Andre Agassi Says His and Steffi Graf’s Children Understand Their Fame Is ‘Not all That’ (Exclusive)

Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf may be the ultimate tennis couple, but to their kids, they’re just old mom and dad.

Jaden Gil Agassi, 22, and Jaz Elle Agassi, 20, have parents with 30 Grand Slam titles, so Andre says he understands why people think they had a moment where they realized mom and dad were stars.

“I can imagine how someone from the outside looks at it,” Agassi, 53, told PEOPLE exclusively at a press conference for Netflix Slam tennis match in Las Vegas on Saturday. “Somehow there will come a time when they will say, ‘These are my parents.'”

But the tennis legend says that this did not actually happen, because Jaden and Jaz always saw Andrea and Graf (54) as their parents, first and foremost.

“When people approach us in stores, [Jaden and Jaz] they were like, ‘What about these people?’ So you go through a whole phase where they’re like, ‘Well, this doesn’t make sense for people to come forward like there’s a big deal. And then they start to agree why it’s a big deal,” he explains.

Andre Agassi speaks on stage during the Netflix Slam media availability event at Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino on March 2, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Chris Unger/Getty

Andre Agassi lovingly kisses a photo of his wife Steffi Graf in Sweet Tribute at the Australian Open

Still, as people paid attention to the two tennis stars, he says it helped his children understand the difference between how fame is perceived and how their lives are.

“They’re starting to realize that they’re looking behind the curtain of The Wizard of Oz and realizing that it’s not all that,” says Andre. “So there’s a healthy balance that’s inevitable throughout the process.”

Although Andre was one of the greats of his time, he admires the modern game of tennis and its players, including Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz, who play Sunday in Netflix Slam at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas.

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“Now when you really talk about these guys from a speed standpoint, from a spin standpoint, from a technology standpoint, athleticism, I mean the science behind their training, I think they change the geometry of the game and one of the things I’ve always counted on is my geometry.” , he says.

“There’s a lot of guys I’d say I could fight and I’d love this challenge, but there’s so many I’d say no thank you. I have no chance against them.”

Are Nadal and Alcaraz two players against whom he would have no chance? “Yes, they are,” he says.

Rafael Nadal, Andre Agassi and Carlos Alcaraz attend the Netflix Slam Media Availability Event at Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino on March 2, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Chris Unger/Getty

Andre Agassi reveals his most prized possession is a necklace his son made for him: ‘He never took it off’

Meanwhile, when it comes to whether the former player misses the training regime involved in playing at the top professional level, Andre is reflective.

“I miss having such a defined goal that’s so important that the rest of your day becomes just an expression of it. So to me, that’s gold, right? Gold is caring about something so much that nothing else feels like discipline. It just feels like opportunity to get what you really want,” he says, adding, “but then you have other expressions of that as you get older.”

Indeed, over time, he found that getting older changed his perspective and helped him realize what he was missing about tennis.

“So also remember and think to yourself, ‘I can’t believe what I’ve been through.’ And that’s an inevitable part,” he says, adding, “But really, if there’s one thing I miss in the game, it’s knowing your body so well that you’ve actually driven it like a Ferrari at 3,900 rpm.”

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Source: HIS Education