Andre Agassi lauds Carlos Alcaraz in discussing mental health in sport: "He's got a world on his shoulders"

Andre Agassi reflected on mental health in sports and discussed the pressure placed on Carlos Alcaraz at just 20 years old. The 8-time Grand Slam champion has previously acknowledged that a significant part of his career dealt with external pressures and that he hated being a tennis player for a long time in his career.

The American legend appreciated the progress in the debate regarding the importance of mental health in athletes: "I think anytime that you have an environment that is friendlier to honesty and communication," he said.

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"Sports by definition, it will always have an inherent anchor to it emotionally," he reflected. "I mean, think about what you have to do to turn pro at 16 years old, what you have to deal with every day of your life. You're giving your entire early existence to one entire focus. The ability to be able to have any real balance or avoid any form of PTSD would require—it'd be an anomaly."

Agassi, who married fellow tennis player and 22-time Grand Slam champion Steffi Graf, also commented on world No. 2 Alcaraz, who has already won 2 Grand Slams and spent over 30 weeks as No. 1. Agassi remarked that the Spanish player is the same age as his children, providing him with a point of comparison regarding the tremendous pressure he faces:

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"Look at Alcazar, he's 20 years old. He's two years younger than my son, he's my daughter's age. And it's like, wow, he's got a world on his shoulders. So you can only imagine what his early years are like," he added

"We love cooking together," Agassi revealed. "We love hiking together. We love even grocery shopping together, dividing and conquering. So it's real life. And we're blessed," the former world No. 1 concluded.