What happened after that? Was that the victory you were waiting for to believe that you could win a Grand Slam?
That first taste of winning started growing but the difference was that I came out with different expectations and ambitions. Big turnaround. I was 21.

Amazingly you were number 1 in doubles in the world, I think few people remember that you were a fabulous doubles player, and you really start winning in doubles first.
I always felt that I was a great doubles player but my priority was singles, so I didn't participate in many Grand Slams, it was a way of putting more time on the court and used it to practice my game.

Since your win in Bordeaux, you won 20 Singles Titles, including one Grand Slam (The French), and 33 Doubles Titles, including 2 Grand Slams (US Open, French Open). What a phenomenal career, don’t you think you should be right there in the Hall Of Fame?
I think I had a great career on the ATP Tour but also play Davis Cup from 1978-2000 till age 40, all in all more than 40 ties. If I belong or not on the Hall of Fame is not up to me, and there are not many South Americans on it, but I will wait.

Andres, can you describe your life as a child in Ecuador, and what led you to play tennis?
I lived 5 blocks away from the Guayaquil Tennis Club and my father used to play. Once, he was a runner up in the South American Championships. I started in the Escuelita with Miguel Olvera who was a Davis Cup player at age 9. Love sports especially surf and soccer but played everything else, basketball, volleyball, table tennis. I was very active.

What was your inspiration to become a professional tennis player?
Harry Hopman, the great Aussie coach told me when I was 18 that if I became serious about going pro I could have a chance but I never thought about playing professional till then, when I was 12. I was a ball boy for Guillermo Vilas who was 19 and coming up and that was my first taste of great tennis. He was an inspiration to all of South America but I saw it too far away, I wanted to go to the USA and play college tennis get a degree and then maybe try pro's. Hopman was a big influence in my life.

Do you think you could have reached number 1 in the world?
I played in an era with great champions such as Borg, Vilas, Mac, Jimbo, Lendl and then Mats,
Stefan, Boris, to finish with Pete, Andre and Courier. This doesn't give much space for # 1's.
I became close but the system didn't help either, it did favor to whoever played less and the
biggest tournaments where on carpet or fast courts. Vilas won 2 Grand Slams and 13 more tournaments and was 2nd, so something was wrong but that was the way it was played.

Are you completely satisfied with your career?
I am satisfied with my career but I always wonder if something could have been done differently to improve specially coming from small countries like Ecuador where professional sports are set aside beside soccer. In the 70's players were mostly half pros and it was a difficult task. I was always opening roads and improvising.

Andres, you have a beautiful wife and family, can you tell us about family life?
My family is involved in tennis. Everyone learned how to play and decide if they want to
compete locally. Juan Andres 19, is a freshman at San Diego State for whom he plays. He did play Davis Cup for Ecuador. Emilio 15, is # 1 in Ecuador in 16's. Alejandro 12, Rafaela 10 compete in national tournaments and Manuela 6 is next on line and eager to start. My wife Nena owns Pig and Pork a fast food chain restaurants. Whenever possible we spend time at our beach house in Punta Blanca about 1 1/2 hour from Guayaquil where we either surf, fish or do some archeology research's that help us relax.

What is a typical week with Andres today?
During the week I run the tennis school at the Guayaquil Tennis Club with over 180 kids, own the Challenger Ciudad the Guayaquil, the biggest in Ecuador and run the COSAT circuit for 14's and 16's, a couple of Futures and ITF events and whenever possible still find between 14-18 weeks to play exhibitions or run clinics.

Are you involved at all in Politics in Ecuador?
I am NOT involved in politics.

What are your current and future projects?
I want to contribute to the development of tennis in Ecuador.

Correct me if I am wrong but Colon Nunez was your coach and mentor and you won the Title at the French Open with Pato Rodriguez at your side. Can you share your relationship with those 2 great coaches and friends?
I was with Colon from 81-88, he was always a friend and helped put my head in the game. We worked on strategy and definition of how to play tennis.  We have learned together and some of my best years on the tour were with him. Pato gave my game the maturity and the belief to go for the big prize. I am very thankful to both of them.

When I came on the Tour, you, Borg, and Hans Gildemeister were known to have the biggest forehands on the tour. Do you think you have contributed to the development of that devastating shot?
My forehand was a trademark in my game. I was one of the first to hit the swinging volleys and remember being attacked by the classic players because I made some mistakes of it. But it wasn't easy with the small head rackets jajajaja!!! News reporters don't remember those racquets and have no idea how really difficult it was to play in comparison with today's equipment.

Who is your favorite player to watch today, Male and Female?
I I like to watch Federer anywhere, Henin on clay.

Your record in Davis Cup is impressive, especially at home in Guayaquil. Do you remember the tie against USA, led by Jimmy Arias and Aaron Krickstein in 1986?
I always love playing Davis Cup for Ecuador. Being in front of my home crowd gave me the opportunity to play with the public behind me, and some of my best matches were at home. I loved the pressure of having to win to had a chance to win a tie and perform. To do it was one of the biggest pleasure. I played my 1st match when I was 18 and the last when I was 40. That is 22 years 40 ties and some 80 matches. I am proud of that

Is Pancho Gonzales considered the figure of Tennis in Ecuador?
Yes he is a figure in Ecuador

He was like you born in Guayaquil but chose to become a US Citizen, after getting a Scholarship in the US in 1931. He became number 1 in the world. What was your relationship with him?
He used to play with my dad, and I have a great relationship with him. He even traveled with me for a couple of weeks. He is funny and witty and always have great stories. When was on tour occasionally call him to talk and he was always ready to give advise. I like him a lot

After you, Nicolas Lapenti was the best thing in tennis for Ecuador. He is no longer among the elite players. What is now for the future of tennis in Ecuador?
We have plenty of players with a great future but in countries like ours, money is always the big issue, the change from juniors to pro takes time to adjust and you need to get out of the qualies fast so you can produce enough to keep playing unless you have a sponsor that can give the player the peace of mind to get some pressure off

Back to your career, what were your best moment and your worst?
Best moment was winning Roland Garros and helping Ecuador qualify to the World Group in Davis Cup. Worst moment was losing to Lendl in Davis Cup quarters in Guayaquil, at 3-4 in the 1st set I slipped and pull a tight muscle and had to retire

Your favorite tournaments?
My favorites tournaments are: Roland Garros, Masters at Madison Square Garden and the US Open in New York and Barcelona

The fun side now, you were known as being the surfer from Guayaquil, how did you become passionate about it? Have you tested Californian or Hawaiian waves?
Surfing is a way of life and I enjoyed it since I was 8. I still try to go in the water whenever possible and my oldest son Juan is a good surfer. I did surfed in California but never in Hawaii. I also surfed in Florida, Brasil and Perú

Andres, we played many times against each other. A memorable one at the US Open in 1987 it was an evening match on the Grand Stand, it was like a Davis Cup match with the Haitian crowd on one side and the Ecuadorian crowd on the other, which country was making the most noise?
You were always a dangerous player but Ecuadorian crowds were always more vociferous than Haitians jajajaj!!!

You have played in the Senior Tour, a privilege reserved to a handful of people including you. Do you think it is fair to have reserved this lucrative circuit to such a small group of players?
The senior circuit has some rules and to have access to it you either had to be a winner or a runner up in a Grand Slam event or in Davis Cup.

Do you still play on the Senior Tour?
I have been playing 12 years in the senior circuit and still do it but I am getting old even for senior tennis jajajaja!!!

Andres, ITM and I want to thank you for this exclusive interview. You are a true gentleman and one of the greatest players of all time. All the best to you!
I finally did it, best of luck to you Ronald!