September 10, 1996
Sampras may have anemia, tennis community speculates
By Tom Tebbutt
PETE Sampras may have appeared in control while outclassing Michael Chang 6-1, 6-4, 7-6 (7-3) in Sunday's U.S. Open final, but there was a subplot playing itself out that could have spelled disaster for the now four-time champion.
There is speculation in the tennis community that the world No. 1 suffers from some form of anemia and that would explain his physical breakdown during his quarter-final match against Alex Corretja last Thursday.
If Chang had been able to prolong Sunday's match by converting a set point at 6-5 in the third set -- he missed a volley after his forcing backhand tipped the tape and sat up for Sampras to powder a passing shot -- he might have been able to trigger the same reaction that had Sampras near exhaustion and actually vomiting on court at the end of his match with Corretja.
"I was having stomach problems and stomach cramps," Sampras said on Saturday while reviewing a CBS tape of the gut-wrenching fifth-set tiebreak, which he won after saving a match point.
"I feel it was not drinking enough, nerves and conditioning," Sampras said by way of explanation. "The heat kind of got to me."
He also added, "I've had problems with my stomach before, in 1992 [at the U.S. Open] against [Jim] Courier." On that occasion, Sampras was barely able to finish a semi-final victory and had to be fed intravenously afterward (as was the case after he beat Corretja). Barely 20 hours later, Sampras faded badly after winning the first set and lost the final to Stefan Edberg in four sets.
That 1992 semi-final is just one of many instances when Sampras has appeared unduly exhausted by long, hard matches, usually in hot, humid weather.
In 1994, he lost in the fourth round at the U.S. Open to Jaime Yzaga and looked almost as ill and ghostly as he did against Corretja.
Last year, there were several incidents. In the final of The Lipton against Andre Agassi in March, he lost 19 points in a row in the second set (including two love games on his serve) when he seemed to 'hit the wall.' In Montreal, he appeared completely 'out of it' against Jonathan Stark but somehow recovered to win in three sets.
In Cincinnati, he sagged so badly in the third set after losing a second-set tie break to Michael Stich that the crowd booed his lack of effort in a 6-7, 7-6, 6-1 loss.
At year's end indoors on clay at the Davis Cup final in Moscow, Sampras had to be carried off the court with cramps right after his victory over Andrei Chesnokov. But, again semi-miraculously, he came back the next day to win a doubles match and a day later beat Yevgeny Kafelnikov to clinch an American win.
At this year's French Open, following an energy-sapping five-setter with Courier in the quarter-finals and two full days off, Sampras was so spent after losing the first set of the semi-final against Kafelnikov that he could barely summon the energy to move around the court. He lost 7-6, 6-0, 6-2.
Those examples and others make it very unlikely Sampras's physical problems are coincidences or one-time happenings. It is believed the condition (which is in no way life threatening) has forced the 25-year-old American to shorten some of his practice sessions because if he overdoes it he can have the same reaction he has during long, drawn-out tournament matches.
"A mild degree of anemia might not affect him too much," said Toronto hematologist Dr. William Francombe. "Marilyn Bell swam Lake Ontario [in 1954] and she was mildly anemic. But I wouldn't say something like that without some numbers [lab tests]."
"It is possible he has a degree of anemia but is so physically fit he can cope. But then if it goes past a certain point, he reaches exhaustion."
Sampras's wins over Goran Ivanisevic on Saturday and Chang on Sunday were remarkable considering the ordeal he went through against Corretja. He was, however, helped by the cooler temperatures of late afternoon starts and by poor performances by his opponents early in both matches, enabling him to gain confidence that he could win quickly.
Equally, he played superbly, serving rockets and cracking forehand drives that allowed him to finish off rallies quickly and conserve energy.
Delaina Mulcahy, Sampras's girlfriend, told CBS commentator Mary Carillo she hoped Sampras, who is still mourning the death of Tim Gullikson, would feel a "sense of closure" after winning his first Grand Slam title since his former coach died in May.
Gullikson's spirit couldn't pull Sampras through Roland Garros or Wimbledon earlier this summer, but it certainly succeeded in helping him survive a very perilous U.S. Open.