TENNIS : Agassi, Controversy Seem to Go Together

There were two upsets in men’s tennis last week at Indian Wells. In one, Andre Agassi defeated Boris Becker. In the other, an entire day passed before Agassi caused a controversy. Hey, what took him so long?

Agassi, who absolutely vacuums up trouble, managed to prove once again that he is the most perplexing figure in men’s tennis.

Although he studiously avoids taking it to grass, Agassi’s game keeps improving. At 19, there may be no one better at returning serve or taking the ball early--hitting ground strokes while the ball is on the rise.

Yet at the same time, Agassi’s penchant for stirring up controversy has never been more pronounced. Usually, Davis Cup is involved.

If it isn’t catching a ball served in a match in Argentina, then he’s claiming in Ft. Myers, Fla., that he doesn’t even “know how to spell coup ,” when there has been one that very day in Paraguay. If Agassi isn’t calling his match with West German Carl-Uwe Steeb “a gimme” then he’s losing that same match with an effort so poor, some say he gave up.

But as brilliant as Agassi’s tennis can be is how dreadful his behavior often is, and he plummeted to new depths last week in yet another Davis Cup controversy.

Agassi accepted U.S. captain Tom Gorman’s invitation to play against Czechoslovakia. The team was announced. Then Agassi pulled out, saying he changed his mind. Gorman said he questioned Agassi’s commitment to Davis Cup. Agassi criticized Gorman as weak and ineffective.

Aaron Krickstein, named by Gorman as a replacement, reflected on Agassi’s change of heart.

“A lot of people think what he did was pretty gutless,” Krickstein said.

Some of Agassi’s complaints about Gorman were sort of hard to follow, although a couple of his gripes were that Gorman wouldn’t allow Agassi to go to the movies with his friends or have dinner with them. Few may have realized Gorman could be so cruel.

Agassi also complained that Gorman was unfairly separating him from his entourage, which includes brother Phil, coach Nick Bollettieri, agent Bill Shelton, a hitting partner, a bodyguard and assorted buddies from Las Vegas. There is a growing number of people who believe Agassi would be better served if he did not rely so heavily on the advice of others.

“I think he should make more of his own decisions,” said Brad Gilbert, who joins Krickstein, Rick Leach and Jim Pugh for the match against Czechoslovakia. “And as for everything he said about Tom, just remember Agassi’s still just 19 and he’s going to say some things.”

Gorman, who said during the turmoil that he wanted to open the lines of communication to Agassi, still has not spoken to him.

More Andre: When he reneged on his agreement to play Davis Cup, Agassi cited his schedule, saying he needed three weeks off after playing at Key Biscayne, Fla. By contrast, Krickstein and Gilbert are playing at Key Biscayne, Prague, Orlando and then Tokyo.

Agent Shelton said Agassi would play “special events” during his three weeks off. In one of them, on April 7 at the Forum, he will play Andrei Chesnokov as part of the Forum Tennis Challenge series.

Grass root movement: At Wimbledon, the All England Club is thinking the unthinkable. John Curry, club chairman for only three months, is considering changing the dates of Wimbledon.

Being pondered is delaying the start of the tournament for a week, leaving three weeks between the French Open and Wimbledon.

Players have long maintained that there is not enough time to adjust from playing on slow clay courts to the fast grass courts of Wimbledon. This year’s All England Championships begin June 25. The French Open ends June 11 in Paris. Both Grand Slam events last two weeks.

Curry told the Associated Press that Wimbledon’s playing dates could be altered only if the Assn. of Tennis Professionals and the Women’s International Tennis Assn. propose such a change. The soonest there could be new dates for Wimbledon is 1992, Curry said.

Mats’ spot: Mats Wilander pulled out of the Lipton International Players Championship in Key Biscayne and is taking at least a month off from tennis.

After winning three of the four Grand Slam tournaments and taking over the No. 1 ranking in 1988, Wilander did not win a tournament last year and has dropped out to No. 11. He lost his last match, a first-rounder at Indian Wells, when he was upset by Swedish countryman Jan Gunnarsson, 7-6 (7-4), 6-4.

“I was only physically present on the court,” Wilander told Per Yng of the Goteborgs Posten, who is writing a book about Wilander.

“Sometimes I believe I give up without giving my best,” Wilander said. “But if I don’t give a 100% effort, I won’t know how really bad I am.”

Hired hand: Krickstein, who will receive an appearance fee, has agreed to defend his Volvo/Los Angeles title July 30-Aug. 5 at UCLA.

The event, downgraded on the IBM/ATP tour, has no top 10 players designated to play it, so under the rules, promoter Bob Kramer and sponsor Volvo can legally offer appearance fees to attract big-name players, such as Krickstein.

Kramer said the Volvo/Los Angeles tournament has decided upon ground rules for offering appearance fees--to the defending champion, U.S. Davis Cup players and Grand Slam winners.