"We agreed to disagree far too often for me to feel like I was helping him" - When Andre Agassi opened up on his split with Novak Djokovic
Andre Agassi became Novak Djokovic's coach in 2017 after the latter split with longtime coach Marian Vajda.
Agassi and Djokovic worked together for a year before ending their professional relationship in April 2018. The American's stint as Djokovic's coach came at a time when he was struggling with an elbow injury that kept him out of action for the second half of the 2017 season.
Even after the Serb underwent surgery, however, there were a lot of things on which he and Agassi did not see eye-to-eye.
Andre Agassi discussed his split with Novak Djokovic while speaking to The Guardian during the 2018 Wimbledon Championships. He claimed that Djokovic needed ownership of his own process, and that nutrition was among the things the two did not agree on.
“He’s just that kind of guy – he needs ownership over his own process. So if he’s not having the energy or the strength, that’s something he’ll figure out on his own. I’ve always believed in strength training. I’ve always believed in eating a healthy range and a quantity of protein. But for years, he did it his own way," Agassi said.
The American legend also said that he and Djokovic agreed to disagree too frequently, to the point that he did not feel he was helping him.
"You get to a point where if you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem. We agreed to disagree far too often for me to feel like I was helping him, and I cared too much about him to just watch him go through something I felt I could help him with," Agassi said.
Novak Djokovic won just one title while Andre Agassi was his coach
Novak Djokovic won just one title under Andre Agassi's tutelage, and that came at the 2017 Eastbourne International. Seeded first at the tournament, the Serb emerged victorious without dropping a single set. He beat Vasek Pospisil, Donald Young, and Daniil Medvedev before defeating Gael Monfils 6-3, 6-4 in the final.
Following Agassi's departure, Djokovic reunited with Marian Vajda and fared very well during the remainder of the 2018 season. He won Wimbledon and the US Open, while also triumphing at the Cincinnati Masters and the Shanghai Masters.
Djokovic also reached the final of that year's ATP Finals but ended up losing to Alexander Zverev.
The Serb finished 2018 with 53 wins out of 66 matches, and capped his successful comeback by returning to the top of the ATP rankings.