These days, married Hall of Fame tennis stars Steffi Graf and Andre Agassi pass up tennis for pickleball, which they play at least three times a week. Their interest in the sport began during the pandemic and has grown rapidly ever since.
“We like that pickleball is a community driven sport, “ Agassi tells PEOPLE Saturday at The Breakers Palm Beach during a “Grand Slam Weekend” to celebrate the iconic resort’s new $12 million, 16-court racquet sports complex, which includes 12 tennis courts, two pickleball courts, and two padel courts.
“People who play pickleball improve their game quickly. While all types of sports lovers are playing, the age keeps getting younger.”
Pickleball, a game where players use paddles to hit a perforated plastic ball over a net, offered Graf, 55, and Agassi, 54, a new sport to conquer with fewer chances for injury than tennis.
“Andre still plays tennis, but I don’t much anymore,” Graf, winner of 22 Grand Slam titles during her tennis career, tells PEOPLE of their Las Vegas-based lifestyle. “We really liked learning a new sport during the pandemic and meeting new friends through pickleball.”
Their one rule, though? “We don’t play each other. We prefer to be on the same side of the court.”
In February, the couple won the Pickleball Slam, one of the premier events in pickleball broadcast on ESPN. Now they want more people to play and grow to love the sport as much as they do.
