Hot News About Tennis

Wednesday, December 3, 2008

Sampras beats McEnroe in return to England

LONDON - A fast court, plenty of fast serves and a straight-sets win. It was all vintage Pete Sampras.

The seven-time Wimbledon champion played tennis in England on Wednesday for the first time since 2002, beating John McEnroe 6-3, 6-4 in a seniors match at the Royal Albert Hall.

“To be retired six years and still play in front of good crowds is an honor,” the 37-year-old Sampras said. “It was a fun night of tennis.”

On the court, Sampras dominated.

Wearing a dark blue shirt and white shorts — instead of the usual all-white attire he used to don at the All England Club in his heyday — Sampras served 19 aces, including three in the final game.

“That serve is just scary,” said the 49-year-old McEnroe, who wasted four break points in the opening game of the match. “It’s not often you get a chance to break a serve like that.”

In true McEnroe fashion, however, the seven-time Grand Slam champion wasn’t happy with all the calls.

“At 30-40 (in the first game), that serve, to me it was clearly out,” McEnroe said.

In the final game of the first set, McEnroe thought another of Sampras’ serves was out, but his opponent was all too happy to show him where it landed.

The record 14-time Grand Slam champion walked toward the net with a tennis ball held over his head, mimicking the trajectory of the previous shot. He approached the net, then hopped over it, continued walking toward the center service line and placed it down, right on the line.

“The ball was clearly in,” Sampras said later.

Despite the result, McEnroe played well, too, impressing the much younger Sampras with his fitness and his serving ability.

“I had a hard time sort of picking up his serve,” Sampras said. “To be 49 and be able to serve and volley and be effective, and has the hands and the movement.

“Forty-nine’s not young in tennis.”

McEnroe was even more impressed with Sampras, saying again he thinks the American great still has the ability to be playing on tour with Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer.

“They wouldn’t want to play him,” McEnroe said.

Sampras won three of the world’s four major tennis tournaments and McEnroe won two, but neither could claim a Grand Slam title on clay at the French Open. Sampras, however, was wishing for a little of the red dirt on Wednesday because the court at the Royal Albert Hall was too fast.

“Everyone thinks I like fast courts. I really don’t,” said Sampras, who also won five U.S. Opens and two Australian Opens. “I need time to break. I don’t need time to hold.

“Not to criticize it, but let’s put some clay on it or something.”

Sampras will next face Jeremy Bates on Friday before finishing Group A play against Cedric Pioline on Saturday.

That will give Sampras a day off on Thursday and a chance to visit the grass courts of Wimbledon for the first time since he lost to George Bastl in five sets at the 2002 tournament.

Sampras asked no one in particular if he needed to wear anything special to get into the club, and he was answered with a round of laughter.

“I know I’m a member,” said Sampras, obviously still bitter about losing in the second round at his final Wimbledon. “I haven’t been there since I was humiliated.”

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Federer cuts back clay court schedule

BASEL, Switzerland (AP) -Roger Federer will play only two clay-court tournaments in 2009 before the French Open, the only Grand Slam tournament he has never won.

Federer will head to Paris on May 24 after playing Masters series events on his least favorite surface in Rome and Madrid, according to a schedule published on his official Web site.

Federer played four clay-court events this year ahead of the French Open - Estoril, Portugal; Monte Carlo; Rome; and Hamburg, Germany. He lost to Rafael Nadal in the French Open final.

"I am really pleased with the season the way we have planned it and I am looking forward to an exciting year,'' Federer said.

Federer had a tough 2008 season marred by illness and a back injury. He surrendered his Wimbledon title and No. 1 ranking to Nadal, but won the U.S. Open for his 13th Grand Slam title.

Federer's agent, Tony Godsick, told The Associated Press in October that the Swiss star would play a 2009 schedule "that works for him physically.''

"He is not going to overplay next year,'' Godsick said. "He is just going to try to make sure that he peaks for the tournaments that mean the most to him.''

