"I didn't like practicing with Andre Agassi" - Roger Federer shares fascinating anecdote about American to illustrate how tennis has evolved

Roger Federer recently shared his experience of practicing with former American tennis player Andre Agassi while illustrating the evolution of the sport. Both Federer and Agassi were absolute veterans of the sport in their respective eras.

They had their immense share in majors, too, with the Swiss calling it a day with 20 Grand Slams to his name, while Agassi had 8 to his name. Despite these successes in their respective careers, Agassi and Federer had very contrasting playing styles and skill sets.

Reflecting on his playing style in a recent interview, Federer revealed that Agassi's immense aggression and hard-hitting style, even during practices, didn't tempt him to practice with the American player. He further admitted that his style of practice is nowhere near similar to Agassi's style. Federer further explained about the evolution of the sport in the current era and said (via Served with Andy Roddick):

"I didn't like practicing with Andre (Agassi) because it was just like bang! bang! bang! And I'm thinking it would be nice to roll a couple, hit a few, and slice a few, and none of that. It's like three big shots and the fourth one just rockets past you like that."

"Anyway, that's not how I train, you know, that's also not how you do it, I think we have high intensity, but we do different things. It's incredible, actually, how we can all practice and play in different ways and get to a successful place. I feel like there's great returning, I feel like they return so easily nowadays. I don't know if it's conditions that are a bit slower or they just better of it. I mean making returns was hard."

Even though Roger Federer didn't like to practice with Andre Agassi on the court, the Swiss had a fair success in the professional matches. The 20-time Grand Slam champion boasts an 8-3 record over Agassi, with their last meetup being the 2005 US Open finals, which the former won in four sets.

Notably, long after their tennis careers came to a close, Agassi is currently leading Team World at Federer's Laver Cup against Yannick Noah's Team Europe.

---

Roger Federer opens up about his aspiration behind introducing the Laver Cup

Roger Federer (Image via: Getty)

Roger Federer explained the aspiration behind establishing the Laver Cup in 2017. This came amidst the ongoing 2025 edition of the tournament, where top players such as Carlos Alcaraz, Taylor Fritz, and Alexander Zverev are competing for their respective teams.

Speaking in an interview, the Swiss maestro revealed that his idea was to create a professional and real tournament, and not on the lines of an exhibition event. Federer said (via Tennis.com):

"When I started the event with Tony [Godsick, his agent], the idea was that this has to be real tennis. This can't be a hit-and-giggle. For this, we can do exhibitions elsewhere."

During the conversation, Roger Federer also remarked that the environment during the tournament gets more profound, especially with the presence of veterans of the sport such as John McEnroe.