"Andre Agassi is not as good as he was" - When Roger Federer made brutally honest assessment ahead of Australian Open showdown

Roger Federer and Andre Agassi faced off in the quarterfinals of the 2005 Australian Open, one of the biggest matches of the tournament. It marked the final Melbourne appearance for the American legend, while Federer came in as the defending champion.

Federer, seeded No. 1, wrestled past Marcos Baghdatis in the fourth round in straight sets, while No. 8 seed Agassi downed 11th seed Joachim Johansson in a tight four-setter.

At his press conference before the match, the Swiss was asked if he thought he could take down Agassi -- a question that did not sit well with the top seed. Federer, for starters, thought the query was an insult to his level, and felt he could beat Andre Agassi even if he wasn't playing at his best.

The 20-time Grand Slam champion bluntly stated that his opponent was not as good as he used to be, and confidently proclaimed that he will get the job done against him.

"I don't know why you ask me a question like this. I think I've proven myself in the past, and I know my game's good enough, you know. Also on my day where I'm not playing perfect, I know I can beat him," Federer said.

"He's not as good as he was when he was at the top of the ranking, otherwise he would be there. Fortunately, I'm there. I think he has to raise his game, not me," he added.

Just as he predicted, Federer had no difficulties beating Andre Agassi, winning 6-3, 6-4, 6-4. In the next round, however, he lost to eventual champion Marat Safin in a marathon five-setter.

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"It would be fantastic to play Andre Agassi here" - Roger Federer on their Australian Open 2025 meeting

ISPO Munich 2024 - Source: Getty

At the press conference, Roger Federer also spoke about his own performance in the first week of the 2005 Australian Open, stating that he felt very happy with how he was playing and that he had a lot left in the tank.

Despite his earlier blunt assessment of Andre Agassi, the Swiss admitted that he would like the idea of taking on the American legend in Melbourne one last time.

"Well, I'm very happy. I saved a lot of energy. I'm really like -- tournament almost starts now, you know, for me, which is very good. I played a lot of -- all the matches on Laver now. Probably will keep on doing that. I'm looking forward to tough matches coming up now," Roger Federer said.

"You know, no matter Johansson or Agassi, it will be a tough one. It would be fantastic to play Andre here. But I try to look at the big picture and try to defend my title. Andre or Johansson are in my path, and I hope I can beat them," he added.

Federer and Agassi met three more times in 2005, with all three going to the former. In fact, their head-to-head record ended up being 8-3 in favor of the Swiss, who won their last eight match-ups on the trot after losing the first three.