
ROLAND GARROS – The premiere of Novak Djokovic and Andre Agassi on the Roland Garros courts Thursday drew quite a crowd.
Nole and Andre. Do we have a nickname for them yet? Nodre? Djokossi? Someone will come up with a bon mot.
Notable with Agassi is that after many years with adidas, coinciding with many joint post-career sponsorship associations with wife Steffi Graf, the original Nike tennis rock star has been back under the ‘Swoosh’ for awhile. And it looks good on him. The shuffling walk is exactly the same; you can spot it from across the city.
The reviews on the Djokovic-Agassi association have been universally positive before it has even truly begun. Not that this is meaningful in itself. When Boris Becker joined Team Nole a few years ago, the reviews were decidedly mixed. But while Becker was around, Djokovic posted some otherwordly results.
Long-awaited return to the game
As much as anything, it is the game that is welcoming Agassi back. From his early years as tennis’s outlaw punk, he has matured into a statesmanlike figure, a philosopher. He’s a man whose tennis IQ, on the rare occasions he has displayed it in recent years, is off the charts.
Here’s how they looked together Thursday.
Fans shouldn’t get too excited; Agassi is only expected to be in Paris long enough for the first few rounds. A long-planned family holiday is on the schedule later in the week.
He told the French TV program “Tout le Sport” that he originally had turned Djokovic down.
“Novak called me about three weeks ago and I said no at the start. But my wife (Stefanie Graf) said, ‘You should go, you will love it’. We had organized a family trip during Roland Garros anyway which was planned for a long time,” Agassi said during the program. “So I hope to see one or two of Novak’s matches and try to bring to him what I can because even a small remark can do a lot. What I know, with certainty, is that he can be even better than yesterday. I think he can only improve, because he understands how strong he is.”
Two career Slam champs on the same court
You never know; Agassi might get the tennis jones again after mostly being away from the game for more than a decade.

He has become a teacher by inclination, with the founding of several charter schools. And there’s no doubt there’s much the American, who won the French Open in 1999, can teach Djokovic about how to maximize the latter stages of his career. Agassi was chased by a pack of journalists as Djokovic and his group made their way back to the locker room. He was congenial, but after just a short time on the court – their first time – he didn’t have much to say.
“With Novak, I’m at the very beginning. I enjoyed it right from this first day together. I can’t tell you a lot; what’s important is him, not me.” Agassi said. “I hope to offer (help) both mentally and technically. But give me time to learn.”
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