Sampras turns back clock to upset Federer
Pete Sampras came into this three-match exhibition tour against Roger Federer hoping to win a set. In Seoul, he was still finding his game. In Kuala Lumpur, he came close but lost in a tie-break. Yesterday in Macau, Sampras reached his goal, winning not only the first set, but the second also to take the match 7-6 (10-8), 6-4.
'I was happy that I was able to win, but let's not get carried away,' Sampras said. '[The court] was very fast, Roger's had a long, long year - a great year.'
Both players delighted the sold-out crowd. They were introduced with the vast fanfare that accompanies their accomplishments, Sampras with his record 14 career grand slam titles and Federer who has already amassed 12 at the age of 26.
Sampras started the match with a serve and volley, followed with two aces and the crowd roared its approval. Nearing the end of the first set, Federer hit three aces and Sampras, in response, handed his racquet to a ball boy and asked him to substitute for a point.
Though the matches were not displays of each player at his finest, they did enough to arouse questions about a possible Sampras comeback - he has said no - and hint towards a question that will not be answered: if the two competed against each other in their prime, who would have the edge? Their one meeting in competition, a five-set, fourth-round victory for Federer at Wimbledon in 2001, has not been a sufficient answer.
But as the fans debated the question and as they seemingly held an allegiance to Pistol Pete's desire to win a set, the experience, for the players, has been different. Federer spent a week with his childhood tennis idol. Sampras, who retired in 2003, spent a week with the man who will almost surely break his records, including the number of grand slam singles titles and the six years that he finished top of the ATP rankings.
'I wish there was a camera to watch Roger, he's a prankster, he's a joker, and I have so much respect for him,' Sampras said. 'He's a class act, and we spent a lot of time together. I hung out in his room for a few hours, and on the plane and tonight I'm going to get him on the blackjack table.' But before there were jokes, there was the slightest reservation.
'I had quite an amount of respect all the way through this trip but definitely loosened up towards the end,' Federer said. 'I'm happy I did. I was a little quiet in the beginning, a little shy, [but] that changed quickly once I realised Pete is a funny guy as well.'
As Sampras was about to serve for the match, there was a surge of support for Federer. What the crowd really wanted was a third set.
Unfortunately, Sampras was unwilling to oblige.
