June 15, 2011
Once in a Lifetime: Sampras vs. Federer
By Ed McGrogan
A decade ago, Wimbledon set the stage for the only major showdown ever
between Pete Sampras and Roger Federer.
He is 29 years old --- a Leo --- is coached by Paul Annacone, has reached seven Wimbledon finals, wears Nike and wields a Wilson. He is Pete Sampras, winner of 53 of his last 54 matches at the All England Club, the majority of which were contested on tennis' grandest stage, Centre Court.
On the other side of the net, ready to serve, is Roger Federer, playing his first match in the venerable arena. Ten years Sampras' junior, Federer walked side-by-side with his idol just a few minutes earlier as the pair emerged from the player entrance, the one adorned with Kipling's famous words. Federer is adorned in Nike clothing --- his ubiquitous bandana and a loose fitting, long-sleeved shirt; it's in sharp contrast to his cream-colored cardigan and fitted, sharp jackets he'll don in later years. He wears a beaded necklace and ties his long hair into a ponytail; this is the 2001 Federer, not the vogue man of today with flowing, emulated locks.
It's the first time they've played, but Sampras is aware of Federer's abilities. He's watched him rise up the rankings and received advice from Annacone, who scouted Federer's previous match. "I'd seen him play and obviously knew he was incredibly gifted," says Annacone. "Pete didn't take Roger, or really anybody, for granted. He knew he was going to have, potentially, a very tough match."
The tone of this hors d'oeuvre --- to the main course of the Tim Henman - Todd Martin match to come, says the BBC commentator --- is set early on. The first swing of Federer's Wilson produces an ace, out wide. He would follow that with another ace and two unreturned serves in the next three points. "The pace of his serve sort of caught me off-guard," says Sampras 10 years later. Not to be outdone, the four-time defending champ collects his four points in the next game the same way.
The contest's first actual rally --- Federer first serve, Sampras backhand return up the middle, Federer backhand volley into net --- occurs on the first point of the third game, a game that highlights Federer's versatility. The Swiss shakes off this failed serve-and-volley foray and tries another, this time with success. He also cracks an inside-out forehand winner from the baseline, showing no trepidation in his reply to Sampras' adequate, deep return. It's 2-1, Federer. "He served and volleyed on most first serves, some seconds; stayed back, did a lot of different things," says Sampras. "He was one of the few players at the time who had an all-around, all-court game."
It's nearly 3-1, Federer; he's earned triple break point after three first-serve returns, all on the backhand side. ("I thought Roger returned really well," Annacone would go on to say.) But if Federer teased us with shots that would make him a champion, Sampras showed the time-honored talent that had made him one long ago. He plays a cool serve-and-volley point to erase the first chance, hits a confident second serve that elicits a Federer error, and puts the game on level terms with a sizzling ace that Federer barely reacts to. And just to remind his opponent of these gifts, Sampras pulls off a dexterous two-volley combo on the deuce point and ends the threat with an ace up the T. The battle has begun.
Not all "big points" take place in the final set of a match; after eight consecutive holds, a seemingly relaxed Federer and the veteran American are playing one, in a tiebreak. It's 4-3, Sampras, but moments ago it was 3-1, Federer. Federer goes for a big first serve. It clips the tape and darts wide of the chalk, which umpire Mohamed Layhani confirms. Sampras returns the ensuing second serve down the center but short, giving Federer a chance to attack. He declines, putting a forehand right back at Sampras, who carves a slice backhand down the line. Rushing toward the ball, Federer decides this is the time to strike. His scooping, cross-court forehand hangs in the air but plummets just in time to catch the chalk, leaving Sampras staring at the lineswoman for confirmation. Her hands remain clasped; it's in.
More crucial exchanges follow. Sampras earns a set point with an unreturned 121 MPH second serve; Federer responds with a service winner of his own. When Federer gets his first set point, at 7-6, it's Sampras who negates it with a serve. But at 8-7, Federer, he's the one serving. Federer hits a good one, but Sampras returns it with his backhand. Federer approaches and hits a low volley, forcing Sampras to hit a difficult backhand up the line. It finds the net, and Federer finds himself up a set. "He impressed me with his temperament in that situation, where he's probably a little bit intimidated," says Sampras. "But he handled himself great and outplayed me, especially on the big points."
Losing a set at Wimbledon wasn't unheard of for Sampras; in the second round, against 265th-ranked Barry Cowan, he was pushed the distance. Against Federer, Sampras replied by winning a hard-fought second set, 7-5, rendering this fourth-round match a best-of-three. But when Federer claimed the third set, 6-4, and a two-sets-to-one lead, there was a palpable buzz in the crowd and visible concern in Sampras' row of the player box. Still, Annacone remained optimistic. "As the coach of somebody like Pete, at that stage, you always feel like he's going to win --- because he generally did."
