Andre Agassi bid farewell to a tournament that helped shape his glorious career, losing to Fernando Gonzalez in the quarter-finals of his final appearance at the Los Angeles ATP event on Friday.
The eight-time Grand Slam winner Agassi was the defending Los Angeles champion, and he also captured the title in 1998, 2001, and 2002. He was runner-up in 1988 and 1999. Gonzalez needed one hour, 53 minutes to win 6-4, 3-6, 7-5 over Agassi, who is retiring after next month's US Open.
"I am at peace with my career," Agassi said. "I feel great about the decision to retire and I look forward to the summer." The 36-year-old American survived three match points in the third set, but couldn't hold serve in the final game as Gonzalez clinched the victory with a backhand winner.
"It was a high standard match," said Agassi, who received a long ovation as he walked off the University of California at Los Angeles courts for the last time. "He stepped it up at the end of the game with some pretty spectacular shots. It is a disappointing loss for me."
Gonzalez, of Chile, won their only other meeting 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7/5) in Washington in 2003. Ironically, Gonzalez helped lower the curtain on another American tennis legend's career. Gonzalez beat Michael Chang 6-3, 7-5, 5-7, 6-4 in the first round of Chang's final match at the 2003 US Open. Chang retired after the Open.
"It is a pleasure and honour for me to play against Andre," said Gonzalez, who turns 26 on Saturday. "He is 10 years older than me, so I grew up watching him play Pete Sampras and Boris Becker. He is still motivated and still competes like he did 15 years ago."
The bronze medallist in singles from the 2004 Athens Olympics advances to the semis where he will face No 8 Dmitry Tursunov of Russia, who won in a walkover over top seed Andy Roddick. The other Saturday semi-final will see sixth seeded Tommy Haas square off against Slovakia's Dominik Hrbaty. "He absolutely murdered some shots," Agassi said of Gonzalez. "He changes the pace well and mixes up his serve a lot.
Agassi, who was playing in just his second quarter-final of the year, announced in June at Wimbledon that he would retire after the US Open, which starts in August. "You never prepare yourself for the emotions of the moment," Agassi said. "It is not just the game you are leaving but it is the people you share the experience with.