Samprasfanz

(February 28, 2006, Howard fendrich, Associated Press)All those comparisons between Roger Federer and Pete Sampras are right on the mark. Sampras himself says so.

“They’re all very valid: Not only is he winning majors, but the way he’s winning them – with pretty much ease. He’s pretty much the favorite in every major for the rest of his career,” Sampras said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press.

“Clearly, he’s head and shoulders above the rest. I don’t see anyone pushing him over the next three or four years.”

Sampras knows his record of 14 Grand Slam tournament titles could very well be threatened by Federer, who has seven so far. Time for the 34-year-old Sampras to come out of retirement and try to add to his total?

Not quite.

Sampras is returning to the tennis court, though, signing up for the World Team Tennis Pro League more than three years after his last match.

“This is more about just getting myself a little busier and focused on something I used to be good at,” he said ahead of Wednesday’s announcement by the league. “It’s time this year to do a little more. Last year, I was kind of floating along.”

While it’s tough for him to watch Wimbledon, where he won seven championships, Sampras keeps tabs on the game.

And he’s impressed by the top-ranked Federer.

“He moves great, does everything very well. He’s gotten to a point that when he’s not at his best, he’s finding ways to win, and that separates him from the rest,” Sampras said, a moment before making sure to bolster his own credentials a tad.

“There are less great players today than there was when I was playing,” he continued. “I just see him carrying on with what he’s been doing. He’s got the whole package. He doesn’t have any holes in his game.”

Federer has won Wimbledon three years in a row, and he’s won the past three majors: Wimbledon, the U.S. Open and the Australian Open. The Swiss star heads to the French Open in May with a chance to complete a Grand Slam, albeit not in a calendar year.

The French Open is the only major Federer hasn’t won