Sampras Braves Chilly Conditions On His Way to Semis
Source: Pacific Life Open Official Site
March 15, 2002
Once again, the unpredictable desert weather in Indian Wells came to the
forefront. And again, Pete Sampras proved to be better at overcoming the
uncomfortably chilly temperatures and blustery conditions, stopping Rainer
Schuettler of German 6-2, 6-4 and setting up a coveted meeting with Lleyton
Hewitt in a repeat of last year's US Open final.
Sampras set the tone of the quarterfinal match by breaking Schuettler's
opening serve, then holding his own. Although Sampras struggled to keep
his shots from sailing out during the match, he handled the wind far better
than his opponent, who appeared flustered by the conditions from the start.
Schuettler came into the match on a hot streak, reaching the quarterfinals
or better in the past five events he's played. But against Sampras, a two-time
winner here in Indian Wells, the German played mostly defensive tennis.
He struggled to return Sampras' serve and allowed the 13-time Grand Slam
champ to frequently rush the net and hit winners.
During changeovers, both players covered themselves with towels to keep
warm. Obviously uncomfortable, the American hurried to end the match as
quickly as he could. His only slip-up came while serving at 4-3 in the second
set. After flubbing easy volleys, Sampras allowed Schuettler to even the
set at 4-4. In the next game, the American converted on his sixth break
point to break back. He then closed out the match on his serve.
The No. 10 seed is two matches away from winning his 64th title, and 12th
Tennis Masters Series title.
He has played Hewitt eight times before, winning four of those matches.
But their most significant encounter came last year in New York, where Hewitt
won his first Grand Slam title by defeating Sampras in straight sets.
Although eager for revenge, Sampras said he knows he'll have to be at
his best to stop the Australian's current nine-match win streak. "He's
breezed through the draw," Sampras said of Hewitt. "I'm going
to have to serve well, come in and we'll see."
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TMS 2002 - Pacific Life Open, Indian Wells (QF)
Post-Match Interview
Pete Sampras defeats Rainer Schuettler
6-2, 6-4
An interview with:
PETE SAMPRAS
MODERATOR: Pete advances to his fourth career semifinal here in Indian
Wells, and the first in the 2002 season.
Questions for Pete.
Q. How cold was it out there?
PETE SAMPRAS: Very cold. It reminded me of playing Hamburg a bunch of years
ago when it was cold and windy. It was pretty nasty out there. We both were
struggling. Under the circumstances, I felt like I hit the ball pretty well
and moved pretty well. But just very tough conditions.
I think he was getting a little frustrated out there. You could see it.
Just, you know, you don't expect it to be that cold here in the desert at
this time of year.
The problem was the wind. If it wasn't that windy, it would have been okay.
But it was gusting pretty good. You know, it was cold. I mean, 6 it was
definitely to win that in straight and get inside.
Q. Your thoughts on playing Lleyton.
PETE SAMPRAS: Yeah, Lleyton, he's pretty much breezed through the tournament.
He's playing well and dominated a lot of his matches. Playing with a ton
of confidence. You know, what can you say? He's playing the best tennis
probably right now. And, you know, he's serving well. We all know about
his return of serve and his passing shots and his wheels.
You know, I need to be patient tomorrow, but also stay aggressive and take
some chances. He's a tough guy to play. I mean, he loves a target - and
I'm going to give him a target.
I'm not going to come in too much. I think when I played him at The Open,
I was coming in on everything. He kind of got a groove out there. I need
to mix it up a little bit. But he's a tough guy to stay back against, so
I kind of need to pick my spots. But he's the quickest guy we have out here.
He's oozing with confidence right now.
Q. Have you been looking forward to playing him since The Open?
PETE SAMPRAS: I mean, if the draw happened and I played him, sure, I'm
looking forward to it. But it wasn't anything I'm dying to play him. I mean,
I'm looking forward to playing him. And The Open was a tough defeat. I worked
hard to get there. He played a great match, I give him credit. But, you
know, as time goes on, you just have to back it up. Seems like he's been
backing it up pretty well the past couple months. Looking forward to it.
Q. How slow is the court?
PETE SAMPRAS: Well, in these conditions when it's cold and the ball doesn't
go through the air that quickly, it plays pretty slow. I mean, a lot depends
on the weather. The court seems a touch slower, a little bit more sandy,
so the balls fluff up a little bit more.
But I think it's a good mix in these conditions. In this dry weather, it
can kind of fly a little bit, you know, but once it gets warmer, which I'll
be playing tomorrow, it should be a little bit better, a little bit quicker.
Q. You looked a little frustrated at the end.
PETE SAMPRAS: Well, serving a set and a break, just the conditions, and
wanting to close it out, I was frustrated. I was pretty much pissed the
way I kind of lost my service game. You know, I was just kind of really
upset and kind of, you know, rebounded and broke him the next game.
I just felt like the conditions and thinking of an early start tomorrow,
I wanted to kind of -- I was rushing a little bit. I just should have taken
my time and get it done. Fortunately, I got the break back.
But I wasn't a happy camper.
Q. What goes through your head? Down a couple breakpoints a couple games
there, but you came right back. What goes through your head to get to that
point?
PETE SAMPRAS: Well, it's all instinct out there - at least for me it is.
You get up to the line, you try to, you know, play a smart shot or a smart
play. But you're not really thinking about anything during the point. It's
just before the point you try to hit a good serve and play a smart point.
It's all instinct, it happens pretty quick out there. There's not a lot
of time to think.
Breakpoints, it's time to try to utilize my serve, get it in, and hopefully
be aggressive when I have to.
Q. You're going to have a fairly quick turnover. Just two out of three
tomorrow, fairly quick match. Is that going to be a factor at all? He's
been off the court for quite a while.
PETE SAMPRAS: It's an early start. With TV, they wanted me to play tonight
and tomorrow. It's a tough turn around, it is. Would rather have played
this afternoon to have some time to get ready for tomorrow. It is an early
start. Come 8:00, you want to get some food in you and get a good massage
and a good night's sleep.
It's a disadvantage, it really is, to have a short turnaround. But it is
what it is and I'll come up ready to play tomorrow.
Q. Speaking of short turnarounds, assuming you get this far, which you
probably will, Sunday morning is an early start. Isn't that strange for
a final?
PETE SAMPRAS: Well, I'm not thinking that far ahead. But I don't know what
time it is.
Q. 10:30 in the morning.
PETE SAMPRAS: We'll just worry about tomorrow (laughter).
Q. Going into the match tomorrow, is it easy to put what happened last
year to one side and just go for this, or is that going to be in your mind?
PETE SAMPRAS: No, it's not going to be in my mind. It happened. You know,
looking at what happened, you know, I accepted the loss. It was a tough
loss. But you can't walk out there thinking of last year. It's in the history
books. No reason to dwell on it. Just move on. I have a good shot tomorrow.
Hopefully I can get it done, but it won't be easy.
Q. Did you know Phil (Knight) was coming down to watch?
PETE SAMPRAS: I heard rumors. I guess he's still a tennis fan.
Q. Did you catch Todd's match?
PETE SAMPRAS: Very little.
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