Federer has won five U.S. Opens, five Wimbledons and three Australian Opens but never captured the French, where he has lost to Nadal in the final three straight years.

Federer will start the year on hard courts at an invitation tournament in Abu Dhabi then play events at Doha, Qatar, and Kooyong, Australia, before the Australian Open starts Jan. 19 in Melbourne.

His grass-court schedule is unchanged with a single warmup for Wimbledon, at Halle, Germany.

Federer will defend his U.S. Open title from Aug. 31 after playing Masters events on hard courts at Montreal and Cincinnati.

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Sampras back in England to play seniors event

LONODON (AP) -Pete Sampras has long been preparing for the day when Roger Federer eclipses his record of 14 major tennis titles. He's now starting to come to grips with the fact that Rafael Nadal may be able to do it as well.

The 37-year-old Sampras, who is in London to play in a seniors tournament at the Royal Albert Hall, won the 2002 U.S. Open in his last competitive match, giving him 14 Grand Slam championships. Federer has 13 and Nadal has five, including the last four French Open titles.

"If you think about it, Rafa's got as good a chance to win double digits as anyone,'' Sampras said Tuesday. "I think Roger's going to break this record over the next couple of years. I think Rafa, he could win some more French's, he could win a couple more Wimbledons. He could have 10-12 majors when he's done, if not more.''

The 2008 season saw a shift on the tennis circuit from Federer's dominance to the ultimate rise of Nadal, who beat the former top-ranked Swiss to win both the French Open and Wimbledon and took over the No. 1 ranking.

This year's Wimbledon final was considered one of the greatest matches of all time, with Nadal winning 9-7 in the fifth set in near darkness.

"One guy had to win. It was Rafa's year,'' said Sampras, who won seven titles at the All England Club. "It was one of the best matches I've ever seen.''

But even though Nadal got the upper hand this past season - finally beating Federer on grass to snap his five-year winning streak at Wimbledon - Sampras believes Federer has plenty more titles to win.

"There's a lot left in him,'' Sampras said of Federer, whom he called a friend, adding they text each other regularly. "I think he's gotten to a stage where it's about the majors.''

As for next season, Sampras is already curious.

"It'll be interesting to see what happens with Nadal next year,'' Sampras said. "It takes so much work for him to keep it going, to stay healthy, to stay on top. That's one thing Roger has over him. I think it takes a lot less energy for Roger to stay on top.''

Sampras also talked about Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic, saying both are just a step below the top two players but a step above everyone else.

"He's right there with Nadal and Roger,'' Sampras said of the fourth-ranked Murray, adding that he hasn't been asked to give any advice to the British player. "I do know what it takes to win Wimbledon, if he wants advice on that.''

This week's BlackRock Masters tournament marks the first time Sampras has been to Britain since 2002, when he lost to George Bastl in five sets in the second round at Wimbledon.

"Last time I was here was a major low point, but I feel pretty good. At 37 I can still play pretty well,'' said Sampras, who won a seniors event in June in Brazil. "I can still serve and volley really well.''

If they would let him, Sampras would even put on his whites this week for another chance to get on the court at the All England Club - if only for practice.

"I've missed the place,'' said Sampras, who won three straight Wimbledon titles from 1993-95 before winning another four straight from 1997-2000. "I'd like to play on the court one more time. Take my kids there.

"There's no other place like it in the world.''

This week, Sampras will play John McEnroe, Jeremy Bates and Cedric Pioline in Group A of round robin play, starting with McEnroe on Wednesday. Greg Rusedski, Pat Cash and Guy Forget are in Group B.

"It's still competitive. We all have a lot of pride in playing well and winning,'' Sampras said of the seniors tour, before noting it's not exactly the same as when he was at his peak. "It's not like I need to come here and have to win the event. I mean I'd like to, but it's not like it used to be.

"That being said, people want to see me play well. And all the guys play well.''

He'll try to play better than he did in his last appearance in Britain, even if certain things rarely change.

"It's raining still,'' Sampras said with a smile as drizzle fell outside the Royal Albert Hall.

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