noone else excited about Sampras-Federer matches next month?

BeHappy · 10-22-2007, 08:35 AM

I definitely am, if Agassi, who is about half as talented as Sampras can take a set off Fed in a 5 setter ona medium paced hard court, just imagine what Sampras can do on a lightning fast indoor court!!!,
sounds like they're both taking it seriously too:

Sampras, Federer prepare to battle

It will be a high noon showdown when reigning king Roger Federer [Images] meets his predecessor Pete Sampras in a fascinating duel in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on November 22.

The Clash of Times battle between the two most successful players in the last two decades -- part of the 50th anniversary celebrations of Malaysia -- will go some way towards resolving the debate on who is the better player.

The clash is being tipped as greatest match-up in sporting history -- on par with the famous 'Rumble in the Jungle' between Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier, Bobby Moore's England [Images] taking on Pele and Brazil [Images] in the football World Cup in 1970, or the 'Miracle on Ice' classic between the United States and the Soviet Union at the 1980 Winter Olympics [Images].

"It will be electric," said Sampras, who lost 7-6(7), 5-7, 6-4, 6-7(2), 7-5 to Federer at Wimbledon in the fourth round in 2001, the only time the duo faced-off.

"Roger and I playing each other is great for the game of tennis. It will definitely create a lot of interest. I am sure I will be a little nervous as there is a lot of history there."

Sampras retired in 2002 after defeating Andre Agassi [Images] to win his record 14th Grand Slam title. Federer, who won his first Slam in 2003, is only two short of the American's record.

"I hold the record for most Grand Slam titles ever but I am confident that Roger will break that record someday. For us to play each other while I am still young enough to play very competitively is truly special. Having this take place in Malaysia is remarkable for tennis in Asia," Sampras added.

Roger FedererFor Federer, 26, it is a "dream come true" to play the man whose shoes he has filled so admirably since bursting on to the scene in 2001.

"The only time I ever played Pete was in my first Centre Court appearance at Wimbledon in that famous match which I won 7-5 in the fifth set. I was still very young and Pete was clearly reigning at that time," said Federer.

"I am so excited to play Pete. There is no doubt that we will play some great tennis."

The Federer Xpress, as he is known due to his ability to 'roll through' even the best players in a express train fashion, may break the Grand Slam title record as early as next year at Wimbledon or the US Open.

The two legends will play a best-of-three sets match and while time has caught up with Sampras, 36, the American is fit and has prepared seriously for the duel.

"I practiced with Roger in March and this has given me confidence as I felt that I really could hold my own. I can still serve very well. And playing Roger competitively will be so special. It will be two players who have a similar temperament playing some great tennis for the sake of history. Both of us like to let our rackets do the talking", said Sampras.

Federer is wary of the threat posed by his predecessor. With his reputation at stake, he promises to give it his all.

"After practicing together and seeing how well Pete can still play, I felt we should share our brand of tennis with the fans," said Federer, who holds the record of longest reigning world No.1 ranked player.

"Pete and I practiced together earlier this year at his home in Los Angeles and the tennis was fantastic. Although I will not get into who won the practice tie-breakers and sets we played, I will say that the tennis was of very high quality.

"We both felt that for the good of tennis we should play in front of the tennis public and we are now putting this into practice. I am excited about playing Pete as he dominated tennis for many years but more importantly, he went about a decade of playing and winning matches, tournaments and Grand Slam titles demonstrating the utmost sportsmanship," added the five-time Wimbledon champion.

Demand for tickets for the all-time greats' showdown has been immense with the best seats selling out in one weekend and 12,000-seat area is nearly sold out. The match is expected to be televised to over 100 countries and to attract one of the largest television audiences in tennis history.

The Clash of Times is one of three events which comprise the 'one of a kind' Malaysia Independence Tennis Festival -- the second being a challenge match featuring world No 2 and three-time French Open champion Rafael Nadal [Images] on November 20 against French top player and Wimbledon semi-finalist Richard Gasquet.

The third element of the tennis extravaganza takes place at the national Tennis Centre in Kuala Lumpur is the world's richest ATP Challenger Series event and will be held from November 17-25.

