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Pete Sampras

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   CAPTION: Pete Sampras

   Country            United States
   Residence          Los Angeles, California, USA
   Date of birth      August 12, 1971
   Place of birth     Washington, D.C., USA
   Height             6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
   Weight             170 lb (77 kg)
   Turned Pro         1988
   Retired            2002
   Plays              Right; One-handed backhand
   Career Prize Money $43,280,489
                          Singles
   Career record:     762 - 222
   Career titles:     64
   Highest ranking:   No. 1 ( 12 April 1993)
                    Grand Slam results
   Australian Open    W (1994, 1997)
   French Open        SF (1996)
   Wimbledon          W (1993, 1994, 1995, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000)
   U.S. Open          W (1990, 1993, 1995, 1996, 2002)
                          Doubles
   Career record:     64 - 70
   Career titles:     2
   Highest ranking:   No. 27 ( 12 February 1990)

   Infobox last updated on: N/A.

   Peter "Pete" Sampras (b. August 12, 1971, in Washington, D.C.) is a
   former World No. 1 tennis player from the United States. During his 15
   year career, he won a record 14 Grand Slam men's singles titles in 52
   appearances and finished the year as No. 1 on the ATP rankings for six
   consecutive years, a record for the open era and tying him for third
   all-time. Sampras won the singles title at Wimbledon seven times, an
   all-time record shared with William Renshaw. He also won five singles
   titles at the U.S. Open, an open era record shared with Jimmy Connors.
   Bud Collins has named Sampras as one of the top five men's tennis
   players of all-time, and TENNIS Magazine has named him the greatest
   player from 1965 through 2005. On January 17, 2007, Sampras was
   inducted into the 2007 class of the International Tennis Hall of Fame.

Tennis career

   Pete Sampras was born in Washington, D.C., and is the third son of Sam
   and Georgia Sampras, Greek immigrants from Sparta. From an early age,
   Sampras showed signs of outstanding athletic ability. The young Sampras
   discovered a tennis racquet in the basement of his home and spent hours
   hitting balls against the wall. In 1978, the Sampras family moved to
   Palos Verdes, California, and the warmer climate there allowed
   seven-year-old Pete to play more tennis. The Sampras family joined the
   Peninsula Racquet Club. It was here that Pete's ability became
   apparent. By the age of 11, he had already learned the solid serve and
   volley tactic that would become the hallmark of his game. He was
   spotted by Dr. Peter Fisher, a pediatrician and a tennis enthusiast,
   who became his mentor for a long part of his career. He oversaw his
   training and arranged coaches. Fisher was instrumental in converting
   Sampras's two handed backhand to a one handed shot so that Sampras
   would have a better chance of winning Wimbledon. Fisher was later
   convicted of child molestation, but Sampras maintained that Fisher's
   behaviour towards him was normal and straightforward. Sampras later
   gave due credit to Fisher for orchestrating his early development as a
   player.

   Sampras turned professional in 1988 at the age of 17. He won his first
   top-level singles title in February 1990 at Philadelphia. In August
   that year, he captured his first Grand Slam title at the U.S. Open. He
   defeated Ivan Lendl in the quarterfinals and John McEnroe in the
   semifinals, to set up a final with another up-and-coming American
   player, Andre Agassi. Sampras beat Agassi in straight sets to become
   the U.S. Open's youngest-ever male singles champion at the age of 19
   years and 28 days. The rivalry between Agassi and Sampras became the
   dominant rivalry in tennis in the 1990s, with Sampras winning 20 of the
   34 matches they played.

   1991 saw Sampras capture the first of five career titles at the
   year-end Tennis Masters Cup. In 1992, he finished runner-up at the U.S.
   Open and played on the U.S. team that won the Davis Cup. (He helped the
   United States win the cup again in 1995.)

   In April 1993, Sampras reached the World No. 1 ranking for the first
   time. His rise to the No. 1 spot was controversial because he had not
   recently won any Grand Slam titles. But he justified the ranking three
   months later by claiming his first Wimbledon title, beating former
   World No. 1 Jim Courier in the final. This was swiftly followed by his
   second U.S. Open title. He finished the year as the clear No. 1 and set
   a new ATP Tour record that year by becoming the first player to serve
   over 1,000 aces in a season.

   Sampras dominated Wimbledon for the rest of the decade following his
   breakthrough title in 1993. He won three consecutive titles from 1993
   through 1995. He lost a 1996 quarterfinal match to Richard Krajicek,
   who won the title that year. Sampras, however, then won four
   consecutive titles from 1997 through 2000 to become the most successful
   male player in Wimbledon history. His win in 2000 also allowed him to
   break Roy Emerson's record of 12 Grand Slam men's singles titles.

