Tennis just lost one of its icons on Sunday. Former German player Tommy Haas has indeed formalized, this Monday morning on his Instagram account, the death of Nick Bollettieri, at the age of 91. He was one of the legendary coaches of the circuit, having trained the greatest, such as Andre Agassi, Boris Becker, Monica Seles, Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova. But also the French Mary Pierce, Paul-Henri Mathieu and Tatiana Golovin.
“You were a dreamer and an actor, and a pioneer in our sport, truly one of a kind,” said Tommy Haas, who was also coached by the iconic New Yorker, in his message. On November 20, the daughter of Nick Bollettieri had indicated on social networks that he was about to die.
Even more than his always smiling and tanned face, we will remember that he trained the trifle of ten world numbers 1, via the academy he launched in 1978 in Florida. Nick Bollettieri, who called himself the “Michelangelo of tennis”, was introduced to the Hall of Fame in 2014. Ultimate recognition for one of the major figures in the history of the yellow ball.