Sampras enters Wimbledon in disarray
June 22, 2002
Pete Sampras may have missed the exit sign two years ago on a summer evening when tears surfaced in the brown eyes of the mechanical champion.
All he could see was his record 13th major, his camera-shy parents embracing in the Wimbledon stands and his bride-to-be punching the sky in the players' box.
No moment was ever so sweet. No ending more perfect.
Sampras didn't take it as a cue, though. He has continued, but nothing has been the same since No. 13. Without an ATP Tour victory in two years, and 29 events, and after some pitiful losses in the early rounds of majors, Sampras will walk onto the grass courts of Wimbledon next week as a fading superstar in such disarray that he is almost unrecognizable to those who have witnessed the entire arc of his career.
"It has not been a pleasant thing for any of us to watch," said Jim Courier, a foil of Sampras's in the 1990's. "And certainly for him, it hasn't been a pleasant year."
It has been an unsettling one. Suddenly, Sampras has gone from an inflexible creature of habit to a man desperate to rearrange everything, including coaches, schedules and style, on his scavenger hunt for a magic potion. At the midlife crisis age of 30 for a great athlete, he seems too old for change, but too young to be a has-been.
"Age is inevitable, but on the other hand, Pete is no older than Shaquille O'Neal, whose body gets banged up every night," said Pete Fischer, a tennis coach in Los Angeles and the architect of Sampras's game. "Pete is seven years younger than John Elway when he won the Super Bowl. I don't know if age is the adequate answer to what has happened to him.
"Pete, to me, means perfection. I don't see perfection right now."
He sees a champion whose serve once darted with a comet's tail and is now losing torque because Sampras is not rotating enough. He sees a player who once took two quick steps on his way to the net now moving with the nimbleness of a barge on one sluggish stride. The areas of disrepair have left him vulnerable to passing shots, susceptible to return winners and uncommonly ordinary.
"I'm not sure he wants to be perfect anymore," Fischer said of Sampras, who could not be reached for comment for this article. "He wants to win, but I'm not sure the effort is there."
It might be easier for Sampras to lurch and stall if Andre Agassi were not standing next to him as a vivid reminder of how time plays favorites. Agassi has simply aged better, adapting to each year's increasing grind. Agassi even changed longtime coaches with more ease than Sampras. Before this season, Sampras split with Paul Annacone and Agassi ended his link to Brad Gilbert. Unlike Sampras, Agassi has thrived just the same.
If under hypnosis, Sampras would probably uncork a jealous rant. After all, Agassi is still ranked in the top five at age 32, remains a favorite to win every major on any surface, and looks more fit than ever. The longer Agassi stays on top, the more insecure Sampras's legacy becomes.
"Andre isn't going to win six more majors to match Pete's 13, but he could win a couple," Fischer said. "That might worry Pete."
Somehow, Sampras has all the history, but Agassi has always managed to
top him. Agassi is the one with the career grand slam, the mass appeal,
the intriguing marriage and the fresh introspection of fatherhood. Career
ups and downs, personal growth, they have all been parts of Agassi's evolution.
Until this year, Sampras has never experienced a severe slide in his game.
Agassi has been there, done
that.
"Andre is a different guy," Mary Carillo, an analyst for TNT's coverage of Wimbledon, said. "He can take time off, go away, adjust his passions and focus on something else, then come back. He doesn't mind grinding. Pete is a guy who wanted to be the best player in tennis history when he was about 12. That's how he built his career, thinking in those terms."
For a player like that, trying to beat a little-known player in the first round of the French Open is tough, Carillo said.
She added, "Whereas Andre welcomes that kind of challenge, Pete looks at it and says, `Man, do I really want to do this?' "
It is harder to face no-name players without the edge of the awe factor. In the past, Sampras could trudge through the early rounds on the strength of a big name. Often, opponents wilted beneath his aura.
"Now, he has become an aging gunslinger that everyone wants a chance to say they knocked off," Fischer said.
Now, he is a target for any young player who wants to get his name in the headlines with a victory against a star. It has happened a lot. This year, Sampras's record is 16-13, his ranking has dropped to 13 and he is seeded a generous No. 6 at Wimbledon, his lowest seeding here since 1991, when he was seeded eighth. Today, he pulled out of an exhibition match with a back ailment, deciding not to risk further injury before Wimbledon.
"It just hasn't been there when he has wanted it on command," Courier said. "And he's a guy who has been able to produce it on command for so many years."
Every match has been a chore for Sampras. Over the past few months, he has drifted through different stages in trying to explain his fall into mediocrity.
In April, he was in denial after the Spanish clay-court specialist Alex Corretja embarrassed him on grass in a Davis Cup loss, explaining it away as a few tough breaks going against him. A month later, Sampras was probably at his most candid in reflecting on his struggles, admitting: "I think breaking the record a couple of years ago, it took a lot out of me. Week in, week out, it is tougher to find that enthusiasm."
Then, after pouring his energy into the clay-court season to at least challenge for an elusive French Open title, Sampras folded in the first round, a loss that left him in a state of despair.
Maybe a whiff of Wimbledon grass will serve as the smelling salts for Sampras. Over the past few days, he has expressed confidence about his revival at the All England Club. Grass, the cure-all.
He had a similar outlook a year ago, but Sampras's good vibe was snipped by Roger Federer of Switzerland. He took out Sampras in the fourth round. This year Federer is mentioned as a favorite, along with Tim Henman of Britain, Lleyton Hewitt of Australia and, as always, Agassi. For the first time in 10 years, Sampras is not at the top of everyone's list.
"Grass still brings out the best in Pete and hides his flaws," Carillo said. "Obviously, you want to see the guy pull one more out of him."
If he can pull himself together at Wimbledon, he could win a 14th major, which would probably be more satisfying and emotional than any victory before it. Only Sampras has the right to say when the time expires on his career, but if the storybook opening arrives this year, Sampras may take a closer look at an exit strategy.
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