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Pete Sampras, a tennis king content to stay home
(New York Times)
Updated: 2009-06-29 11:50 Then there were the elements. The weather was so foul that it renewed cries for a retractable roof to be built over Center Court, and indeed, the project was completed this year. Sampras's final against Rafter was delayed by rain and interrupted twice by it. The match took more than six hours to complete and came close to being suspended because of darkness. During one rain delay, Sampras said he asked for another cortisone injection because he could feel the first one wearing off, only to be told it was not an option. "I knew then I was going to have to tough it out," Sampras said. After he did, winning by 6-7 (10), 7-6 (5), 6-4, 6-2, he grew teary. "The record means so much to me," Sampras said then. "Time will tell if it will be broken. I think in the modern game, it could be very difficult."
The next year, Sampras was eliminated from Wimbledon in the fourth round by a teenager with more tools than a Swiss Army knife. The 19-year-old who pulled off the seismic upset was Federer, the No. 15 seed, who prevailed 7-6 (7), 5-7, 6-4, 6-7 (2), 7-5, and pronounced it "the best win of my life." Sampras saw that day a player with the ability to someday surpass his record. "But I didn't know then if he had the whole package: the game, the heart and the mind," he said. In 2003, Federer won his first major title, at Wimbledon. By 2006, Sampras had accepted that he would not hold the record for 33 years, as Emerson had. His reign would be short-lived. "To put up the numbers I did, I knew it was going to take someone who's not just a great player but also willing to give up some of his life, sort of eat, breathe and live the sport," Sampras said. "Roger is willing to sacrifice and be a great champion." Of course Sampras would have liked for his record reign to outlive him. "Absolutely," he said. "But I can honestly say I don't have an issue with Roger passing me. He gets the job done and does it with class." He added, "I won 14, which is 14 more than I ever thought I'd win." One aspect of standing alone at the summit is largely overlooked: the isolation. "It was very lonely," Sampras said. To succeed in the majors, he needed to marshal his energy and concentration. He recalled holing himself up in the house he rented in Wimbledon Village, eating meals prepared for him by his chef, watching rented movies and playing matches over and over in his head.
"It might be a long summer," Sampras said with a chuckle. His children, he said, are not interested in sports camps. They are happy to hit tennis balls, but only if their dad is on the other side of the net. They will hit golf balls as long as Sampras is serving as their caddie (they especially like sand traps, which they treat as sandboxes). Sampras described his boys as homebodies. Ryan, with his dark mop of hair and dark eyes, bears the greater physical resemblance to Sampras; Christian appears to have inherited his temperament. "He is a creature of habit," Sampras said. "He doesn't like change." He added: "Christian's like I was as a kid. He's much more sensitive and reserved." At the house after lunch, Sampras and his wife were trying to persuade Christian to sit still long enough for a photographer to take a few pictures. Christian wriggled out of his clutches. Running down the hall in his stocking feet, he shouted, "I don't want my picture in the newspaper." That, right there, seemed like the perfect snapshot.
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