"Little did Andre Agassi know he was in the presence of one of the greatest legends" - Tennis fans recall Rafael Nadal's Wimbledon clash with American

Andre Agassi's final Wimbledon appearance came in 2006, 14 years after his maiden title at SW19. Seeded No. 25 at the time, the former World No. 1 downed Boris Pasanski and Andreas Seppi in the first two rounds to set up a third-round clash against second seed Rafael Nadal.

In the clash of generations, it was a rather easy victory for the Spaniard, as he cruised to a 7-6(5), 6-2, 6-4 win in three sets to reach the fourth round.

With the 2023 edition of Wimbledon just around the corner, the tournament's official Twitter and YouTube handles reshared highlights of the encounter. Tennis fans were quick to notice just how physical 20-year-old Nadal looked at the time, with one user pointing out that he made Agassi look "diminutive" despite their meager height difference.

"Watching a couple of minutes of this this I'm surprised by how diminutive Agassi looks. He's shorter than Nadal by 5cm, but it seems more."

"Rafa was making Wimby finals at 20... His f**king body ffs," another fan expressed a similar sentiment.

"This was a proper clash of the generations," one user tweeted.

Here are a few more reactions from fans:

Screengrab from YouTube comments

Screengrab from YouTube comments

---

Andre Agassi ended his career without ever beating Rafael Nadal

Off Court At The 2019 Australian Open

2006 was also Andre Agassi's final year on the ATP Tour, as he hung up his racquet with a final hurrah at the US Open in front of his home fans. With the twilight of his career coinciding with the rise of Nadal's, Agassi ended up without ever scoring a win against the 22-time Grand Slam champion.

Prior to their Wimbledon clash, the duo had met in the final of the 2005 Canadian Open, where Nadal prevailed 6-3, 4-6, 6-2 in three sets to win his ninth title of the season.

"It's easy to see why he's won so many matches. He's just a great mover on the court and he gets good power from stretched positions, so you're never sure if you have control of a point," Andre Agassi said of Nadal afterwards.

"When you're 18, 19 years old you're eager and all you're thinking about is really the next point. I recognise that in Nadal. He has a real sense of professionalism when it comes to his environment, but he's out there trying to win the next point every time,” he added.