"I got upset they thought it was pink" - Andre Agassi finally reveals the story behind his misunderstood 'Hot Lava' kit

Andre Agassi recently recounted his iconic Nike outfit from the 1990 French Open, which saw him finish runner-up to first-time finalist Andres Gomez in five sets. The American admitted that he was initially upset at tennis fans perceiving the "hot lava" color of his attire to be pink while also singing praises about its design.

Agassi played at the highest level on the ATP Tour for nearly three decades, winning eight Major titles, spending 101 weeks as the World No. 1, and completing the elusive "Career Golden Slam", i.e., winning all four Major tournaments and the gold medal in men's singles at the Olympics. He retired in front of his home crowd at the 2006 US Open following a third-round loss to Germany's Benjamin Becker.

Since hanging up his racket, Andre Agassi remained out of the limelight for several years before coming back to the public eye in the 2020s with his promotion of pickleball. The 55-year-old is also a regular on Instagram these days, and he made good use of his platform this week, looking back on his "hot lava" polo and bandana from the early 1990s in a reel.

"[I] kind of got upset that they thought it was pink. Because I helped design that, like, we picked the color and I wanted hot lava. I like hot lava. It's like, it looks like it's moving a 1000 miles per hour but it's just kind of trickling down."

Agassi further conceded that he liked the compression shorts in his outfit, which were also hot lava colored.

"I remember being so thrilled that with the spandex, I didn't have to worry about packing underwear when I played," he added. "Because it was very form-fitting and did it's job, plus dude, it just kind of helped with feeling the compression around your moving hips and joints."

---

"It was Pirates of the Caribbean kind of stuff" - When Andre Agassi named his favorite career outfit

Andre Agassi serves at Australian Open 1995 | Image Source: Getty

Earlier in April, Andre Agassi listed his top three looks in an Instagram reel, giving a nod to his "pirate look" from the 1995 Australian Open, his famed jean shorts from the 1988 US Open, and the hot lava kit from the 1990 French Open. By his own admission, the eight-time Major winner liked the first two outfits more due to a variety of reasons.

"1995 Australian Open, it’s kind of referred to as the "Pirate Look." Baggy shorts, baggy shirt, bandana, hoop earring, goatee, it was like Pirates of the Caribbean kind of stuff," Andre Agassi said in an Instagram reel about his maroon bandana look from Australian Open 1995.

"Then I would have to probably shift to the original jean shorts. Tennis hadn't quite seen somebody wearing anything but white with their shirts tucked in," he added.

For those unaware, while Agassi adorned long blonde hair, and sometimes a wig, in the 1990s, he completely shaved his head bald towards the end of the 20th century.