Sampras Outfoxes Canas
Source: ATP/AP
August 6, 2002
After enduring months of disappointments, Pete Sampras showed glimmers
of his old self Tuesday night, as he put the brakes on Guillermo Canas'
hot summer hard court run. The American's game looked better than it has
in months as he wore down the brutally in-form Argentine 5-7, 7-6(6), 6-3
victory before a packed, raucous crowd.
Although Sampras came into the match with three Cincinnati titles at his
helm and the No. 15 seed, most knew his match-up against the unseeded Argentine
was far more treacherous than it appeared on the draw. Canas had just won
the biggest title of his career two days earlier, at the Tennis Masters
Canada, defeating Andy Roddick in the final. As the Argentine walked the
grounds at the ATP Tennis Center in Mason early Tuesday, fans applauded
as he passed by, acknowledging his stunning and unexpected achievement.
In the first set, Canas first broke Sampras to take a 5-4 lead, but then
lost his serve. This pattern would be repeated all evening, as Canas broke
back, then held his serve to take the set.
Sampras, who came into the match with a lackluster 19-15 record, was hardly
resigned to accepting another early round defeat. At 3-2 in the second set,
he produced a slew of winners to break Canas and take a 4-2 lead. Canas
broke back, but then lost his serve, taking the match to a tie-break to
the delight of the pro-American crowd.
The American, who has claimed 11 Tennis Masters Series titles in his career,
dominated the tie-break to win the second set and gain a pivotal mental
advantage. After Canas dropped his serve in the first game of the third
set, it was clear the Argentine's nerves had been rattled. Sampras held
steady for much of the set to advance to the next round.
"He came in here really confident, obviously a huge win for him a
couple of days ago," Sampras said. "I think in the third, he got
a little bit frustrated. It was a good match to get through. I hung in there
pretty well."
Sampras now meets the always-tricky Wayne Arthurs, who could prove dangerous
on Cincinnati's speedy hard courts. "I feel like I can raise it a touch
here and get through tomorrow's match," Sampras said. "It won't
be easy."
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Sampras Can Still Turn It On
by: Marc Lancaster
August 7, 2002
For all of his struggles recently, at least Pete Sampras can take solace
in the fact that he can still win a match even if he isn't playing his best.
He did that Tuesday
night at the Western & Southern Masters, rallying past Guillermo Canas,
who entered this week as the hottest player on Tour, for a 5-7, 7-6 (6),
6-3 victory. His escape stemmed the continuing tide of upsets at the tournament,
which carried over to Day 2 of the competition.
Canas is far from a household name, but make no mistake, Sampras was the
underdog in this match. The 24-year-old tore through the draw last week
in Toronto, beating four top-10 players en route to the biggest title of
his career. The remarkable run boosted his world ranking to No. 12, while
Sampras is No. 16.
That meant, for the first time since the 1990 Australian Open, Sampras
played a first-round match against an opponent ranked higher than him. And
for a good chunk of the match, those numbers seemed accurate.
The pair started off evenly, each holding serve through 4-4 in the first
set, when Canas broke Sampras to go up 5-4. Sampras broke back in the next
game, then Canas did it again, taking a 6-5 lead before serving out the
set. At that point, it was apparent that Sampras didn't quite have his "A"
game working.
"I was struggling a little bit tonight with my serve,'' said Sampras.
"Give him credit; he was returning really well and making me play a
lot, but I didn't feel like I had a rhythm tonight.''
Despite that, Sampras still had enough to hang around. He and Canas traded
breaks again in the middle of the second set before Canas converted another
break to go up 6-5 and serve for the match. But Sampras jumped on him immediately,
taking a 15-40 lead and hammering a
cross-court winner for the break. A game later, it was on to a tiebreak,
where four Sampras aces helped him close it out.
The final set was much smoother for the three-time Cincinnati champion.
He broke Canas in the Argentine's first two service games, and though he
gave one of them back immediately, he looked more confident. In the meantime,
Canas grew annoyed with several line calls and had repeated discussions
with the chair umpire. Sampras closed on a strong note by serving out a
game at love to go up 5-3, then breaking Canas one last time for the win,
which brought a standing ovation from a supportive Center Court crowd.
"I managed to kind of hang in there and get into a tiebreaker and
played pretty solid,'' said Sampras. "He came in here really confident;
that was obviously a huge win for him a couple of days ago. In the third
(set), maybe he got a little bit frustrated.''
In the past week or so, Sampras has become all too familiar with matches
like this one. In Toronto, each of his matches went three sets and featured
at least one tiebreak. The last of those, a loss to Haas in the round of
16, ended in excruciating fashion with Sampras dropping a pair of tiebreak
sets to the German. At some point, Sampras has to wonder what happened to
his old serve-and-volley-them-off-the-court
self.
Still, he says he feels good about his game. Indeed, despite the trouble
he had getting by Wayne Ferreira and Hyung-Taik Lee in Canada, he showed
no signs of the desperation that marked his brief stints at Wimbledon and
the French Open this year.
"I'm happy,'' he said. "Toronto was a disappointment, I felt
like I played well enough to get through that match against Haas and maybe
go on and get to the weekend, but it was a tough loss.
"I got here and took a little time off, then got going again to get
ready for this week. These weeks are tough, back to back. You don't have
any easy matches out here, and they're very demanding weeks on the
Tour.''
