"Asked about my game, he sniffs 'A haircut and a forehand'" - When Andre Agassi recalled facing Ivan Lendl for the first time
Andre Agassi once claimed that Ivan Lendl described his game as just a haircut and a forehand after their first meeting on tour.
The two locked horns for the very first time in the semifinals of the 1987 Volvo International in Stratton Mountain. Agassi, who was only 17 years old at the time, put up a tough fight against the then-World No. 1 Lendl before losing 6-2, 5-7, 6-3.
In his book, "Open: An Autobiography", the American wrote that Lendl was walking around in the locker room wearing nothing but his tennis shoes before the match. Agassi also said he walked away from the match feeling encouraged despite losing - until the then-World No. 1 described his game as "a haircut and a forehand".
"An hour before the match, Lendl is walking around the locker room wearing only his tennis shoes. Seeing him so relaxed, so remarkably nude, right before facing me, I know what’s coming. The beat-down to end all beat-downs. I lose in three sets. Still, I walk away feeling encouraged, because I won the second set," Agassi wrote.
"For half an hour, I gave the best in the world all he wanted. I can build on that. I feel good. That is, until I see what Lendl has to say about me in the newspapers. Asked about my game, he sniffs:'A haircut and a forehand'," he added.
After beating Andre Agassi, Ivan Lendl faced John McEnroe in the final of the Volvo International. McEnroe won the opening set and Lendl led 4-1 in the second set before the match was discontinued due to rain.
Andre Agassi won only two matches against Ivan Lendl in his career
Andre Agassi and Ivan Lendl locked horns on eight occasions, with the latter winning six fixtures and the former coming out on top just twice.
Lendl won the first six meetings between the two, including two US Open semifinals in 1988 and 1989, both in four sets.
Agassi's first win over the Czech American came in the semifinals of the 1992 Canadian Open. Lendl won the opening set 6-3 but the then-22-year-old took the second set 6-2 to force the match into a decider. He then won the final set 6-0 to win the first of his three titles at the Canadian Open.
The final meeting between Andre Agassi and Ivan Lendl came in the quarterfinals of the 1993 Volvo International in New Haven. The former won 6-2, 6-4 to reach the semifinals, where he lost 7-6(3), 3-6, 6-4 to eventual champion Andrei Medvedev.