Mr. Hokey · 10-22-2007, 08:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BeHappy

I definitely am, if Agassi, who is about half as talented as Sampras can take a set off Fed in a 5 setter ona medium paced hard court, just imagine what Sampras can do on a lightning fast indoor court!!!,
sounds like they're both taking it seriously too:

haha, this kinda confused me.

but yea i'm pretty excited for it too. too bad they couldn't have been in their primes at the same time. that would've been quite a rivalry.

BeHappy · 10-22-2007, 08:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mr. Hokey

haha, this kinda confused me.

but yea i'm pretty excited for it too. too bad they couldn't have been in their primes at the same time. that would've been quite a rivalry.

us open final

Mr. Hokey · 10-22-2007, 09:29 AM

yea... perhaps i'm just taking it too literal.

cuz if he only took a set, it would've been a 4 setter.

Marius_Hancu · 10-22-2007, 09:33 AM

Of course I'm very interested by the matches.

Tchocky · 10-22-2007, 11:44 AM

I think TTC is going to televise all three matches. I don't expect high quality tennis.

superman1 · 10-22-2007, 11:55 AM

If Sampras and Agassi played today, Sampras would get his *** kicked.

Sampras' game didn't age quite as well as Andre's.

caesar66 · 10-22-2007, 12:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by superman1

If Sampras and Agassi played today, Sampras would get his *** kicked.

Sampras' game didn't age quite as well as Andre's.

I agree. Agassi could possibly still be top 100 material, maybe higher, if not for the back trouble. In James Blake's book he talks about playing Agassi once Andre had retired and had some time off and him still playing incredibly high level tennis. I really doubt they are both taking it seriously, Fed is doing it for fun I'm sure and Sampras has said on record that he's just hoping to hold a few service games.

quest01 · 10-22-2007, 04:03 PM

Im looking forward to watching this match. Hopefully its a close match.

FedForGOAT · 10-22-2007, 04:06 PM

Sampras played some low ranked ATP players and lost. That said, He is playing on a surface that suits him and would like to show his worth against Fed. A real match would be exciting, but this is an exo so the players always split the first two sets and the third is played normally. Fed in three unless he doesn't take it seriously in which case sampras might win.

World Beater · 10-22-2007, 07:19 PM

its an exho. the quality will be shi$.

federer wont play seriously and all we will see from sampras is some big serves.

musicalmedic81 · 10-23-2007, 05:52 AM

This is like the exact plot line of the lastest Rocky movie "Rocky Balboa". You have the champion of today that is so dominant that he rarely sees a challenge, then you have the champion of yesterday who at first just wants to play a few small tournaments to stay fit, but then gets persuaded to take on the current number one in the world in a battle of the ages. Anyone who has seen the movie would have to know its pretty close.

harrpau7 · 10-23-2007, 10:42 AM

if I were a betting man, I would expect Federer to win the 1st match, then take it slighty easy on Sampras in the 2nd and Pistol Pete to pull out a tight victory, then the 3rd match to go to a 3rd set breaker with Fed winning.

That way Sampras doesn't get embarrased, Federer doesn't lose face and both players walk away with victories.

10-23-2007, 02:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by superman1

If Sampras and Agassi played today, Sampras would get his *** kicked.

Sampras' game didn't age quite as well as Andre's.

First I would like to reiterate that these exhibitions I think are a total waste of time because of the age difference and Sampras not playing on the tour for 5 years.

As Sampras' game ageing, Sampras was able to win the US Open in 2002 because he had learned some serious lessons from 2001. I watched his rd 16 US Open match against Haas 2 weeks ago because I was going to make 16 five minute clips of the match to put on youtube (I've decided not to put them unfortunately because youtube are removing all slam matches as the Federations are complaining, ATP/WTA matches are still ok)

In that match, Sampras stayed back on 2nd serve more in the first two sets than he did in the whole of 2001, and he was winning all of those points when he did. He also stayed back on serve quite a lot in the 1st two rounds, against Rusedski and Roddick in the quarterfinal. In the semifinal against Scheng Schalken (who has a beautiful backhand), Sampras was striking the ball better off the ground than he did for a long time, and was in prime form for the final against Agassi. Sampras had played himself into form by playing much more rallies. In 2000 and 2001, he was chipping and charging a lot more too trying to end the point too soon. In the final against Agassi he only chipped and charged when he had a breakpoint opportunity, he was feeling much more confident.

Sampras always said in 2002/2003 that he was prepared to try a bigger racquet and the Tour 90 was designed for him (which Federer used to win his 1st Wimbledon), plus he was willing to try new strings.

