John McEnroe on Pickleball Slam: "You're going to throw some money at us?"
John McEnroe is all set to expand his horizons by taking part in the inaugural Pickleball Slam to be played in South Florida on Sunday.
McEnroe will be joined by former American tennis greats Andre Agassi, Michael Chang, and Andy Roddick, who will compete in what is slated to be the biggest-ever event of its kind in the emerging sport of pickleball.
Three matches - two singles and one doubles - between the quartet will be aired on ESPN with a total purse of $1 million on offer, which prompted the 64-year-old to comment on how the offer sounded to him initially.
"This came to us , like, 'What you're going to throw some money at us? Okay," McEnroe was quoted as telling the Miami Herald.
Andy Roddick, who retired in 2012, is the youngest of the four former Grand Slam champions who will be seen in action. Roddick, who will turn 41 this August, will take on Michael Chang, who is eleven years older than the 2003 US Open champion.
John McEnroe will then play 52-year-old Andre Agassi in the singles event before teaming up with Michael Chang in the doubles competition, with Andy Roddick partnering the eight-time Grand Slam champion from Las Vegas.
Pickleball, which was invented in 1965, is now being considered to be a competitor to tennis in terms of viewership and popularity.
Interestingly, John McEnroe was also candid enough to admit that although he did not enjoy pickleball as much as tennis, he did indulge in playing the fun sport with friends.
"No, I don't enjoy it. Tennis is my game. But its something I have been enjoying with friends because it's sort of an equalizer," the seven-time singles Grand Slam champion stated.
The big singles clash between Andre Agassi and John McEnroe is one to look forward to since there wasn't much to separate the two tennis legends in terms of numbers during their heyday.
John McEnroe and Andre Agassi - even-stevens between the two Americans as far as head-to-head numbers go
The two American legends have played each other four times - thrice in the second half of the 1980s - with the final encounter taking place in 1992.
John McEnroe triumphed in straight sets when he faced a relatively unknown 16-year-old for the first time at Stratton Mountain in 1986. Agassi, who had caused a flutter by upsetting Tim Mayotte, failed to repeat the heroics, going down 6-3, 6-3 but managed to tilt the scales a couple of years later.
Despite being bagged by McEnroe in the second set, Agassi won the decider and registered his first win against the American star with a scoreline reading 6-4, 0-6, 6-4 at Los Angeles in 1998.
McEnroe advanced to the semifinals of the WCT Finals after his young rival retired, citing a leg injury, despite leading 6-4, 0-3 a year later.
Agassi beat McEnroe en route to his first and only Wimbledon title in 1992 after getting past the three-time champion 6-4, 6-2, 6-3 in the semifinals.