A paragon of pragmatism, Annacone had one big reason to stay confident: his charge's serve. Sampras lost just eight points on it in the fourth set, which required a tiebreak after 12 holds. Flicking some wonderful half-volleys along the way, Sampras twice had chances to break at 4-3, but Federer's serve was on par, at least in terms of effectiveness. Speed sided with Sampras, who unleashed 134 and 136 MPH bolts in the breaker. When Federer misplayed a routine volley into net at 1-all in the overtime, handing over a mini-break lead, it was all the edge Sampras needed. But the ultimate decision was still in doubt.
"I didn't expect Roger to let down at all," said Sampras. "I just felt that he's a young kid and was going to be fine. I didn't feel like I had him at any time of the match. I basically tied it up; let's go again, one set to see who wins this thing."
Much like grass-court tennis itself, the fifth set is a series of quick reactions. When Federer puts a forehand pass up the line to snare a point on Sampras' serve, Sampras answers with his own applause-inducing winner over the highest part of the net. When Federer accrues his 25th ace to pass Sampras in the count and hold for 4-3, the Sultan of Serve immediately hits his 25th ace in the first point of the next game, a game that Federer would push to 30-all before Sampras holds for 4-4.
Naturally, Sampras would get to 30-all on Federer's subsequent service game. Like Sampras, Federer would hold, but not before saving two break points, the first with a nerve-wracking, high backhand volley after digging out a well-placed, low return of serve. This would be the last time these two played, and these would be the last great opportunities for Sampras to defeat Federer. "There wasn't anything out of the ordinary in the match and nothing I walked off saying, 'Wow, I should have done this, should've done that,'" said Sampras. "I just think, 'You had your chance on that surface, you didn't get it.'"
Three games later, Federer's great opportunity presented itself. He started the 6-5 game with a clean backhand winner off a second serve, then watched Sampras get too far underneath a forehand volley, sending it long. 0-30, and the volume of the patrons intensified.
At 15-30, Sampras again mistimed a volley, putting it into net. Federer had reached double match point; Sampras retreated to the service line with a look of disbelief. It all happened so quickly, as these things do, despite the Rolex clock reading 3:41. It was a quick final point, too. Sampras' first serve pushed Federer slightly to his right, but with a whipping, roundhouse forehand, the teenager positioned his strings in the exact location for maximum effect. Shooting downward, the ball fell inside the lines, Federer fell to his knees in tears and Sampras fell as four-time defending champion, 7-6 (7), 5-7, 6-4, 6-7 (2), 7-5. If this was the hors d'oeuvre, it was worthy of a multi-Michelin starred restaurant.
"You could always say, 'Oh, [Pete's] never going to lose,' or you could say, 'Jeez, he's bound to lose once in a while,'" says Annacone, "But Pete didn't fall by the wayside, or play terrible. It was just one of those matches that's a few points here or there, and Roger did a great job of executing where it really mattered. It was one of the first glimpses of his greatness."
A few moments later, after remembering to bow toward the Royal Box --- Sampras' gesture a few seconds earlier reminding him of the decorum --- Federer walked off the court, side-by-side with his idol. He would call the achievement "the biggest win of my life." Sampras recognized its significance as well.
"That match was a symbol of what the future was in store for him and a little bit for me," says Sampras. "Walking off the court, I just felt, 'Wow.' He really had a complete game, didn't have any weaknesses --- and I felt like if he puts it together, he can do a lot of great things in the sport."
He is 29 years old --- a Leo --- is coached by Paul Annacone, has reached seven Wimbledon finals, wears Nike and wields a Wilson. He is Roger Federer, winner of 51 of his last 53 matches at the All England Club. He's "the favorite at Wimbledon" this year --- 2011 --- according to Sampras. And according to Annacone, he knows exactly how to prepare for this year's Championships, despite a quarterfinal exit last season.
"After spending time training with Roger and being around Pete for so many years, they both understand why and how they play their best tennis," says Annacone. "They use past experiences and understand the current trends. Roger's grass-court era is played much more from the back of the court, there's longer points, there's different things that come into play. Pete's era was more target tennis, serving and volleying, how well you returned --- things like that. The strategies have changed but the mentalities remain the same."
Normally, a loss in the round of eight wouldn't be cause for concern, but since Federer defeated Sampras 10 years ago, he's supplanted his idol's record for Grand Slam singles titles and, prior to last season, hadn't missed a Wimbledon final since 2002. Federer also missed the 2001 final, but his victory over Sampras that year is widely acknowledged as the impetus that helped him become a six-time Wimbledon champion.
"That match showed his talent," says Sampras. "Even though he beat me in that match it still took him a little bit of time to dominate the game. It's historic: I was the player of my decade, he's the player of his decade, and we had that one great match, and then we sort of missed each other. I think of that as a little bit unfortunate, that we didn't play each other in our prime; I think it would have been good stuff. We just had that one cross meeting and he got the better of me."