Agassi’s Early Splash Could Last This Year

MELBOURNE, Australia —  They used to plunge into the nearby Yarra River by Melbourne Park with some regularity. The Australian Open men’s champion promptly christened himself with a quick dip.

The quirky celebration ended in recent years. Jim Courier quit winning, the river became (more) polluted and Petr Korda would have looked like a branch or twig in the water if he had scissor-kicked his way into the Yarra three years ago.

The symbolic routine resumed after Andre Agassi won the Australian Open--a ruthless straight-set dismissal of Arnaud Clement of France. It was Agassi’s third title here and, well, if Brad Gilbert is around, anything is capable of happening. We’re guessing it was Gilbert’s idea to make the plunge. In any event, Agassi and Gilbert took the brief dip into the water.

This gave new meaning to the phrase, swimming with the fishes.

And why not? This particular victory deserved a signature moment.

Andre Agassi has won a Grand Slam event at 30. It should be noted that some of the greatest champions in recent memory--John McEnroe, Ivan Lendl, Bjorn Borg and Mats Wilander--were not winning Slams at age 30. McEnroe won his last at 25, Wilander at 24.

Two years ago, Agassi was leaving Melbourne a fourth-round loser, falling in a flat match against Vince Spadea. Gilbert sat in the stands that day, shaking his head, feeling more helpless than usual. He could talk all he wanted, and it wasn’t going to make a difference.

Since then, Agassi has not lost at the Australian Open. Between the bookend titles, life has been difficult for Agassi. He has been injured and his mother and sister were both diagnosed with breast cancer. Things are better on the latter front. “Great. They’re doing great. My sister is nearly done with her treatments,” Agassi said.

Shortly after winning his latest Slam, his seventh, Agassi spoke about his family and his past 12 months. He had not won a single tournament between the two Australian Open titles.

“After winning here, it was the end of four Grand Slam finals in a row,” he said. “Which felt like the end of the year to me, yet it was the beginning. I wasn’t ready for the year physically or emotionally or mentally--any of it.

“But you have to keep yourself working and in condition. Now, this year, I’ve won and I feel ready for the year. So it’s a whole different feeling.”

The lowest point--at least publicly--was at the U.S. Open. Earlier in the summer, Agassi was involved in a minor car accident and re-injured his back. At the Open, though, the news emerged about his mother and sister. Agassi returned home quickly, losing to Clement in the second round in straight sets.

New York may not have been the last place in the world he wanted to be . . . but it was close.

“I probably could think of a few places worse, but where my heart and mind was, more than knowing where I didn’t want to be, I knew where I wanted to be and that was with my mom,” he said.

After the Open, Agassi took two months off. He returned to the tour at Lyon, France, but a hip injury forced him to retire from a semifinal against Clement. Yet, at the season-ending Tennis Masters Cup in Lisbon, Agassi showed his game remained intact, beating Gustavo Kuerten, Yevgeny Kafelnikov, Magnus Norman and Marat Safin. He lost to Kuerten in the final.

“It’s not about going away and getting right for the game of tennis,” he said. “It’s dealing with the battles at hand. Sometimes they’re on the court, sometimes they’re not. And what I had to deal with off the court, with my family, I think a lot of strength and perspective was gained through it.

“I found myself now in position to take on more battles.”

He laughed when he talked about his rugged fitness regime, which included brutal runs up “Magic Mountain” in Las Vegas. And, yes, even on holidays. This year, he threw up during the 320-yard run up the hill, training so he could enjoy Christmas dinner.

“I worked myself a little too hard,” Agassi said.

The hard work has been the same. Although the Melbourne result was the same, too, it is a slightly altered Agassi, though he couldn’t define it.

“For me, I work in a broader perspective,” he said. “I can’t say something specific I’ve learned or changed. I could say, though, a year later, I feel a lot different.”

He said he felt fresher than after last year’s tournament. Even better, Agassi doesn’t have to deal with the mental and physical challenge of flying immediately to Zimbabwe for Davis Cup the way he did last year. Agassi’s next event is not until late February in San Jose.

“This has been a great steppingstone for me,” he said. “I think I’ll be a little smarter this year. . . . If I really played my cards right, this can be the start of an incredible year.”