Back in the day when tennis was all about big serves and colorful characters, Andre Agassi really stood out, both for his talent and his intriguing personality. He shot to fame not only because of his talent but also for his rebellious vibe—the denim shorts, the long hair, and the catchphrase “Image is Everything.” And recently, some of the standout names in the tennis world, such as Sam Querrey and Steve Johnson, shared their views on Agassi and another tennis star.

Their experiences and insights come from years of competing on tour at the highest level. On their popular show, ‘Nothing Major’, they share untold stories and have some fun chatting with fellow American pros. Recently, they focused on one of sports’ most intriguing themes: the haunting question of ‘what if’.

Steve Johnson thought about a legendary player whose career had its fair share of tough times and amazing comebacks. And yes, Johnson brought up Andre Agassi as a huge ‘what if’, really thinking about how the champion’s well-known break from the sport might have changed things. “Agassi is kind of a what if, if he didn’t go for that mental break… maybe not a mental break, but it was for like four years,” Johnson wondered.

“How many more majors could he have had, you know what I mean?” Agassi had a pretty rough patch in the late 1990s when his ranking dropped below the top 100, and he really started to wonder about his future in tennis. So, when he made a comeback and snagged five of his eight major titles after turning 29, it turned into one of the sport’s most inspiring comeback tales.

On the flip side, when it comes to Sam Querrey, the biggest ‘what if’ isn’t about a global superstar. Instead, it’s about a brief talent who looked like they were on the brink of greatness but then just vanished. Querrey pointed out that Hyeon Chung from South Korea is the biggest mystery in the sport right now.

“I think Chung [Hyeon] is like the biggest one. Just because he made the semifinals of the Australian Open, got that crazy blister on his foot and then like vanished off the face of the earth, and he was like 22 years old,” Querrey said. Chung had an amazing run at the 2018 Australian Open! He scored wins against big names like Daniil Medvedev and Alexander Zverev, and even pulled off a straight-sets upset against Novak Djokovic.

Unfortunately, a foot injury cut his journey short in the semifinals against Roger Federer. Querrey shared a feeling that a lot of people in the tennis community felt back then, saying, “I think everyone had him pencilled in as a guy who was gonna be like top 10 for a while and then, like, where is the dude? I don’t know what happened to him.”

Chung’s battle with injuries really took a toll, causing his ranking to drop from a peak of 19th all the way down to outside the top 350. It definitely makes you think about what could have been in his tennis journey. However, Agassi did mention his resurgence in tennis.

Andre Agassi once opened up about his comeback in the sport

For Andre Agassi, his incredible comeback from being ranked outside the top 100 to reaching world No. 1 wasn’t just about chasing glory; it was really about reconnecting with the core of who he is. This transformative time really changed how he sees things, and he even said, “When I was number one, I was probably the worst version of myself. When I was 140, I was the best—people just hadn’t seen it yet.”

This deep thought shows that his return wasn’t just about getting a title back; it was really about growing a stronger character from a place of true humility. It all started with one simple question he asked himself every day to help with his recovery: “Can I be better than I am today?” He adopted the view that “Success is how we choose to live in the moments that make us better,” focusing on controllable effort rather than uncontrollable outcomes.

His trainer, Brad Gilbert, summed it up nicely: “There’s a lot of good waiting for you on the other side of tired.” His disciplined, inward-focused approach helped him handle the huge pressure of his return, realizing that “Pressure is really a perspective.”

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He decided to concentrate on the present moment instead of getting stuck in the past or worrying about what’s ahead. This choice led to one of the most incredible comebacks in sports history, showing that his true greatness came not from winning, but from the brave decision to start over.