Andre Agassi's Memoir
One of the most engaging books I've read
If you’d like to learn how a kid from Las Vegas became one of the greatest tennis players of all time, I recommend the memoir “Open” by Andre Agassi (ghost written by Pulitzer Prize winning journalist J. R. Moehringer). This international bestseller is one of the most engaging books I’ve read.
Andre Agassi is an eight-time major champion (seven-time runner-up), and the first of two men to achieve the career Golden Slam (career Grand Slam and Olympic gold medal). He achieved the #1 ranking in 1995, sank to No. 141 in 1997 after a number of personal problems, and returned to #1 in 1999, after which he had the most successful run of his career.
What I love about this book is how Agassi tells a relatable story about the triumphs and struggles of life, through the lens of his tennis. The book masterfully weaves the big and the small: including his tormented relationship with his father; his intricate internal dialogue during pivotal tennis points; and his courtship of Steffi Graf.
Here are some quotes that resonated with me:
1. It's no accident, I think, that tennis uses the language of life. Advantage, service, fault, break, love, the basic elements of tennis are those of everyday existence, because every match is a life in miniature. Even the structure of tennis, the way the pieces fit inside one another like Russian nesting dolls, mimics the structure of our days. Points become games become sets become tournaments, and it's all so tightly connected that any point can become the turning point. It reminds me of the way seconds become minutes become hours, and any hour can be our finest. Or darkest. It's our choice.
2. Freed from the thoughts of winning, I instantly play better. I stop thinking, start feeling. My shots become a half-second quicker, my decisions become the product of instinct rather than logic.
3. In tennis you stand face-to-face with the enemy, trade blows with him, but never touch him or talk to him, or anyone else. The rules forbid a tennis player from even talking to his coach while on the court. People sometimes mention the track-and-field runner as a comparably lonely figure, but I have to laugh. At least the runner can feel and smell his opponents. They're inches away. In tennis you're on an island. Of all the games men and women play, tennis is the closest to solitary confinement.
4. Life will throw everything but the kitchen sink in your path, and then it will throw the kitchen sink. It's your job to avoid the obstacles. If you let them stop you or distract you, you're not doing your job, and failing to do your job will cause regrets that paralyze you more than a bad back.
5. There's a lot of good waiting for you on the other side of tired. Get yourself tired, Andre. That's where you're going to know yourself. On the other side of tired.
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