"Bigger than Serena Williams at her peak" - Andre Agassi's World No. 1 pickleball partner gets crazy hype from American pro

An American pickleball professional boldly claimed that Andre Agassi's World No. 1 pickleball partner is a bigger athlete than Serena Williams at her peak. It is very interesting to note that Agassi's partner in question is just 18-years-old.

Earlier this year, Agassi stirred up a storm in the pickleball fraternity when he announced that he would be making his professional debut at the 2025 US Open Pickleball Championships in Naples, Florida, in the mixed doubles. However, at the age of 55, the American was way past his physical prime. Fortunately, he got the expertise of the pickleball prodigy, Anna Leigh Waters.

Waters is ranked No. 1 in singles, doubles, and mixed doubles and is considered an all-time great of the sport at the age of 18. With 54 singles medals, 65 doubles medals, and 57 mixed doubles to her name already, American pickleball pro Zane Navratil boldly opined that Waters is more dominant than 23-time Major champion Serena Williams at her peak.

"First, it’s a ridiculous comparison, but it’s a comparison nonetheless, and I feel compelled to clarify that, in the smaller pond of pickleball, Anna Leigh Waters is a bigger fish than Serena Williams was at her peak — and it’s not close," Navratil wrote (via thedinkpickleball).

Navratil opined that though what Williams has achieved in her career is more impressive, Waters is the far more dominant athlete. He explained why he came to this conclusion by using an example:

"If you disagree, let me ask you this: Your life’s on the line, and you must choose either Serena Williams to win a tennis match in 2013 (her best year, when she went 78–4 and won 11 of 13 tournaments) or Anna Leigh Waters to win a pickleball match in 2024 (when she won 12 of 13 singles tournaments, 14 of 17 women’s doubles, and 16 of 17 mixed doubles)."

"Who do you choose? If you’re a rational human being who loves life, you choose Anna Leigh Waters without hesitation, thus settling a debate nobody asked for," he concluded.

It is worth noting that Andre Agassi had nothing but praise to shower on Waters after their blockbuster duo was established.

“It was very apparent that Anna Leigh Waters was very tired of winning" - What Andre Agassi had to say after forming a team with the World No. 1

Andre Agassi and Anna Leih Waters at the US OPEN Pickleball Championships - Source: Getty

Discussing his dream team up to the Athletic, Andre Agassi quipped that Anna Leigh Waters needed a new challenge and hence decided to form a team with him. One of their practice sessions also sparked a reaction from Agassi's daughter, Jaz.

“It was very apparent that Anna Leigh was very tired of winning. She wanted to add a little spice to her life and make it quite the difficult challenge,” Agassi said.

Contnuing his thoughts, he hailed her as one of the greatest ever in pickleball. Though Agassi mentioned how he didn't want to let the 18-year-old down, she reassured the eight-time Grand Slam champion that he was 'insane' at pickleball.

“She’s right up there with the greatest ever in what she does and the idea of challenging myself to not screw things up for her is daunting.”

Andre Agassi and Anna Leigh Waters had a phenomenal start to their campaign, taking out the teenage duo of 13-year-old Stevie Petropouleas and 16-year-old Tristan Dussault. However, their run came to an end when they were ousted by Trang Huynh-McClain & Len Yang.