Anna Leigh Waters and Andre Agassi’s Pickleball Championship: Andre Agassi and Anna Leigh Waters are joining forces at the 2025 US Open Pickleball Championships in Naples, Florida. On April 29, a day before their match, the pair spoke about growing the sport and bringing new fans from tennis and beyond.
A Star Pair with a Shared Goal
Agassi, 55, a tennis legend, and Waters, 18, the top-ranked female pickleball player, hope their mixed doubles match inspires others to try the sport.
“Tennis players and pickleball players like to argue and fight over which sport’s better. But we believe both sports can co-exist. We’re hoping pickleball fans and tennis fans and just fans of Andre and myself will tune in and watch us play and maybe we get one person who’s never played pickleball to go out and try it for the first time.” – (Waters)
Agassi, who is playing in his first professional pickleball event, admitted to feeling nervous but excited.
“I have this conflict, like I can’t tell. Is this fun? Is this anxiety. There’s probably a lot of tennis players, peers of mine, that are looking forward to seeing a slow motion train wreck on my side of the court.” – (Agassi)
“I’ll always say tennis is the most demanding racket sport, physically, mentally, emotionally but I’m biased of course. I also tell tennis players, get over it. This sport is growing and it needs to be a part of people’s lives. Playing nicely in the sandbox is a good thing for everyone.” – (Agassi)
How the Partnership Began
Waters made her US Open debut at 11, playing with her grandfather. Her partnership with Agassi started after she saw him playing pickleball on YouTube.
“The first conversation we had, the way he talked to me, it was like we had known each other five years. He made me feel so comfortable. That was the first time where I was like, all right, maybe this can work. Now how can I convince him to play with me?” – (waters)
“My mom and I had watched him on YouTube and we’re like, he’s got the game. This will be so much fun. I can’t wait.” – (waters)
Agassi said saying yes to Waters was an easy decision.
“When Anna Leigh Waters asks you to do anything you say yes because that’s how much I respect what she’s managed to do in this great game that has added to my life. There’s some things that I do pretty OK in this game and there’s other things that make me a little nervous. But that’s where I get to count on like the greatest player on the court ever to cover for that.” – (Agassi)
Respect and Admiration Across Generations
Agassi praised Waters’ dominance in the sport despite her young age.
“For her to be 18 and to have separated herself from the field with that kind of distance for this period of time and to do it with everybody nipping at her heels and trying to use her as a barometer … I mean, that’s all signs of somebody who’s just great at what they do. I’m a curious person. I’ll go into any field and respect the person that does it the best and in this case, to be out there, sort of helping is an incredible feeling for me.” – (Agassi)
While winning the title would be a big moment, Agassi has a personal goal in mind.
“A win for me will be when this is over that Anna Lehigh looks at me and says, ‘ Do you want to play again.’ That would be cool.” – (Agassi)
A Growing Sport with Big Potential
Their partnership has already drawn attention to the sport. Fans of tennis and pickleball are eager to see how they perform together. The US Open Pickleball Championships is already one of the biggest events in the sport, and this new pairing could help bring even more people into the game. With one match, Agassi and Waters are hoping to bridge generations and fanbases, and prove that pickleball is here to stay.
News in Brief: Anna Leigh Waters and Andre Agassi’s Pickleball Championship
Andre Agassi and Anna Leigh Waters teamed up for the 2025 US Open Pickleball Championships in Naples. The duo hopes to boost interest in pickleball through their mixed doubles match. Speaking at a press conference, they shared mutual respect and a goal to grow the sport beyond court boundaries.
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