“I tell her how unhappy I’ve been…I tell her about the depression” – When Steffi graf’s husband, Andre Agassi revealed his divorce phone call with ex-wife Brooke Shields
Tennis legend Andre Agassi once shared the story of an “embarrassing” divorce phone conversation he had with his ex-wife and renowned actor Brooke Shields. Agassi and Shields were a power couple in the 90s. The duo met during a tennis match in 1993 and hit it off. They stayed in touch afterwards and went on their first date shortly.
In 1996, Shields and Agassi got engaged. They then exchanged vows in a dream wedding ceremony at St. John’s Episcopal Chapel in Monterey, California, a year later.However, their marriage was short-lived, lasting only two years before they divorced in 1999. While the exact reason for their separation remains unknown, Shields mentioned in interviews that her ex-husband was controlling.
She also revealed that he became upset over one of her cameo roles in F.R.I.E.N.D.S and expressed his anger by damaging his trophy case. Additionally, Agassi struggled with a crystal meth addiction, which he developed shortly before marrying Shields.In his autobiography ‘Open,’ published in 2009, Andre Agassi disclosed an “embarrassing” phone call he had with Brooke Shields before their divorce, where he attempted to reconcile their relationship.
“I phone. I know you said three weeks, but I need to talk to you. I think we should meet, I think we need to be working through these things together. ‘Oh Andre,’ she says. I wait. ‘Oh Andre,’ she says again. ‘You don’t understand. You just don’t get it. This isn’t about us—this is about you individually and me individually’,” Agassi wrote.
The eight-time Grand Slam champion also expressed regret and offered apologies for the state their relationship had deteriorated to.
“I tell her she’s right, I don’t understand. I tell her I don’t see how we got here. I tell her how unhappy I’ve been for so long. I tell her I’m sorry that we’ve grown distant, that I’ve grown cold. I tell her about the whirl, the constant whirl, the centrifugal force of this f**ked-up tennis life. I tell her that I haven’t known who I am for the longest time, maybe ever,” Agassi continued.
“I tell her about the search for a self, the endless monologue in my head, the depression. I tell her everything in my heart, and it all comes out halting, clumsy, inarticulate. It’s embarrassing, but necessary, because I don’t want to lose her, I’ve had enough losing, and I know if I’m honest she’ll give me a second chance,” he added.
According to Andre Agassi, Brooke Shields told him that while she felt “sorry” for his suffering, she couldn’t fix him; he needed to take responsibility for that himself.
“She says that she’s sorry I’m suffering, but she can’t solve it. She can’t fix me. I need to fix myself. By myself. Listening to the dial tone, I feel resigned, calm. The phone call now seems like the brief, curt handshake at the net between two mismatched opponents,” Agassi wrote.
Andre Agassi and Brooke Shields are now happily married to other people