London (AFP) – Andre Agassi has demanded a proper off-season for exhausted tennis players as he prepares to lead Team World against Team Europe at the Laver Cup in London. The retired eight-time Grand Slam champion will captain a six-man group headlined by Australia’s Alex de Minaur and former Grand Slam finalist Taylor Fritz at the three-day event, starting on Friday. The Laver Cup, played on a hard court, is effectively a high-profile exhibition, with no ranking points on offer.
Agassi, 56, said he was always on the side of the players after US Open finalist Ben Shelton recently pulled out of the Ryder Cup-style event at the O2 arena. “I said to him, ‘Ben, before you can say anything, I need you to know that nothing matters more to me than my players.’ And that’s there, not just for the Laver Cup, but for their careers,” Agassi told reporters on Thursday.
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Former world number one Agassi, who retired in 2006, said tennis had become more physically demanding since he quit. “Courts and balls like these are sort of the most brutal form of the sport,” he said. “And these guys still go out there and put themselves through it. I think that they cover more real estate than (vice-captain) Pat (Rafter) and I ever really had to do in our day.”
Agassi said players deserve a proper rest at the end of each season — long a talking point in the sport. This year the Davis Cup men’s team competition finishes on November 29, with the Australian swing starting just a few weeks later. “It would be my hope (for) an off-season of some relative form of security for both the players, but also for the fans so that they look forward to the game,” said Agassi. “Cut them back. Every sport has it. There are a lot of times in life where…less is more. I think in a lot of cases, tennis would benefit from that.”
But Agassi said despite the packed calendar, he would not want to lose the Laver Cup, named after Australia great Rod Laver. “I’d hate to see the compromise ever come on an event like this that is hosted under such a magnificent name and person that none of us would be here today without in this game,” he said. “So this wouldn’t be the place I would choose to cut some edges. But I would like to see these awesome athletes always be at their best. I think everybody wins with that.”
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