   Sampras won two Australian Open titles. In 1994, he defeated American
   Todd Martin in the final, and in 1997, he defeated Carlos Moya of Spain
   in the final. One of Sampras's most memorable matches there came in
   1995 when he played Courier in the semifinals. Sampras's long time
   coach and close friend, Tim Gullickson, had mysteriously collapsed
   during the tournament and was forced to return to the United States.
   Gullickson was later diagnosed with brain cancer from which he
   succumbed the following year. Saddened by Gullickson's illness, Sampras
   began visibly weeping during the match, but somehow managed to win.
   Sampras then lost the final to Agassi. Paul Annacone took over as
   Sampras's full time coach after Gullickson's illness made it impossible
   for him to continue coaching.

   Sampras's best surface was undoubtedly the fast-playing grass courts.
   He was also known, however, for his all-round game and strong
   competitive instinct. He won back-to-back U.S. Open titles in 1995 and
   1996. Sampras's only real weakness was on clay courts, where the slow
   surface tempered his natural attacking serve-and-volley game. His best
   performance at the French Open came in 1996, when he lost a semifinal
   match to the eventual winner, Yevgeny Kafelnikov. Despite his limited
   success at Roland Garros, Sampras did win some significant matches on
   clay. He won the 1994 Italian Open, defeating Boris Becker in the
   final, and two singles matches in the 1995 Davis Cup final against
   Russians Andrei Chesnokov and Kafelnikov in Moscow. Sampras also won a
   1998 clay court tournament in Atlanta, defeating Jason Stoltenberg in
   the final.

   In 1998, Sampras's number-one ranking was challenged by Chilean player
   Marcelo Rios. (In 1993, 1994, 1996, and 1997, Sampras had dominated the
   ATP tour.) Sampras failed to defend his Australian Open title, losing
   in the quarterfinals, and won Wimbledon only after a hard fought
   five-set victory over Goran Ivanišević. Sampras lost a five-set U.S.
   Open semifinal to the eventual winner Patrick Rafter after suffering a
   leg injury in the third set while leading the match. He lost another
   semifinal at the Tennis Masters Cup. Nevertheless, Sampras finished the
   year as the top ranked player for the sixth year in a row.

   1999 also started out disappointingly, as he withdrew from the
   Australian Open and failed to win a title during the early part of the
   season. However, he then had a 24-match winning streak, including the
   Stella Artois Championships, Wimbledon (equaling Roy Emerson's record
   of 12 Grand Slam singles titles), Los Angeles, and Cincinnati. He was
   forced to retire from the RCA Championships and the U.S. Open because
   of a herniated disc in his back. Although he won the season-ending
   Tennis Masters Cup, he failed to finish the year as World No. 1 for the
   first time in seven years.

   After winning Wimbledon in 2000, Sampras did not win another title for
   two years. He lost in the final of the 2000 and 2001 U.S. Open to Marat
   Safin and Lleyton Hewitt, respectively, leading many to speculate that
   Sampras would never capture another major title. At Wimbledon in 2001,
   Sampras lost to Roger Federer 7-6(7), 5-7, 6-4, 6-7(2), 7-5 in the
   fourth round. The upset ended Sampras's 31-match winning streak at
   Wimbledon. In 2002, Sampras suffered another early exit from Wimbledon,
   losing in the second round to 145th ranked George Bastl of Switzerland,
   whose best surface was red clay.

   Sampras had a relatively poor summer leading up to the 2002 U.S. Open.
   Greg Rusedski, who Sampras had defeated in a long five-set third round
   match at the U.S. Open, said that Sampras was "a step and a half
   slower" and predicted that Sampras would lose his next match. Sampras,
   however, then defeated two young and upcoming stars of the game, Tommy
   Haas in the fourth round and Andy Roddick in the quarterfinals. He then
   defeated Sjeng Schalken in the semifinals to reach his third straight
   U.S. Open final. This time, he faced Agassi, who he had met in his very
   first Grand Slam final 12 years earlier. After a four-set battle
   between the two veterans, Sampras claimed a record 14th Grand Slam
   singles title and matched Jimmy Connors's record of five U.S. Open
   singles championships. The tournament turned out to be the last of
   Sampras's career.

   Although he played no tour events in the following 12 months, Sampras
   did not officially announce his retirement until August 2003, just
   prior to the U.S. Open. Sampras chose not to defend his title, but his
   retirement announcement was timed so that he could say farewell at a
   special ceremony organized for him at the open.

   Sampras played the first exhibition match since his retirement on April
   6, 2006, in Houston, Texas against Robby Ginepri. Ginepri won the match
   6-3, 7-6.

   During his career, Sampras won 64 top-level singles titles (including
   14 Grand Slams and 11 ATP Masters Series titles) and two doubles
   titles. He was ranked the World No. 1 for a record 286 weeks and was
   year-end No. 1 for a record six consecutive years from 1993 through
   1998.

   In 2006, Sampras announced he would be playing in World Team Tennis
   events.