I think had Sampras continued to play in 2003/2004 with the new raquet and strings, plus mixing up his game like he always did pre 2000, he would have been competitive. I'm not saying he would have won lots of slams but I think he would have been competitive still giving the young guys good matches. I think a change in equipment would have rejuvenated his enthusiasm. He hit the ball as hard as anyone with the old technology, just imagine him with the new technology even at the age of 31.

federerfanatic · 10-23-2007, 02:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by laurie

First I would like to reiterate that these exhibitions I think are a total waste of time because of the age difference and Sampras not playing on the tour for 5 years.

As Sampras' game ageing, Sampras was able to win the US Open in 2002 because he had learned some serious lessons from 2001. I watched his rd 16 US Open match against Haas 2 weeks ago because I was going to make 16 five minute clips of the match to put on youtube (I've decided not to put them unfortunately because youtube are removing all slam matches as the Federations are complaining, ATP/WTA matches are still ok)

In that match, Sampras stayed back on 2nd serve more in the first two sets than he did in the whole of 2001, and he was winning all of those points when he did. He also stayed back on serve quite a lot in the 1st two rounds, against Rusedski and Roddick in the quarterfinal. In the semifinal against Scheng Schalken (who has a beautiful backhand), Sampras was striking the ball better off the ground than he did for a long time, and was in prime form for the final against Agassi. Sampras had played himself into form by playing much more rallies. In 2000 and 2001, he was chipping and charging a lot more too trying to end the point too soon. In the final against Agassi he only chipped and charged when he had a breakpoint opportunity, he was feeling much more confident.

Sampras always said in 2002/2003 that he was prepared to try a bigger racquet and the Tour 90 was designed for him (which Federer used to win his 1st Wimbledon), plus he was willing to try new strings.

I think had Sampras continued to play in 2003/2004 with the new raquet and strings, plus mixing up his game like he always did pre 2000, he would have been competitive. I'm not saying he would have won lots of slams but I think he would have been competitive still giving the young guys good matches. I think a change in equipment would have rejuvenated his enthusiasm. He hit the ball as hard as anyone with the old technology, just imagine him with the new technology even at the age of 31.

Interesting comments on the 2002 U.S Open. You definitely look to be on to something there. It is a shame in a way he did not continue but I guess he was ready to move onto to a new life.

Shaolin · 10-23-2007, 02:41 PM

I think they will be competitive.

Sampras is going to be driven and out there to kick *****. Fed has too much respect for Pete to give a token effort. There will be a lot of sick points Im sure. Scorelines of 7-5, 6-3 for Fed with fans coming away very happy to have seen it.

Nadal_Freak · 10-23-2007, 03:07 PM

2 most boring players in tennis against each other? I'm not going to even watch.

italianpro · 10-23-2007, 03:14 PM

If he wasn't so stubborn, he would have switched racquets & strings, probably would have won that elusive French title

footsteps · 10-23-2007, 03:22 PM

i will be in malaysia watching these titans battle.

Rhino · 10-23-2007, 04:14 PM

This is getting silly. They'd have a Laver vs. Djokovic exhibition if they thought people would buy tickets.

