Samprasfanz

Sampras says Federer worthy of his record for most Grand Slam career titles

LONDON — Pete Sampras remains confident that Roger Federer will beat his record for most career Grand Slam singles titles.

In fact, Sampras plans to be sitting among Federer’s most vocal supporters when he does win a 15th career major – even if that requires a lengthy flight to Melbourne, Australia.

Federer has 12 Grand Slam titles, two behind Sampras’ record.

If Federer won a sixth straight Wimbledon title next month and a fifth consecutive U.S. Open title in September, he would be aiming for No. 15 at the Australian Open in January.

“There is a burning desire in Roger to break my record, and when he does it I would like to be there,” Sampras said Thursday. “I said to Roger, ‘Just make sure it’s in New York or London. Australia is a long way to go. (But) if it worked out like that, I would fly there.’

“I would just let him enjoy it as his moment but (I would want to be there) just to respect the record and what he was able to do and to just say, ‘Congratulations.”‘

Despite Federer’s loss to No. 2-ranked Rafael Nadal in the French Open final, Sampras is confident the Swiss star will bounce back at the All England Club.

“He’s created this monster of winning so many tournaments and so many majors and doing it with ease,” Sampras said in Sao Paulo, Brazil. “As great as Roger is, he’s going to have his losses and his bad days. It’s just human nature to go through some lulls.”

That doesn’t mean he has lost his edge, Sampras said.

“In the majors, he’s still the guy that’s most likely to win them,” Sampras said. “He’s lost a couple and, if anything, that’ll do him some good. It’ll get him going and fired up. He’ll be just fine.”

The 36-year-old Sampras was speaking from BlackRock Tour of Champions, where he makes his debut Thursday in Brazil against Thomas Muster.

But Sampras will find it hard not thinking of Wimbledon, which begins Monday, and where he captured half of his career majors.

“I think if I were to step back on that court at Wimbledon it would bring up a lot of emotion,” Sampras said. “Just because of what the place meant to me and how big it was to the sport of tennis.”

Schedule of Play

June 19: Pete Sampras vs. Fernando Meligeni (6-3, 4-6, 10-6 TB)

Whom did you enjoy playing against the most? Francis Eleazar HOFFMAN ESTATES, ILL.

Andre Agassi was my rival in the ’90s, and I think as we got older we sort of transcended the game. He was probably the best player I ever played over my career. There’s a list of players that were tough, but Andre, certainly, he was the most unique.

Did a time come when you felt you had had enough of competitive tennis? Nico Neethling RUSTENBURG, SOUTH AFRICA

After I went through two years of not winning an event, what kept me going was winning one more major. Once I won that last U.S. Open, I spent the next six months trying to figure out what was next. Slowly my passion for the sport just vanished. I had nothing left to prove.

How do you feel about retiring from your career at the same age that others fully engage in theirs? Vince Jordan, LOS ANGELES

It’s not easy to retire at 31. In one respect I was glad I was done. But after a few years of having fun, I got a little restless. When you’re 33, 34, and you don’t have a focus, you can get kind of lost. As a man, you feel a little bit unfulfilled.

Do you think it unfair that others got more attention based on their off-the-court antics? Matthew Dale, AUSTIN, TEXAS

There are some players who add a bit more just to get more p.r. I wasn’t about that. My major goal was to hold up that trophy at the end, and I didn’t want anything to get in the way of that. I kept it pretty quiet. I kept it simple.

Over your career, what was the most difficult situation you experienced? Haydee Serona, MANILA

Probably my last couple years on tour. I wasn’t playing well, and I had just gotten married, and the press was on my wife about it–that [I was losing] because I married her. You can attack me all you want, but don’t bring my wife into it.

Have you given any thought to becoming a commentator? Jonathan Racasa WEST COVINA, CALIF.

I’ve been asked to do a little commentating. It’s not something that’s in my blood. John McEnroe does a great job, and I think he’s got that pretty much honed. I’ve thought about it but not realistically.

Whom do you consider to be the next superstar of men’s tennis? Jeff Mollerup, MEMPHIS, TENN.

Obviously right now we have Roger Federer. After him, you look at Rafael Nadal, who’s only 22, Novak Djokovic, who’s 21. Those two guys are going to carry the torch when Roger’s done.