Playing style

   Sampras was a serve and volleyer known for several facets in his game,
   in particular:
     * an accurate and powerful first serve, one of the best of all time,
       leading to the nickname 'Pistol Pete';
     * a second serve nearly as powerful as his first, possibly his most
       dangerous weapon;
     * great disguise on both his first and second serves;
     * his athleticism, footspeed, and court coverage;
     * classic, almost throwback form on most of his strokes, including a
       classic eastern grip forehand and similar grip on the backhand;
     * his forehand, and in particular his "running forehand" (a forehand
       hit on the run), was considered the best in the world;
     * a reliable one-handed backhand, which he could hit with topspin or
       slice deep;
     * his net game - Sampras's volleys were excellent, and he arguably
       possessed the best overhead smash in the history of the men's game;
     * his mental focus, allowing him to play his best at decisive
       moments, such as hitting second serve aces at break point down.

   Sampras's classically smooth service motion gave him many easy points
   on aces or service winners. Overall, his serve had great disguise, very
   quick racquet-head speed, great back-arch, powerful leg-drive, and
   incredible forearm/wrist pronation. The speed of his serves was
   frequently 120-140 mph on 1st and 110-120 mph on second serves. Sampras
   is considered by many to have had the best second serve in history. He
   was known for producing aces on critical points, even with his second
   serves.

   Opponents frequently played to his backhand, which was considered to be
   his weaker side. To counter this, Sampras often camped on the backhand
   side while rallying from the baseline and often baited opponents for
   his great running forehand. Later on in his career, as his foot speed
   slightly declined, Sampras was forced to play closer to the centre of
   the court.

   His style changed dramatically between the early 1990s and the time he
   retired. Sampras excelled on hard courts. He served and volleyed on his
   first serve and frequently stayed back on his second serve. Towards the
   latter part of his career on hard courts, Sampras played a serve and
   volley game on both his first and second serves. On grass courts,
   Sampras served and volleyed on both serves throughout his career. When
   not serving in the early years of his career, his strategy was to be
   aggressive from the baseline, put opponents in a defensive position,
   and finish points at the net.

   In his later years, he became even more aggressive and would either
   employ a chip-and-charge strategy—just chip back the return and run up
   to the net, waiting for a volley or try to hit an offensive shot on the
   return and follow his return to the net. Sampras's aggressive
   strategies worked best on fast surfaces—like hardcourts and, in
   particular, grass— but were weaker on slow surfaces like clay. As a
   result, he dominated Wimbledon (played on grass) but never won the
   French Open (played on clay).

Personal and family life

   Sampras's older sister Stella is head coach at UCLA, and his younger
   sister, Marion, is a teacher in Los Angeles. His older brother, Gus, is
   tournament director at Scottsdale ATP event.

   On September 30, 2000, Sampras married American actress and former Miss
   Teen USA, Bridgette Wilson. On November 21, 2002, their son Christian
   Charles was born. On July 29, 2005, the couple welcomed their second
   son, Ryan Nikolaos.

   Sampras has thalassemia minor, an inherited disease that causes
   anaemia. Thalassemia minor limits physical and athletic endurance and
   causes those who have it to feel fatigued when forced to perform
   athletic feats. Sampras was generally able to control this condition,
   although he was not known for his endurance in extremely long matches.
   Sampras vomited on the court during his epic 7-6, 5-7, 5-7, 6-4, 7-6
   win in the 1996 US Open quarterfinals against Alex Corretja - a match
   that lasted 4 hours and 9 minutes. During this match, Pete's close
   friend and radio presenter Patrick McCafferty turned up during the
   second set.

   Sampras's businesslike attitude to tennis and cautious handling of the
   press led critics to bemoan his lack of charisma, but his natural
   talent and work ethic, combined with his introverted nature, led him to
   let his accomplishments speak for themselves.

Grand Slam singles finals

Wins (14)

   Year Championship Opponent in Final Score in Final
   1990 U.S. Open Flag of United States Andre Agassi 6-4, 6-3, 6-2
   1993 Wimbledon Flag of United States Jim Courier 7-6, 7-6, 3-6, 6-3
   1993 U.S. Open (2) Flag of France Cédric Pioline 6-4, 6-4, 6-3
   1994 Australian Open Flag of United States Todd Martin 7-6, 6-4, 6-4
   1994 Wimbledon (2) Flag of Croatia Goran Ivanišević 7-6, 7-6, 6-0
   1995 Wimbledon (3) Flag of Germany Boris Becker 6-7, 6-2, 6-4, 6-2
   1995 U.S. Open (3) Flag of United States Andre Agassi 6-4, 6-3, 4-6,
   7-5
   1996 U.S. Open (4) Flag of United States Michael Chang 6-1, 6-4, 7-6
   1997 Australian Open (2) Flag of Spain Carlos Moyá 6-2, 6-3, 6-3
   1997 Wimbledon (4) Flag of France Cédric Pioline 6-4, 6-2, 6-4
   1998 Wimbledon (5) Flag of Croatia Goran Ivanišević 6-7, 7-6, 6-4, 3-6,
   6-2
   1999 Wimbledon (6) Flag of United States Andre Agassi 6-3, 6-4, 7-5
   2000 Wimbledon (7) Flag of Australia Patrick Rafter 6-7, 7-6, 6-4, 6-2
   2002 U.S. Open (5) Flag of United States Andre Agassi 6-3, 6-4, 5-7,
   6-4

