Pete Sampras
Pete Sampras
Petros "Pete" Samprasis a retired American tennis player and former world No. 1 regarded as one of the greatest players in tennis history. He debuted on the professional tour in 1988 and finished his career at the 2002 US Open, which he won, defeating rival Andre Agassi in the final. He was particularly esteemed for his precise serve, earning the nickname "Pistol Pete"...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionTennis Player
Date of Birth12 August 1971
CityPotomac, MD
CountryUnited States of America
Choking is being in a position to win, and then experiencing some critical failure of nerve or spirit. That never happened to me. And I can't help but think it was because I was never afraid to lose.
After I went through two years of not winning an event, what kept me going was winning one more major. Once I won that last U.S. Open, I spent the next six months trying to figure out what was next. Slowly my passion for the sport just vanished. I had nothing left to prove.
Retirement is a work in progress. I try to figure out my day, and what I know about myself is that I need structure.
I am going to hold serve the majority of the time. It is nice to have a little time to return serve.
By putting pressure on myself to develop a great game, I had less pressure to win. These days, I tell kids that the way I grew up, it wasn't about winning. It was about playing well, about playing the "right" way. That approach helped me enjoy the game and develop mine to its maximum potential.
In tennis, you can make a couple of mistakes and still win.
Golfers are forever working on mechanics. My tennis swing hasn't changed in 10 years.
There's always one shot that I can rely on when I'm not hitting the ball that well, is my serve.
If Davis Cup was a little bit less or once every two years, I would be more inclined to play. But the way it is now, it is too much tennis for me
People know me. I'm not going to produce any cartwheels out there. I'm not going to belong on Comedy Central. I'll always be a tennis player, not a celebrity
My goal one day is to be in the same sentence as Rod Laver and Ken Rosewall.
I could be a jerk and get a lot more publicity, but that's not who I am.
When I committed to playing a little tennis in some exhibitions, it was the best thing for me. It got me in shape. It got me out of the house. It got me doing something I love to do.
I didn't have a big fat Greek wedding, but I have a lot of fat Greek friends.