Agassi Swings, Graf Retires Hurt

The follow-through was impressive, the end result was not. Andre Agassi dropped his worst point ever when he struck his wife, Steffi Graf, in the face at a charity match.

With 30 grand slam titles between them, Agassi's slip up was unexpected to say the least. The two stars were on court on Sunday at a fundraising event after the US clay court championships in Houston, Texas.

The former Olympic tennis gold medallists were in Houston because Agassi is taking part in a reality TV show, produced by Oprah Winfrey, called the Big Give.

To give their opponents - a doubles team of children - even the semblance of a chance, Agassi was playing left-handed, and holding his wife's hand with his right hand. Perhaps it was his legendary enthusiasm for the game that carried him away, causing him to swing his racket straight into his wife's face. A crowd of several thousand watched as the racket traversed its arc and struck her square on the lip, raising blood and forcing her to quit the court.

At least the incident gave one fan a thrill. Stefan Krenzer had just donated $70,000 to the fundraising effort on behalf of a rundown school in the Texan town of La Marque, in return for a tennis lesson from Agassi and Graf.

In the end, his credentials as a doctor found him giving Graf three stitches to the lip, giving him rather closer exposure to the star couple than he had bid for or intended.

"She's OK," Agassi said later of his wife. "It was an unfortunate accident."

Agassi retired last year at the US Open, having won eight grand slam titles. Graf retired in 1999 with 22 grand slam titles. The couple have two children and live in Las Vegas.