Runner-ups (4)

   Year Championship    Opponent in Final                  Score in Final
   1992 U.S. Open       Flag of Sweden Stefan Edberg       3-6, 6-4, 7-6, 6-2
   1995 Australian Open Flag of United States Andre Agassi 4-6, 6-1, 7-6,
                                                           6-4
   2000 U.S. Open       Flag of Russia Marat Safin         6-4, 6-3, 6-3
   2001 U.S. Open       Flag of Australia Lleyton Hewitt   7-6, 6-1, 6-1

Masters Series singles finals

Wins (11)

   Year Championship Opponent in Final Score in Final
   1992 Cincinnati Flag of United States Ivan Lendl 6-3, 3-6, 6-3
   1993 Miami Flag of United States MaliVai Washington 6-3, 6-2
   1994 Indian Wells Flag of Czech Republic Petr Korda 4-6, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3,
   6-2
   1994 Miami (2) Flag of United States Andre Agassi 5-7, 6-3, 6-3
   1994 Rome Flag of Germany Boris Becker 6-1, 6-2, 6-2
   1995 Indian Wells (2) Flag of United States Andre Agassi 7-5, 6-3, 7-5
   1995 Paris Flag of Germany Boris Becker 7-6, 6-4, 6-4
   1997 Cincinnati (2) Flag of Austria Thomas Muster 6-3, 6-4
   1997 Paris (2) Flag of Sweden Jonas Björkman 6-3, 4-6, 6-3, 6-1
   1999 Cincinnati (3) Flag of Australia Patrick Rafter 7-6, 6-3
   2000 Miami (3) Flag of Brazil Gustavo Kuerten 6-1, 6-7, 7-6, 7-6

Runner-ups (8)

  Year Championship Opponent in Final                    Score in Final
  1991 Cincinnati   Flag of France Guy Forget            2-6, 7-6, 6-4
  1991 Paris        Flag of France Guy Forget            7-6, 4-6, 5-7, 6-4, 6-4
  1995 Miami        Flag of United States Andre Agassi   3-6, 6-2, 7-6
  1995 Canada       Flag of United States Andre Agassi   3-6, 6-2, 7-6
  1996 Stuttgart    Flag of Germany Boris Becker         3-6, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4
  1998 Cincinnati   Flag of Australia Patrick Rafter     1-6, 7-6, 6-4
  1998 Paris        Flag of United Kingdom Greg Rusedski 6-4, 7-6, 6-3
  2001 Indian Wells Flag of United States Andre Agassi   7-6, 7-5, 6-1

Performance timeline

   Tournament 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999
   2000 2001 2002 Career SR Career Win-Loss
   Australian Open A 1R 4R A A SF W F 3R W QF A SF 4R 4R 2 / 11 45-9
   French Open A 2R A 2R QF QF QF 1R SF 3R 2R 2R 1R 2R 1R 0 / 13 24-13
   Wimbledon A 1R 1R 2R SF W W W QF W W W W 4R 2R 7 / 14 63-7
   U.S. Open 1R 4R W QF F W 4R W W 4R SF A F F W 5 / 14 71-9
   Grand Slam SR 0 / 1 0 / 4 1 / 3 0 / 3 0 / 3 2 / 4 2 / 4 2 / 4 1 / 4 2 /
   4 1 / 4 1 / 2 1 / 4 0 / 4 1 / 4 14 / 52 N/A
   Grand Slam Win-Loss 0-1 4-4 10-2 6-3 15-3 23-2 21-2 20-2 18-3 19-2 17-3
   8-1 18-3 13-4 11-3 N/A 203-38
   Tennis Masters Cup A A RR W SF F W SF W W SF W SF A A 5 / 11 35-14
   Indian Wells Masters 3R 3R 2R A 3R 3R W W QF 2R 3R 2R QF F SF 2 / 14
   31-12
   Miami Masters A 1R QF 2R QF W W F SF SF 3R QF W 3R 3R 3 / 14 42-10
   Monte Carlo Masters A A A A 2R A A 2R A 2R 3R A A A A 0 / 4 1-4
   Rome Masters A 2R A 2R QF SF W 1R A 1R 3R 2R A 1R 1R 1 / 11 18-10
   Hamburg Masters A A A 3R A A A SF A A A A 2R 1R 1R 0 / 5 5-5
   Canada Masters A A SF 2R A 3R A F A A QF A QF A 3R 0 / 7 15-7
   Cincinnati Masters 1R 3R 3R F W SF A QF QF W F W 3R 2R 2R 3 / 14 38-11
   Stuttgart Masters (Essen, Stockholm) A 1R SF QF SF 2R SF SF F 3R SF A A
   QF A 0 / 11 23-11
   Paris Masters A A 3R F 2R QF QF W 2R W F 3R A A A 2 / 10 24-7
   Total Titles 0 0 4 4 5 8 10 5 8 8 4 5 2 0 1 N/A 64
   Hardcourt Win-Loss 8-7 13-10 27-8 25-7 25-5 43-6 37-3 37-6 46-4 35-5
   30-10 23-5 28-7 26-10 20-8 N/A 423-101
   Grass Win-Loss 0-0 2-2 6-2 5-3 7-2 7-1 11-1 12-0 4-1 8-1 8-1 12-0 11-1
   6-2 2-3 N/A 101-20
   Carpet Win-Loss 2-2 1-4 18-6 19-6 18-4 21-5 17-6 16-5 10-3 10-2 14-3
   1-0 1-1 0-0 0-0 N/A 148-47
   Clay Win-Loss 0-1 2-3 0-1 3-3 22-8 14-4 12-2 7-5 5-3 2-4 9-3 4-3 2-4
   3-4 5-6 N/A 90-54
   Overall Win-Loss 10-10 18-19 51-17 52-19 72-19 85-16 77-12 72-16 65-11
   55-12 61-17 40-8 42-13 35-16 27-17 N/A 762-222
   Year End Ranking 97 81 5 6 3 1 1 1 1 1 1 3 3 10 13 N/A N/A

