"Andre Agassi said I made him cry, I didn’t make him cry" - When American's career started off in controversy with loss to old rival at the age of 7

Andre Agassi is one of the biggest tennis players to come out of the United States, and is still one of the most-widely recognized athletes on the face of the planet. In addition to his entertaining tennis on the court, the eight-time Grand Slam champion also caught the imagination of the sports world with his one-of-a-kind attitude and personality.

On several occasions, Agassi wore his emotions on his sleeve, even engaging in animated arguments with opponents and umpires that are now immortalized in tennis history. As it turns out, he was no different even as a seven year old.

One of Agassi's oldest rivals is one Jeff Tarango, an American who won two titles on the ATP Tour and reached as high as World No. 42. On the main tour, he faced the former World No. 1 seven times, facing a loss in each instance.

Yet, when they met years earlier, when Agassi was seven and Tarango was eight, it was the later who won in three sets. Speaking to the press after their final match-up at the 1998 Miami Open, Tarango revealed how that match went, recalling Agassi breeaking down in tears after he got overruled by the umpire.

“I think he got overruled on match point and he started crying. He said that I made him cry. I didn’t make him cry. He forgets he got overruled on match point,” Tarango said (via the LA Times).

Agassi, however, did not agree with that version of the story, saying that Tarango intentionally called the ball out when it was in. The American, funnily enough, did not disagree with the fact that he cried over the loss.

“It was the first loss I ever had. Third-set tiebreaker, nine-point tiebreaker back then, 4-4, winner take all. I hit a backhand cross-court for nearly a cold winner. Got all pumped up. Started walking to the net," Andre Agassi said.

“It kind of hit him [Tarango] walking to the net, ‘If I call this out. It’s my match.’ He went like this, put his finger up [signaling out] and I started crying," he added.

Agassi did make another interesting revelation, proudly reminiscing on how he beat Tarango in their match a few weeks after the controversial incident.

“We played a few weeks later. Another Southern California tournament. I beat him, 6-0, 7-6," Agassi said.

How did Andre Agassi and Jeff Tarango's final encounter go?

ISPO Munich 2024 - Source: Getty

In their final encounter at the 1998 Miami Open, Andre Agassi beat Jeff Tarango convincingly, winning 6-4, 6-3 in straight sets. Speaking about the clash, Agassi remarked that neither player played their best tennis, but was glad to get through the battle regardless.

“It was just kind of yeoman, hard hat, lunch pail, go to work, get the job done,” Agassi said of the match. “I don’t think great tennis was necessary today. I don’t think Jeff was playing great. I wasn’t.”

In fact, all seven matches against Tarango saw Agassi winning in straight sets, with the eight-time Grand Slam champ going 14-0 in sets against his old rival.