Has the new racquet and string technology helped or hurt the modern game? Faith Ginsberg, LOS ANGELES

It’s obviously helped guys hit the ball harder, with a lot more spin and a lot more control, than the racquets I played with. We’ve maybe lost a bit of finesse in the game. No one’s looking to come in and volley.

You’ve played on the world’s best tennis courts. Which was your favorite? Jen Reinhard, SAN FRANCISCO

Centre Court of Wimbledon. Just love the atmosphere, love the intimacy of it. It had a huge effect on me as a kid seeing that court on TV. Not to disrespect the U.S. Open and the French, but that one is the most unique. It hasn’t changed in a hundred years.

As the Olympic torch generates much political heat, do you think athletes should take positions on major world issues? E.D. Mathew MONROVIA, LIBERIA

I don’t personally. It’s not my place to tell you whom to vote for, to take any political stand, to tell you what religion to believe in. I’m an athlete. I can influence certain things, but when I see other athletes and celebrities telling you whom to vote for, I actually get a bit offended.

Source: Time.com

Pete Sampras has released his autobiography called “A Champion’s Mind – Lessons from a Life in Tennis”.

Product Description (from Amazon)
Pete Sampras is arguably the greatest tennis player ever, a man whose hard-nosed work ethic led to an unprecedented number one world ranking for 286 weeks, and whose prodigious talent made possible a record-setting fourteen Grand Slam titles. While his more vocal rivals sometimes grabbed the headlines, Pete always preferred to let his racket do the talking.

Until now.

In A Champion’s Mind, the tennis great who so often exhibited visible discomfort with letting people “inside his head” finally opens up. An athletic prodigy, Pete resolved from his earliest playing days never to let anything get in the way of his love for the game. But while this single-minded determination led to tennis domination, success didn’t come without a price. The constant pressure of competing on the world’s biggest stage—in the unblinking eye of a media machine hungry for more than mere athletic greatness—took its toll.

Here for the first time Pete speaks freely about what it was like to possess what he calls “the Gift.” He writes about the personal trials he faced—including the death of a longtime coach and confidant—and the struggles he gutted his way through while being seemingly on top of the world. Among the book’s most riveting scenes are an early devastating loss to Stefan Edberg that led Pete to make a monastic commitment to delivering on his natural talent; a grueling, four-hour-plus match against Alex Corretja during which Pete became seriously ill; fierce on-court battles with rival and friend Andre Agassi; and the triumphant last match of Pete’s career at the finals of the 2002 U.S. Open.

In A Champion’s Mind, one of the most revered, successful, and intensely private players in the history of tennis offers an intimate look at the life of an elite athlete.

Here are some comments from tennis players and sportswriters.

“Consider this book Sampras’ 15th Grand Slam. A thoroughly compelling read that–apart from retracing a gilded sport career–really probes the ‘hard drive’ of a champion. It’s as if all the emotion and insight that Sampras sometimes seemed reluctant to express during his playing days comes spilling forth.”
—Jon Wertheim, Senior Writer, Sports Illustrated and SI.com

“As the title says, this is a remarkable look into a champion’s mind, and maybe one of the best tennis memoirs ever. Pete captures the pressure a player feels once he’s reached the top. He puts us next to him on the court, and we get a clear sense of what made him extraordinary: he was supremely determined, dedicated to learning the strengths and weaknesses of his opponents, and committed to never ever yielding a point easily. Pete wrote this book the way he plays tennis: full-out.”
—Rod Laver

“Even playing at a high level, it’s hard to know what the experience of winning–and trying to stay on top–is like for another competitor. We all react so differently to pressure, to the glow of the spotlight. It is brutally hard to stay grounded, and yet this wonderfully candid book shows that it was Pete’s rare ability to compartmentalize and draw strength from his family that allowed him to reach the sport’s pinnacle. Whether championships are in your past or just live in your dreams, you’ll learn a lot from Pete’s story.”
—Monica Seles

“Pete Sampras was always able to rise to the occasion, winning so many big matches at the biggest events. This book provides the reader a glimpse into Pete’s remarkable career and how he was able attain his vision of being the best player in the world. We can all benefit from the insight he offers.”
—Roger Federer

USA Today

Throughout his record-setting career, Pete Sampras revealed himself only in fragments as he adhered to a “disciplined quest to accumulate Grand Slam titles,” he writes in his new memoir, A Champion’s Mind (Crown