   Note: Tournaments were designated as the 'Masters Series' only after
   the ATP took over the running of the men's tour in 1990.

   A = did not participate in the tournament

   SR = the ratio of the number of singles tournaments won to the number
   of those tournaments played

Titles (66)

Singles (64)


   Legend
   Grand Slam (14)
   Tennis Masters Cup (5)
   ATP Masters Series (11)
   ATP Tour (34)

                          Titles by Surface
                          Hard (37)
                          Clay (3)
                          Grass (10)
                          Carpet (14)
   No. Date Tournament Surface Opponent in the final Score
   1. 19 February 1990 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Carpet (I) Flag of
   Ecuador Andrés Gómez 7-6, 7-5, 6-2
   2. 18 June 1990 Manchester, Great Britain Grass Flag of Israel Gilad
   Bloom 7-6, 7-6
   3. 27 August 1990 U.S. Open Hard Flag of United States Andre Agassi
   6-4, 6-3, 6-2
   4. 10 December 1990 Grand Slam Cup, Munich, Germany Hard (I) Flag of
   United States Brad Gilbert 7-5, 7-6, 7-5
   5. 29 July 1991 Los Angeles, California Hard Flag of United States Brad
   Gilbert 6-2, 6-7, 6-3
   6. 12 August 1991 Indianapolis, Indiana Hard Flag of Germany Boris
   Becker 7-6, 3-6, 6-3
   7. 14 October 1991 Lyon, France Carpet (I) Flag of France Olivier
   Delaitre 6-1, 6-1
   8. 11 November 1991 Frankfurt, Germany Carpet (I) Flag of United States
   Jim Courier 3-6, 7-6, 6-3, 6-4
   9. 17 February 1992 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Carpet (I) Flag of
   Israel Amos Mansdorf 6-1, 7-6, 2-6, 7-6
   10. 20 July 1992 Kitzbühel, Austria Clay Flag of Argentina Alberto
   Mancini 6-3, 7-5, 6-3
   11. 10 August 1992 Cincinnati Masters, USA Hard Flag of Czech Republic
   Ivan Lendl 6-3, 3-6, 6-3
   12. 17 August 1992 Indianapolis, Indiana Hard Flag of United States Jim
   Courier 6-4, 6-4
   13. 19 October 1992 Lyon, France Carpet (I) Flag of France Cédric
   Pioline 6-4, 6-2
   14. 11 January 1993 Sydney, Australia Hard Flag of Austria Thomas
   Muster 7-6, 6-1
   15. 27 March 1993 Miami Masters, USA Hard Flag of United States MaliVai
   Washington 6-3, 6-2
   16. 5 April 1993 Tokyo, Japan Hard Flag of United States Brad Gilbert
   6-2, 6-2, 6-2
   17. 12 April 1993 Hong Kong, China Hard Flag of United States Jim
   Courier 6-3, 6-7, 7-6
   18. 21 June 1993 Wimbledon Grass Flag of United States Jim Courier 7-6,
   7-6, 3-6, 6-3
   19. 30 August 1993 U.S. Open Hard Flag of France Cédric Pioline 6-4,
   6-4, 6-3
   20. 18 October 1993 Lyon, France Carpet (I) Flag of France Cédric
   Pioline 7-6, 1-6, 7-5
   21. 8 November 1993 Antwerp, Belgium Carpet (I) Flag of Sweden Magnus
   Gustafsson 6-1, 6-4
   22. 10 January 1994 Sydney, Australia Hard Flag of Czech Republic Ivan
   Lendl 7-6, 6-4
   23. 17 January 1994 Australian Open Hard Flag of United States Todd
   Martin 7-6, 6-4, 6-4
   24. 28 February 1994 Indian Wells Masters, USA Hard Flag of Czech
   Republic Petr Korda 4-6, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2
   25. 7 March 1994 Miami Masters, USA Hard Flag of United States Andre
   Agassi 5-7, 6-3, 6-3
   26. 28 March 1994 Osaka, Japan Hard Flag of France Lionel Roux 6-2, 6-2
   27. 4 April 1994 Tokyo, Japan Hard Flag of United States Michael Chang
   6-4, 6-2
   28. 9 May 1994 Rome Masters, Italy Clay Flag of Germany Boris Becker
   6-1, 6-2, 6-2
   29. 20 June 1994 Wimbledon Grass Flag of Croatia Goran Ivanišević 7-6,
   7-6, 6-0
