With the current suspension of the ATP and WTA Tours, USOpen.org is reliving some of the biggest tennis matches in the tournament's history in photos. In our latest featured match, we look back at the 2006 US Open men's second-round match between Andre Agassi and Marcos Baghdatis. Watch the full match on the US Open YouTube channel.
Andre Agassi played the final tournament of his career at the 2006 US Open, and one of the most memorable matches he played in his two-plus decades in New York came against rising star Marcos Baghdatis, with the 36-year-old tennis icon edging the 21-year-old from Cyprus in a five-set, second-round classic.
Agassi, who had announced his plans to retire after the Open earlier in the year, beat the No. 8 seed, 6-4, 6-4, 3-6, 5-7, 7-5, in nearly four hours of thrilling tennis. The match began in Arthur Ashe Stadium in the night session on Thursday and ended after midnight on Friday.
"You're not guaranteed these moments," Agassi said after the match, "and to feel it out there is something I can keep with me forever."
Here's a look back at this epic battle between the beloved American champion and the charismatic young star, in what ended up being the final victory of the future Hall-of-Famer's career.
Agassi was competing in a record 21st straight US Open in 2006. During that stretch, from 1986-2006, he won two titles (1994, 1999), reached six finals and advanced to 10 semifinals.
Baghdatis, a two-time junior finalist in New York (2002, 2003), was playing in his third US Open main draw in 2006. He qualified into his first Grand Slam tournament at the Open in 2004, reaching the second round before losing to Roger Federer, and then fell in the first round the following year.
Agassi was unseeded for the final tournament of his career and entered the event with an 8-7 record on the year, burdened with a bad back that required cortisone injections.
No. 8 seed Baghdatis was in the midst of a breakthrough season, defeating three Top-10 players en route to the Australian Open final, where he lost to Roger Federer, and reaching the semifinals at Wimbledon, where he fell to Rafael Nadal.
Agassi fended off Romanian Andrei Pavel in four tight sets in his opening match to set up the second-round clash with Baghdatis.
Baghdatis beat German Alexander Waske in straight sets in his opening-round match to move on to Round 2.
The 36-year-old Las Vegas native took a two-set lead and appeared in command of the match, given his 58-0 record at the Open when ahead by that margin.
The Cypriot battled back to take the third set and, although Agassi raced to a 4-0 lead in set four, Baghdatis caught fire, taking seven of the next eight games to level the match at two sets apiece.
Agassi and Baghdatis were locked at 5-all in the fifth, when Agassi fought off four break points to hold serve and then broke in the following game to triumph, 6-4, 6-4, 3-6, 5-7, 7-5.
Baghdatis finished with 86 unforced errors, 39 more than eight-time major champion Agassi.
“You play for those moments,” Agassi said. “Would I have been disappointed if I had lost? Yeah, I would have been disappointed not to come back again. At the same time, how can you be disappointed when it’s all sort of surreal?”
“I just wanted to fight, you know?” Baghdatis said. “Playing Andre in Arthur Ashe, the last thing I want is to just die on the court. I will do anything to win. That’s all. That’s what I did.”
Agassi fell to Benjamin Becker in four sets in his next match, making his victory against Baghdatis the last win of his career. The American star finished his career with a 79-19 overall record in Flushing Meadows.
