"I've never seen someone transform themselves like Andre" - Todd Martin on Andre Agassi's incredible turnaround in the second half of his career

Andre Agassi's tennis career was a story of two halves that were starkly different from one another. After a period of not quite living up to his full potential, Agassi turned things around to eventually be regarded as one of the all-time greats. Todd Martin recently reflected on Agassi's career, highlighting that his fellow American's transformation was like none other.

After winning just one Grand Slam title in his first eight years since turning pro, Andre Agassi won seven Majors in his last 11 seasons. He also won the gold medal at the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games.

Two-time Grand Slam singles finalist Todd Martin explained how Agassi's transformation came to be. Speaking on a recent episode of the Tennis Channel Inside-In podcast, Martin highlighted how Agassi let go of many insecurities and replaced them with a high amount of self-belief.

"The second half of Andre's career when he was quite focused, I've never seen someone transform themselves like Andre," Todd Martin said.

"He shed so many of what were probably insecurities about himself and his game, and what it resulted in was a tremendously high level of self-belief. When I walked out on the court with them, I had a sense of how much self-belief he had," he added.

Martin also shed light on Pete Sampras' legacy. While Agassi's confidence helped him win a lot in the latter stages of his career, it was found wanting against Sampras, feels Martin. The 1999 US Open finalist highlighted that Sampras's self-belief was second to none.

"When I watched him (Andre Agassi) walk out on the court with Pete, maybe I didn't see that self-belief. When Pete walked out on the court against anybody, that guy knows he's going to win. He didn't always win, but that guy knows he's going to win," Martin expressed.

"Pete Sampras looked relaxed, Andre Agassi looked talented and flashy" - Todd Martin

Off Court At The 2019 Australian Open

Todd Martin further spoke about his experience while playing against the likes of his fellow Americans in Andre Agassi, Pete Sampras, and Jim Courier, and watching their careers from close quarters. The former singles World No. 4 said that Courier always seemed highly determined, while Sampras was always calm and relaxed. Meanwhile, Agassi's talent and flashiness in his approach and personality were quite apparent.

"There was a tremendous amount of self-belief and it didn't always reveal itself as self-belief. Jim looked determined, Pete looked relaxed, Andre looked talented and flashy," Martin stated.

Even during the peak years of his tennis career, Agassi took up philanthropic work, starting the Andre Agassi Foundation for Education in 1994. He recently revealed that their work has resulted in the opening of a 130th school through the Turner-Agassi Charter School Facilities Fund.