   30. 7 November 1994 Antwerp, Belgium Carpet (I) Flag of Sweden Magnus
   Larsson 7-6, 6-4
   31. 14 November 1994 Frankfurt, Germany Carpet (I) Flag of Germany
   Boris Becker 4-6, 6-3, 7-5, 6-4
   32. 6 March 1995 Indian Wells Masters, USA Hard Flag of United States
   Andre Agassi 7-6, 7-5, 6-2
   33. 12 June 1995 Queen's Club, Great Britain Grass Flag of France Guy
   Forget 7-6, 7-6
   34. 26 June 1995 Wimbledon Grass Flag of Germany Boris Becker 6-7, 6-2,
   6-4, 6-2
   35. 28 August 1995 U.S. Open Hard Flag of United States Andre Agassi
   6-4, 6-3, 4-6, 7-5
   36. 30 October 1995 Paris Masters, France Carpet (I) Flag of Germany
   Boris Becker 7-6, 6-4, 6-4
   37. 12 February 1996 San Jose, California Hard (I) Flag of United
   States Andre Agassi 6-2, 6-3
   38. 19 February 1996 Memphis, Tennessee Hard (I) Flag of United States
   Todd Martin 6-4, 7-6
   39. 8 April 1996 Hong Kong, China Hard Flag of United States Michael
   Chang 6-4, 3-6, 6-4
   40. 15 April 1996 Tokyo, Japan Hard Flag of United States Richey
   Reneberg 6-4, 7-5
   41. 12 August 1996 Indianapolis, Indiana Hard Flag of Croatia Goran
   Ivanišević 7-6, 7-5
   42. 26 August 1996 U.S. Open Hard Flag of United States Michael Chang
   6-1, 6-4, 7-6
   43. 23 September 1996 Basel, Switzerland Hard (I) Flag of Germany
   Hendrik Dreekmann 7-5, 6-2, 6-0
   44. 18 November 1996 ATP Tour World Championship, Hanover, Germany
   Carpet (I) Flag of Germany Boris Becker 3-6, 7-6, 7-6, 6-7, 6-4
   45. 13 January 1997 Australian Open Hard Flag of Spain Carlos Moyá 6-2,
   6-3, 6-3
   46. 20 February 1997 San Jose, California Hard (I) Flag of United
   Kingdom Greg Rusedski 3-6, 5-0 ret.
   47. 24 February 1997 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Hard (I) Flag of
   Australia Patrick Rafter 5-7, 7-6, 6-3
   48. 23 June 1997 Wimbledon Grass Flag of France Cédric Pioline 6-4,
   6-2, 6-4
   49. 4 August 1997 Cincinnati Masters, USA Hard Flag of Austria Thomas
   Muster 6-4, 6-4, 6-3
   50. 22 September 1997 Grand Slam Cup, Munich, Germany Carpet (I) Flag
   of Australia Patrick Rafter 6-2, 6-4, 7-5
   51. 27 October 1997 Paris Masters, France Carpet (I) Flag of Sweden
   Jonas Björkman 6-3, 4-6, 6-3, 6-1
   52. 10 November 1997 Hanover, Germany Hard (I) Flag of Russia Yevgeny
   Kafelnikov 6-3, 6-2, 6-2
   53 23 February 1998 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Hard (I) Flag of Sweden
   Thomas Enqvist 7-5, 7-6
   54. 27 April 1998 Atlanta, Georgia Clay Flag of Australia Jason
   Stoltenberg 6-7, 6-3, 7-6
   55. 22 June 1998 Wimbledon Grass Flag of Croatia Goran Ivanišević 6-7,
   7-6, 6-4, 3-6, 6-2
   56. 12 October 1998 Vienna, Austria Carpet (I) Flag of Slovakia Karol
   Kučera 6-3, 7-6, 6-1
   57. 7 June 1999 Queen's Club, Great Britain Grass Flag of United
   Kingdom Tim Henman 6-7 6-4 7-6
   58. 21 June 1999 Wimbledon Grass Flag of United States Andre Agassi
   6-3, 6-4, 7-5
   59. 26 July 1999 Los Angeles, California Hard Flag of United States
   Andre Agassi 7-6, 7-6
   60. 9 August 1999 Cincinnati Masters, USA Hard Flag of Australia
   Patrick Rafter 7-6 6-3
   61. 22 November 1999 Hanover, Germany Hard (I) Flag of United States
   Andre Agassi 6-1, 7-5, 6-4
   62. 20 March 2000 Miami Masters, USA Hard Flag of Brazil Gustavo
   Kuerten 6-1, 6-7, 7-6, 7-6
   63. 26 June 2000 Wimbledon Grass Flag of Australia Patrick Rafter 6-7,
   7-6, 6-4, 6-2
   64. 26 August 2002 U.S. Open Hard Flag of United States Andre Agassi
   6-3, 6-4, 5-7, 6-4