With that in mind, Sampras said after his match he has decided to skip
next week's RCA Championships in Indianapolis. He is scheduled to play the
Hamlet Cup in Long Island the week before the U.S. Open, and he
doesn't want to overextend himself going into what will be his biggest tournament.
Sampras hasn't won a tournament since Wimbledon in 2000, a drought of
30 events. He has reached only one final this year, losing to Andy Roddick
in Houston. As his ranking continues to slide, Sampras hears all the talk
about retirement and how he should go out on top, but he seems determined
to do whatever he does on his own terms. Right now, all he's worried about
is winning a few matches, though it won't get much easier. He plays another
wicked server, left-handed Aussie Wayne Arthurs, today.
"I'm playing pretty well,'' he said. "I feel like I can raise
it a touch here.''
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TMS-Cincinnati - Round 1
Post-Match Interview
Pete Sampras defeats Guillermo Canas
5-7, 7-6, 6-3
August 6, 2002
THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.
Q. What was your sense on how the match was going and turning it around,
I guess when you broke him serving for the match?
PETE SAMPRAS: I was struggling a little bit tonight with my serve, serving
so well in Toronto I came here and conditions are little bit heavier, a
little slower tonight and didn't feel like I could get much on it. Give
him a lot of credit, he was returning really well, and making me play a
lot, but I didn't feel like I had the rhythm tonight. Managed to kind of
hang in there and get into a tiebreaker and played pretty solid. He came
in here really confident, obviously a huge win for him a couple of days
ago. I think in the third maybe got a little bit frustrated but a good match
to get through. I hung in there pretty well.
Q. Considering the three matches you played up there and then this one,
wondering if you are going to have another straight set match again?
PETE SAMPRAS: Hopefully going to have one tomorrow, but maybe going to
be pretty tough battle against Arthurs one of the best serves in the game.
I am playing pretty well. I feel like I can raise it a touch here and get
through tomorrow's match. It won't be easy.
Q. You are generally happy with how things are going?
PETE SAMPRAS: Yeah.
Q. You have had some tough matches --
PETE SAMPRAS: I am happy. Toronto was a disappointment. Felt like I played
well enough to get through that match against Haas. Maybe going into the
weekend, but tough loss, but got here and took it a little time off and
got going again and getting ready for this week. These weeks are tough back-to-back.
You don't have any easy matches out here. These are very, very demanding
weeks on the Tour back-to-back. So you
need to have a lot of time to gear up, but you just have to do the best
you can and get ready. Tonight I just had a little bit more than he did
at the end.
Q. Are you making any kind of evaluation this week depending on how much
you play whether you consider playing next week at all?
PETE SAMPRAS: I am not going to play next week. Just --no.
Q. This would be enough for you no matter how far you get in this tournament?
PETE SAMPRAS: Yeah, I am playing the Hamlet which you know, if I play
next week that's potentially six straight weeks and that's too much.
Q. The way the Tour will shake out next week where two weeks before the
Open, this Cincinnati tournament will move and there will only be one week
--
PETE SAMPRAS: I am a little bit naive to it. I am not sure exactly what
is happening with the schedule.
Q. They are moving it. There will only be one Tennis Masters Series ending
eight days before the Open, is the proposed schedule that's out. Indianapolis
moves to July where L.A. is --
PETE SAMPRAS: It's not a bad week.
Q. They are not thrilled with it.
PETE SAMPRAS: That's life, I guess.
Q. On a different tangent, talk a little bit about your role with the
Tennis Channel and kind of what you think that means for the sport?
PETE SAMPRAS: Hopefully it will bring some continuity to the sport. And
a little bit what the golf channel did for golf, and just to have a channel
to kind of follow the game. It's such a worldwide game, it does
get a little confusing, you have so many different events around the world
at the same time, that hopefully people that follow tennis can watch the
Tennis Channel and see the results and it can make it a little bit more
clear. Just to show a different side of some of the players, doing some
personality pieces. And I have done a little work with them and we'll see
what happens with it. I hope it does well. I think tennis needs a Tennis
Channel, we'll see how it does.
Q. Took a ride with you on a plane, tell us about that a little bit.
PETE SAMPRAS: Yeah, that's what people really want to see. I mean, when
-- I am a huge sportsfan. I don't -- it's great seeing athletes play their
sport but to see behind the scenes stuff, I love it. It is like watching
Cribs on MTV. I just want to see how these guys live, and I mean, me and
Andy and his coach hop on the plane and just, you know, spend a couple of
hours talking about the game, just kind of behind the
scenes. I think people are into that. They see me play tennis, they know
what I do, but to see something a little bit different I think is pretty
appealing.
Q. I heard you woke Andy up with a little water?
PETE SAMPRAS: Yeah, he was sleeping. He wanted me to do something a little
silly.
Q. How many times did you play Canas and how can you evaluate his game?
PETE SAMPRAS: One time in World Team Cup. Very solid. Moves well, competes
well.
Q. What are his chances at US Open?
PETE SAMPRAS: Pretty good. I think winning Toronto gave him some confidence.
The court was playing pretty quick there which is going to be the same at
the Open. He gets going. He's a tough competitor, really plays well. Has
all the shots. And he has got a decent shot of doing well.
THE MODERATOR: Thanks, Pete.
End of FastScripts
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