| It all started when a small kid from California found an old tennis racquet in his basement and started hitting a tennis ball off of a garage door. When the shots began to make dents in the door, they all knew this kid was something special.
Pete Sampras started playing tennis young and makes no plans to stop anytime soon. The man who has a calm demeanor, boyish shyness and the looks of a star proves again and again what so many players, critics and fans can't deny: he can win, and always does. In 1990, when Sampras was only 19 years old and seeded twelfth in the U.S. Open, he slammed his way into the finals and became the youngest man to win the tournament. And we all knew after that first Grand Slam victory there would be no looking back. Over the years, the quiet giant has gone on to win 13 more Grand Slams: 7 Wimbledons, four more U.S. Opens, and two Australian Opens. Sampras's most beloved titles have come on the grasses of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. In 1993, he won his first Wimbledon title, and since that year up to 2000, has gotten to and won in every final, except for a quarterfinal defeat by Richard Krajicek in 1996. He is the winningest man at Wimbledon in the Open Era, tying the all time record of seven titles that was set in the late 1800's. The historic grounds of Wimbledon and the intimate Centre Court has become a home to Sampras, a "cathedral" as he once said. His undeniably flawless grass-court tennis game has made him the best tennis player of his time, and he will undoubtedly go down in the history books as the greatest.
Pete Sampras is one of the last classic serve-volley players, possesses the most effective and powerful serves on tour, and handles himself in a way that could only be described as gentlemanly and reserved. On the court, he lets his racquet do the talking. He does his job. He goes on the court to win a match, not to impress the crowds. He enters tournaments to win them. And when he wins them, as he so often does, his posture gets a little straighter, his eyes get a little brighter and a shy, timid smile of pleasure spreads across his face. It is a truly beautiful moment to watch history be made. And with every new win, every new championship title, history books are being rewritten to tell the story of one Pete Sampras. |
USA