Doubles (2)

   No. Date Tournament Surface Partner Opponents in the final Score
   1. 15 May 1989 Rome, Italy Clay Flag of United States Jim Courier Flag
   of Brazil Danilo Marcelino
   Flag of Brazil Mauro Menezes 6-4, 6-3
   2. 12 June 1995 Queen's Club, Great Britain Grass Flag of United States
   Todd Martin Flag of Sweden Jan Apell
   Flag of Sweden Jonas Björkman 7-6, 6-4

Singles runner-ups (24)

     * 1991: Philadelphia (lost to Ivan Lendl)
     * 1991: Manchester (lost to Goran Ivanišević)
     * 1991: Cincinnati Masters (lost to Guy Forget)
     * 1991: Paris Masters (lost to Guy Forget)
     * 1992: Atlanta (lost to Andre Agassi)
     * 1992: U.S. Open (lost to Stefan Edberg)
     * 1993: ATP Tour World Championships (lost to Michael Stich)
     * 1994: Queen's Club (lost to Todd Martin)
     * 1994: Grand Slam Cup (lost to Magnus Larsson)
     * 1995: Australian Open (lost to Andre Agassi)
     * 1995: Miami Masters (lost to Andre Agassi)
     * 1995: Canada Masters (lost to Andre Agassi)

     * 1995: Lyon (lost to Wayne Ferreira)
     * 1996: Stuttgart Masters (lost to Boris Becker)
     * 1998: San Jose (lost to Andre Agassi)
     * 1998: Cincinnati Masters (lost to Patrick Rafter)
     * 1998: Paris Masters (lost to Greg Rusedski)
     * 2000: Queen's Club (lost to Lleyton Hewitt)
     * 2000: U.S. Open (lost to Marat Safin)
     * 2001: Indian Wells Masters (lost to Andre Agassi)
     * 2001: Los Angeles (lost to Andre Agassi)
     * 2001: Long Island (lost to Tommy Haas)
     * 2001: U.S. Open (lost to Lleyton Hewitt)
     * 2002: Houston (lost to Andy Roddick)

ATP Tour career earnings

    Year  Majors ATP wins Total wins Earnings ($) Money list rank
    1997    2       6         8         6,498,311        1
    1998    1       3         4         3,931,497        1
    1999    1       4         5         2,816,406        2
    2000    1       1         2         2,254,598        5
    2001    0       0         0           994,331       11
    2002    1       0         1         1,222,999       12
   Career   14      50        64       43,280,489        1

Records and achievements

     * Sampras won a record 14 Grand Slam singles titles during his
       career.
     * Sampras finished the year as No. 1 on the ATP rankings for a record
       six years. He is the only player to have finished as ATP No. 1 for
       six consecutive years (1993-98).
     * Sampras was the ATP No. 1 ranked player in the world for a record
       286 weeks.
     * Sampras and Jimmy Connors share the record for most U.S. Open men's
       singles titles won during the open era, with five titles each.
     * William Renshaw and Sampras share the record for most Wimbledon
       men's singles titles won, with seven titles each.
     * Sampras was included in the year-end ATP top ten rankings for 12
       years. Only Connors, Ivan Lendl, and Andre Agassi have stayed in
       the ATP top ten longer.
     * Sampras finished his career with a record U.S. $43 million in
       career prize money.
     * Sampras captured 64 ATP titles during his career, which makes him
       fourth on the all time list.
     * Sampras won 11 ATP Masters Series titles and stands third on the
       list for most Master Series titles won, behind Andre Agassi (17)
       and Roger Federer (12).
     * Sampras appeared in at least one Grand Slam final for 11
       consecutive years (1992-2002), winning at least one of those finals
       in eight straight years (1993-2000).
     * Ken Rosewall and Sampras are the only men to have won Grand Slam
       singles titles as a teenager, in their 20s, and in their 30s.
     * Sampras won at least one title for 11 straight years (1990-2000)
       and 12 of 13 (except 2001).
     * Sampras captured the ATP World Championship (now renamed the Tennis
       Masters Cup) a record five times in Germany (1991, 1994, 1996-97,
       and 1999). He shares this open era record with Lendl.
     * Sampras compiled a 19-9 career Davis Cup record (15-8 in singles)
       and was a member of winning teams in 1992 and 1995.
     * Sampras served a career-high 1,011 aces in 1993 and 974 aces in
       1995 to lead the ATP circuit.
     * Sampras won a career-high 10 titles and compiled a personal-best
       29-match winning streak in 1994.
     * Sampras won a career-best 85 matches in 1993 and on April 12 of
       that year became the 11th player in the history of ATP rankings to
       reach the No. 1 spot.
     * Sampras was the youngest U.S. Open men's singles champion at 19
       years, 28 days in 1990.
     * Sampras compiled a 40-2 match record on Centre Court at Wimbledon
       and 63-7 overall at the All England Club.
     * Sampras compiled a 762-222 record during his years on the circuit,
       winning more than 77% of all the matches he played in 15 years.
     * Sampras won singles titles in 11 different countries: Austria,
       Australia, Belgium, People's Republic of China, France, Germany,
       Italy, Japan, Switzerland, United Kingdom, United States.

