Andre Agassi's 'brash' personality responsibile for growth of tennis in USA, says Pat Rafter

Former World No. 1 Pat Rafter recently gave his thoughts on Andre Agassi's influence as a tennis player and a cultural icon. The Aussie claimed that the eight-time Major piqued the American public's interest in the sport with his "Hollywood" personality while looking back on their rivalry.

Rafter competed on the ATP Tour from 1993 to 2003 and enjoyed a stellar career as a top singles player. The highlights of his time as a pro include winning consecutive titles at the US Open in 1997-98, finishing runner-up at Wimbledon in 2000 and 2001, and spending one week as the World No. 1 in 1999 - which is a special feat considering how Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi had monopolized the men's circuit in that era.

Pat Rafter recently spoke to ATP in a unique feature, where the 52-year-old heaped rich praise on his top rivals Sampras and Agassi. The Aussie was effusive in his praise of the latter, insisting that their matches were always exciting due to their contrasting playing styles.

"I always enjoyed playing Andre [Agassi] because I enjoyed our matchup in styles. I’d chip charge and come to the net and he’d pass me and lob me and do whatever he needed to do to beat me which he did pretty often," Pat Rafter told ATP (via the Tennis Gazette). "I got him a few times, and we got to play each other in Grand Slams and big occasions, which was unreal."

The eleven-time ATP Tour titlist further claimed that the eight-time Major winner "put a new face to tennis" back home with his exciting off-court persona.

"Andre put a new face to tennis in America. That brash, out there personality sort of brought Hollywood to tennis," he added.

Pat Rafter and Andre Agassi faced off 15 times on the pro tour. The American won 10 of those encounters but did suffer his fair share of losses to the Aussie at the Majors.

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Andre Agassi leads Pat Rafter 4-3 in their Grand Slam tournament meetings

Pat Rafter and Andre Agassi greet each other after their 2001 Wimbledon SF clash | Image Source: Getty

Andre Agassi and Pat Rafter met four times at Wimbledon, twice at the Australian Open, and once at the US Open. At SW19, the eight-time Major winner won their first two clashes in 1993 and 1999 but failed to go past the finish line in their back-to-back semifinal matches in 2000-01, losing in five sets on both occasions.

However, Agassi ensured that he defeated Rafter en route to two of his four Australian Open triumphs in 1995 and 2001. Between those years, the Aussie upset the then-unseeded American in the fourth round of the 1997 US Open, where he won his maiden Major title.