Connors Rips Into Agassi

September 22, 1999 / 6:12 PM EDT / CBS/AP

Jimmy Connors says Andre Agassi doesn't deserve to be mentioned "in the same breath" with him and other tennis greats.

Connors criticized Agassi, who won the U.S. Open this month and returned to No. 1 in the rankings, for wasting his talent for so long before resurrecting his career this year.

In a conference call with British tennis reporters, Connors bristled when asked if Agassi deserved to be linked with Pete Sampras and retired greats like himself, John McEnroe and Bjorn Borg.

"I wouldn't mention his name in the same breath," Connors was quoted as saying in Wednesday's newspapers.

Connors also didn't appreciate suggestions that Agassi had modeled his game after him.

"Imitation is the greatest form of flattery but I think they broke the mold when I finished," he said.

Agassi, who plummeted to No. 141 two years ago, has had a spectacular year. He won the French Open to become only the fifth player to win all four Grand Slam titles. He also reached the final at Wimbledon and swept to another U.S. Open crown.

But Connors, who spent 268 weeks as No. 1, compared with Agassi's current total of 37, is less than impressed.

Andre Agassi is the new No. 1 player in the world.

"For him to be staging a comeback at the age of 29 is not the right thing," Connors said. "There have been too many dips in his career and he hasn't been consistently at the top of his game like Pete Sampras. With his talent, he should never have allowed himself to drop out of the top four or five."

Connors spoke in a call to promote his appearance in a seniors event in London on Dec. 1-5. The field will also include McEnroe, Borg and Yannick Noah.

"If I was paying to go and see a tournament now, including any players in the world, the three names I would want to see are McEnroe, Borg and Connors," he said.

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