U.S Tennis Star Pete Sampras
American Tennis players Pete Sampras was born in Washington on August 12, 1971. The former world number one tennis player who played with an offensive strategy was an all court player. Even with his second serves, he was famous for producing aces on critical junctures of the match. The most dangerous weapon in his armory was his accurate and powerful serve.
Sampras was also able to reply against attacks which were wide on his forehand. Sampras used his speed and movement in the court to great affect which is why he was known for having arguably the best "running forehand" of all time. He has won 14 Grand Slam men's singles titles during his 15 year career.
Sampras showed signs of outstanding athletic ability from an early age. He used to spend hours hitting the tennis ball against a wall in his childhood years. At the age of 11, he played with his mentor Rod Laver to improve his game further. His talent became more visible after he joined the Jack Kramer Club. Peter Fischer, a tennis enthusiast spotted his talent and coached Sampras until 1989.
Pete Sampras made his debut in 1988 at the age of 16. He lost his first professional match to Sammy Giammalva at the February Ebel U.S. Pro Indoor in Philadelphia. But just within a gap of one week, Sampras defeated two top 40 players in the Lipton International players Championship in Miami. His fans throughout his career appreciated his smooth and calm manner of playing. Sampras has won 12 Grand Slam titles since his first win in the U.S Open in 1990 at the age of 19. For six consecutive years, from 1993-1998, he was ranked as the number one player in the world. Sampras impressed with his great performances in 1996 when he won 8 different titles. Pete made it to the final against Greg Rusedski in the Paris indoors only to lose against the Brit. He then advanced to the semi-finals of the ATP Championships three weeks later in Germany and clinched the top ranking once again. Sampras cherishes this accomplishment more than any other throughout his career.
In 1999, Sampras finally left some room at the top by slipping from the top rankings. Sampras missed many important events after being hampered by a nagging leg injury during the first few months of the season. Back to full health by the start of June, Sampras cruised through the draw at Wimbledon and beat Tim Henman at the Queen’s club in the final. A herniated disk sidelined him from going into the 99th U.S Open at the time when he was in a position to regain the top ranking once again. However, Pete on a high note towards the end of the year wiped out his rival Agassi in the final of the ATP Championship. Agassi took his revenge by defeating Pete in an epic five-set duel in the semifinals of the Australian Open 2000. Pete toured a hip flexor during the match that needed two months to heal. Even then, Pete somehow managed to reach the Grand Slam Final and even cruised to a four-set victory. This win gave Pete his record-breaking 13th Grand Slam title. With his parents who were on hand to see Sampras in a major final since 1992, the scenario made it all the more special.
During the 2001 season, Pete failed to register a win in the first eight months of the year. He reached three finals in 2001, only to lose against Tommy Haas and Andre Agassi. The year closed with his lowest ranking in 12 years which had seen Sampras plummet to the number 10th in the world. In 2002, he hired Brett Stephens as his personal trainer with a training regimen that included weightlifting, sprints and one-on-one volleyball.
Sampras resurfaced and played his first exhibition match after three-and-a-half years of his retirement on April 6, 2006. As they say, what goes up must come down. Sampras saw the peak in his career but someone had to replace him. Roger Federer may not have the class, but the battle for the number one slot continues to rage on in the world of tennis.
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