Pete Determined to Regain Form
February 6, 2002
Pete Sampras is on an uncompromising mission to revive his game and name, to cement his place in history. The expected graceful exit is on hold.
As the 30-year-old prepares for Davis Cup duties this weekend, he refuses to let others write the conclusion to his record-breaking career. He does not want sympathy, pity or best wishes just a little respect.
But after a disappointing 2001 season, with no Grand Slam titles, Sampras realizes he will have to earn that respect again.
"I made it look so easy on court all those years," said Sampras, who'll lead the USA against Slovakia in Oklahoma City.
"No one realized how hard I had to work. No one realized how much I had to put into it. They underestimated my intensity, but I guess they are seeing my intensity now."
For the majority of his 14-year career, most has gone Sampras' way. Blessed with extraordinary talent, he rewrote the history books by holding the No. 1 ranking for six consecutive years. His 63 titles, including 13 Grand Slams, stand ahead of any active player today. And he remains the sport's leader in career prize money with $42.1 million.
Despite this distinguished record, Sampras is not ready to turn over the reins to the Marat Safins, Lleyton Hewitts and Andy Roddicks of the game, despite early-round exits to those rising stars last year.
"Pete can unequivocally get back up there and win a couple slams," former No. 1 Jim Courier said. "He is such a gifted athlete, he could rely on his talent early on and coast a bit. But at 30, the body can decelerate, and he has to work harder to stay in shape. ... He's really close."
Still, after a fourth-round loss to Safin at the recent Australian Open, many wondered if Sampras had enough left to overtake his younger, stronger successors. He has not won a tour title since Wimbledon 2000 and dropped to his lowest ranking in 12 years by finishing 2001 at No. 10.
"Maybe a year ago, Pete wasn't fully into it and not the same guy he was early on," said his older brother, Gus, vice president of IMG tennis. "But Pete has been working harder than I've ever seen him the last few months. He knows it comes down to purely what he puts into it."
Sampras' subpar year led to speculation about his future as balancing his personal and professional lives became more complicated. His title drought began with his whirlwind engagement to actress Bridgette Wilson in the summer of 2000; they married that September.
"Marriage probably was going to ruin his tennis," said John McEnroe, who was married to actress Tatum O'Neil before divorcing and marrying singer Patti Smythe. "He hasn't been able to really play (well) since he got married."
Sampras, who recently bought an $8.5 million estate in Beverly Hills, bristled at that. "Marrying Bridgette was the best thing that ever happened to me. Now, I have good balance and stability in my life. Maybe when I was younger it was good to be tunnel-visioned, but I'm at a different place now."
It is a crossroads already met by his major rival through the 1990s, Andre Agassi. As Sampras gathers all resources for "one more hard push," Agassi seems more content at home with his wife, Steffi Graf, and baby Jaden Gil and his multifaceted off-court businesses.
After stewing over his tennis for the first six months of 2001, Sampras severed long-term ties with coach Paul Annacone, clothing endorser Nike and manager Jeff Schwartz. Such a shakeup seemed uncharacteristic of a man who once mirrored his career after legendary sportsman Rod Laver.
The upheaval revealed an edgier, more complicated competitor.
"It's a new and more open Pete Sampras," his brother said. "He has always had the fire in him from when he was a child, but he always was able to keep it within, not show it. Now, he is letting it go and letting people know how he feels about things. The stuff last year about people writing him off got to him. It made him angry and now he is using it as motivation for this year. He tired of hearing it all and wants to put in his two cents on things."
Insulted by Nike's multimillion, multiyear renewal offer, Sampras phoned Nike CEO Phil Knight to debate the deal but did little to coax an improved offer. Sampras also threatened to leave his management group, Artists Management Group (AMG), but acquiesced after CEO Michael Ovitz guaranteed devising a new marketing strategy.
And despite their friendship, Sampras never minced words in replacing Annacone with Tom Gullikson, the twin brother of his former coach, Tim, who died of brain cancer in 1996.
"Pete is Pete, and we are still very good friends," said Annacone, who is now managing director of the U.S. Tennis Association's high performance program. "When these changes caused a little controversy it was funny when Pete told the press, 'First you tell me I'm boring and now you criticize me for showing a little personality.' "
Sampras offered no apologies for his decisions, only thoughtful rationale for the moves.
"I don't look at this as big changes, just things I had to do to help my tennis," Sampras said. "I asked Tom to help out because I wanted a new energy and fresh look on my game. I'm happy right now with what Michael (Ovitz) is doing to form a big picture for me off court.
"The Nike thing was tough. In the end, the bottom line is money, and I didn't think that they were offering enough. But it was more principle than anything. I'd been with them a long while and accomplished a lot, and I felt the deal should have been better."
While Nike officials feel their offer is more than reasonable in such a sagging economy, the split left Sampras searching for a seamstress to sew American flags over the Nike logos on his apparel. "That was my idea," he said. "I found a lady to sew the flags and got it done."
Already Sampras has partnered with billionaire sports mogul Philip Anschutz to build a sports training facility in Carson, Calif. Along with elite programs in soccer, track and field, and conditioning, the $125 million project to open in the summer of 2003 will host the Sampras Tennis Academy.
Sampras, worth almost $100 million, also entered into a promotional deal with the newly created Tennis Channel network.
With his new team in place, Sampras refocused on his prime responsibility. After an almost two-year, controversial absence, Sampras agreed to represent the USA in Davis Cup.
"I think it's a perfect situation for him because he needs these types of matches now to keep himself motivated," U.S. Davis Cup captain Patrick McEnroe said. "I thought he played an excellent match (at the Aussie Open) against Safin the last couple sets. I think he just got off to a slow start. Pete will come out of that fairly motivated for the rest of the year.
"I think, of course, the fear factor isn't what it used to be. But it's still there. I mean, when you come to a Slam, if Pete is ready ... he's going to be a factor."
To stay healthy for a full tournament schedule this year, Sampras consulted a nutritionist and a physical therapist about his diet and conditioning routines. Words of wisdom from another sports legend also helped.
"Wayne (Gretzky) told me that after you reach 30, you have to work harder to keep up with the young guys. So, I changed my diet and eat more vegetables now," Sampras said. "And I was training on the track at UCLA alongside Olympic greats like Maurice Greene, which was really inspiring.
"I may be a step slower than I was before reaching 30, but I'm doing all the right things. I guess there are some guys (who) would take it easy in the latter part of their careers, but I'm stepping it up and just getting going."
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