieri. The German was among the first to come up with a tribute to the departed soul. He took to his Instagram account to inform about Nick’s departure. In the post, he shared multiple pictures of the time he spent with the legendary coach.

Further, he wrote in the caption, “So many memories, I am not sure where to begin. Nickiiiii, that’s how I have called you for the longest time. Thank you for your time, knowledge, commitment, and expertise, willingness to share your skill, your personal interest in mentoring me, and giving me the best opportunity to follow my dreams.”

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It’s a huge loss for the tennis world as one of the greatest coaches of the sport departed from the world.

The rich legacy of Nick Bollettieri

Even though he helped many stars reach their full potential, Bollettieri himself didn’t play tennis at the topmost level. The American played tennis in high school. As a coach, he started his journey at the Dorado Beach Hotel in Puerto Rico. After 10 years, he started his own academy in Florida in 1978. It was an innovative concept from Nick. Prior to his academy, there was no such facility where players can stay and better their game.

However, things didn’t go well for the Academy and he had to sell it off to IMG. Even though he was no longer the owner of the academy, Nick continued to work closely with the tennis players.

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In 2020, a still very active Bollettieri was helping his students on the tennis court. Here the then 88-year-old ignored his health issues for a long time. However, he never left his love for tennis and was a regular on the court till the very end. The tennis world will surely miss Nick.