Awards

     * Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) Player of the Year for
       six consecutive years from 1993 through 1998.
     * International Tennis Federation World Champion for six consecutive
       years from 1993 through 1998.
     * U.S. Olympic Committee "Sportsman of the Year" in 1997. He was the
       first tennis player to receive this award.
     * GQ Magazine's Individual Athlete Award for Man of the Year in 2000.
     * Selected the No. 1 player (of 25 players) in the past 25 years by a
       panel of 100 current and past players, journalists, and tournament
       directors to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the ATP in 1997.
     * Voted 48th athlete of Top 50 Greatest North American Athletes of
       ESPN's SportsCentury (also youngest on list).
     * In 2005, TENNIS Magazine named Sampras the greatest tennis player
       for the period 1965 through 2005, from its list, TENNIS Magazine's
       40 Greatest Players of the TENNIS Era.

Rivalry with Agassi

   Andre Agassi was perhaps Sampras's greatest rival, and the rivalry
   often brought out the best in both players' games. The Sampras-Agassi
   rivalry reached its height in 1995 when each man agreed to play in the
   Davis Cup only if the other also played. They were concerned that if
   one played while the other rested during the weeks leading up to the
   French Open, the one who rested would have a competitive advantage
   heading into the year's second Grand Slam event. Both ended up playing,
   and the U.S. won the Davis Cup that year.

   Notable Sampras-Agassi matches of 1995 included the finals of the
   Australian Open, Indian Wells, Rogers Cup, and U.S. Open, with Sampras
   winning at Indian Wells and the U.S. Open. The two players traded the
   number one ranking several times that year. The 1995 U.S. Open men's
   singles final between Sampras and Agassi was the highest-rated match
   among U.S. television audiences.

   The second highest-rated match of their rivalry was the final of the
   2002 U.S. Open. It was the first Sampras-Agassi meeting in a U.S. Open
   final since 1995. It was also notable because both had defeated several
   up-and-coming players enroute to the final.

   However maybe the most memorable Sampras-Agassi match came in a 2001
   U.S. Open quarterfinal. Sampras battled to a 6-7, 7-6, 7-6, 7-6
   victory. There were no breaks of serve during the entire match. Reruns
   of the match are frequently featured on television, especially during
   U.S. Open rain delays.

   The Sampras versus Agassi rivalry goes all the way back to their
   childhoods when they played against each other in a 1979 junior
   tournament in Northridge, California at ages eight and nine
   respectively.

Trivia

     * He modeled his game after his childhood idol, Rod Laver.
     * He used a very demanding racket, a small 85-square-inch Wilson
       racket that was strung at a tight 75 pounds. The high tension would
       presumably make his groundstrokes less powerful; yet, his strokes
       were among the most powerful in the game.
     * As a junior player, he was a defensive baseliner playing with a
       two-handed backhand. His coach, Pete Fisher, changed him to be a
       serve and volleyer with a one-handed backhand with Wimbledon in
       mind.
     * He was not a particularly notable junior player. He was still
       adjusting his game and playing at higher age groups to train
       himself.
     * Because watching Sampras play in person made them too nervous, his
       parents attended only his loss to Stefan Edberg in a 1992 Wimbledon
       semifinal and his victory over Patrick Rafter in the 2000 Wimbledon
       final. After winning Wimbledon that year -- his record-breaking
       13th Grand Slam singles title -- Sampras ran into the stands to hug
       his parents.
     * Sampras admitted to not speaking about his condition with
       thalassemia minor because that would have lessened his aura of
       invincibility against fellow players.
     * Sampras had a rabbit named after him in the famous comedy series
       Father Ted.
     * During the height of his career, he claimed to sleep twelve hours
       every night.
     * Sampras was featured on more than one episode of The Prince of
       Tennis.
     * Sampras was featured on an episode of The Simpsons.
     * Sampras was referenced in an email episode of the popular cartoon
       website Homestarrunner.com

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