"Steffi Graf has her head down, she’s never seen me lose like this" - When Andre Agassi recalled disastrous French Open title defense

Andre Agassi wrote about his forgettable title defense at the 2000 French Open in his autobiography "Open."

The American won his only title at the clay-court Major in 1999. He came back from two sets down to beat Andrei Medvedev in the final and complete the Career Grand Slam.

Agassi entered the 2000 edition of the French Open as the top seed, and started with a 7-6(7), 6-3, 6-4 win over Anthony Dupuis. He then met Slovakia's Karol Kucera in the second round and took the first set, but ended up losing 6-2, 5-7, 1-6, 0-6.

Agassi wrote about the defeat in his book "Open: An Autobiography," saying that he would always regret not being able to relive his 1999 French Open triumph.

"I wanted Roland Garros to stay the same forever. I want everything to stay the same. I hoped to walk on center court every year and conjure up 1999, when life changed. At the news conference after my win against Medvedev I told reporters that I could now leave tennis with no regrets. But one year later I realize that I was wrong. I will always have one regret that I can’t go back and relive the 1999 French Open again and again," Agassi wrote.

The American also spoke about how Kucera always "had his number," adding that the Slovak played superbly throughout the match. Agassi further claimed that while he had blisters all over his right foot, the actual blister was on his brain.

He went on to state that Steffi Graf, who was present at the match, had her head down since she had never seen him lose like that.

"In the second round I face Kucera. He always has my number. The mere sight of me fills him with a quart of adrenaline. Even when I see him in the locker room before our match, he looks as if he’s just been reminiscing about the time he beat me at the 1998 U.S. Open. He comes out playing superbly, running me ragged, and though I’m keeping pace, I develop blisters all over my right foot," Andre Agassi said.

"I limp to the side and ask for an injury timeout. A trainer re-tapes my foot, but the real blister is on my brain. I don’t win another game from that point on. I look up at my box. Stefanie has her head down. She’s never seen me lose like this," he added.

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Andre Agassi won 51 out of 67 matches at the French Open

Andre Agassi and Evonne Goolagong Cawley at the 2024 Australian Open

Andre Agassi played 67 matches at the French Open during his career, winning 51. The 1999 triumph was the American's only one at the clay-court Major. But he did reach the final in both 1990 and 1991, losing to Andres Gomez and Jim Courier respectively.

After Andre Agassi's loss in the 2000 edition of the Paris Major, he reached a hat-trick of quarterfinals in 2001, 2002 and 2003. Agassi endured an opening round exit in 2004 before his final appearance at Roland Garros in 2005.

Seeded sixth at the 2005 edition, the American faced Jarkko Nieminen in the first round. Agassi took a two-sets-to-one lead but the Finn dominated the next couple of sets to win 7-5, 4-6, 6-7(6), 6-1, 6-0.