Taiwanese tennis player Lu Yen-hsun (盧彥勳) will team up with US tennis veteran Andre Agassi to play against retired Russian tennis player Marat Safin and Taiwanese player Jimmy Wang (王宇佐) in the “Rise of the Legends” all-star doubles game at the Taipei Arena tonight.
Aside from the much--anticipated rematch between two former grand-slam players — Agassi and Safin — tennis fans will also see Lu play in a singles match against Mikhail Youzhny, who is ranked No. 10 in the world.
The five players made a joint appearance at a pre-game press conference yesterday, in which Agassi was the center of attention.
PHOTO: AFP
“Coming back here now, I am so pleased to see all these years the level of commitment to tennis [remained unchanged] and sports in general are growing dramatically in this country, with Lu and so many accomplishments,” said Agassi, who visited Taiwan in both 1986 and 1988. “Hopefully we can bring some good games of tennis to excite more young people in the community in Taiwan.”
Asked about his comments about other tennis players in his book Open: An Autobiography, Agassi said he wanted to walk his readers through his life as seen through his own lens and learning curve.
“I want to turn an honest lens on myself. Some might say I was hard on some people, but I think everybody can say I was actually hardest on myself,” he said.
Asked about how he viewed the performances of Roger -Federer and Rafael Nadal this year, he said he thought Nadal would top Federer because the former is 24 years old.
“You got two of the best players ever played in the same generation and it is a rivalry we never see in our sport,” he said. “Nadal is a 24-year-old and he is coming out with a whole lot of confidence and -athleticism. It is going to be hard, but it would not be the first time that Federer impressed me or surprised me. He is done surprising me, but he continually impresses me.”
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