10-22-2007, 08:35 AM	#1
BeHappy Hall Of Fame Join Date: Aug 2007 Posts: 4,444	noone else excited about Sampras-Federer matches next month? I definitely am, if Agassi, who is about half as talented as Sampras can take a set off Fed in a 5 setter ona medium paced hard court, just imagine what Sampras can do on a lightning fast indoor court!!!, sounds like they're both taking it seriously too: Sampras, Federer prepare to battle It will be a high noon showdown when reigning king Roger Federer [Images] meets his predecessor Pete Sampras in a fascinating duel in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on November 22. The Clash of Times battle between the two most successful players in the last two decades -- part of the 50th anniversary celebrations of Malaysia -- will go some way towards resolving the debate on who is the better player. The clash is being tipped as greatest match-up in sporting history -- on par with the famous 'Rumble in the Jungle' between Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier, Bobby Moore's England [Images] taking on Pele and Brazil [Images] in the football World Cup in 1970, or the 'Miracle on Ice' classic between the United States and the Soviet Union at the 1980 Winter Olympics [Images]. "It will be electric," said Sampras, who lost 7-6(7), 5-7, 6-4, 6-7(2), 7-5 to Federer at Wimbledon in the fourth round in 2001, the only time the duo faced-off. "Roger and I playing each other is great for the game of tennis. It will definitely create a lot of interest. I am sure I will be a little nervous as there is a lot of history there." Sampras retired in 2002 after defeating Andre Agassi [Images] to win his record 14th Grand Slam title. Federer, who won his first Slam in 2003, is only two short of the American's record. "I hold the record for most Grand Slam titles ever but I am confident that Roger will break that record someday. For us to play each other while I am still young enough to play very competitively is truly special. Having this take place in Malaysia is remarkable for tennis in Asia," Sampras added. Roger FedererFor Federer, 26, it is a "dream come true" to play the man whose shoes he has filled so admirably since bursting on to the scene in 2001. "The only time I ever played Pete was in my first Centre Court appearance at Wimbledon in that famous match which I won 7-5 in the fifth set. I was still very young and Pete was clearly reigning at that time," said Federer. "I am so excited to play Pete. There is no doubt that we will play some great tennis." The Federer Xpress, as he is known due to his ability to 'roll through' even the best players in a express train fashion, may break the Grand Slam title record as early as next year at Wimbledon or the US Open. The two legends will play a best-of-three sets match and while time has caught up with Sampras, 36, the American is fit and has prepared seriously for the duel. "I practiced with Roger in March and this has given me confidence as I felt that I really could hold my own. I can still serve very well. And playing Roger competitively will be so special. It will be two players who have a similar temperament playing some great tennis for the sake of history. Both of us like to let our rackets do the talking", said Sampras. Federer is wary of the threat posed by his predecessor. With his reputation at stake, he promises to give it his all. "After practicing together and seeing how well Pete can still play, I felt we should share our brand of tennis with the fans," said Federer, who holds the record of longest reigning world No.1 ranked player. "Pete and I practiced together earlier this year at his home in Los Angeles and the tennis was fantastic. Although I will not get into who won the practice tie-breakers and sets we played, I will say that the tennis was of very high quality. "We both felt that for the good of tennis we should play in front of the tennis public and we are now putting this into practice. I am excited about playing Pete as he dominated tennis for many years but more importantly, he went about a decade of playing and winning matches, tournaments and Grand Slam titles demonstrating the utmost sportsmanship," added the five-time Wimbledon champion. Demand for tickets for the all-time greats' showdown has been immense with the best seats selling out in one weekend and 12,000-seat area is nearly sold out. The match is expected to be televised to over 100 countries and to attract one of the largest television audiences in tennis history. The Clash of Times is one of three events which comprise the 'one of a kind' Malaysia Independence Tennis Festival -- the second being a challenge match featuring world No 2 and three-time French Open champion Rafael Nadal [Images] on November 20 against French top player and Wimbledon semi-finalist Richard Gasquet. The third element of the tennis extravaganza takes place at the national Tennis Centre in Kuala Lumpur is the world's richest ATP Challenger Series event and will be held from November 17-25. __________________ shazaam!!!

10-22-2007, 09:29 AM	#4
Mr. Hokey Rookie Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 263	yea... perhaps i'm just taking it too literal. cuz if he only took a set, it would've been a 4 setter. __________________ Yonex RQiS Tour 1 XL 95 Serve and Volley isn't dead, it was just taking a vacation.

10-22-2007, 09:33 AM	#5
Marius_Hancu G.O.A.T. Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Montreal, Canada Posts: 15,002	Of course I'm very interested by the matches. __________________ Great fitness sites http://tt.tennis-warehouse.com/showthread.php?t=15571 "Simon and Hiroko": My Novels on Amazon

10-22-2007, 11:44 AM	#6
Tchocky Hall Of Fame Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: The OC Posts: 3,801	I think TTC is going to televise all three matches. I don't expect high quality tennis. __________________ The significant problems we face cannot be solved by the same level of thinking that created them.

10-23-2007, 05:52 AM	#12
musicalmedic81 Semi-Pro Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: North Carolina USA Posts: 735	This is like the exact plot line of the lastest Rocky movie "Rocky Balboa". You have the champion of today that is so dominant that he rarely sees a challenge, then you have the champion of yesterday who at first just wants to play a few small tournaments to stay fit, but then gets persuaded to take on the current number one in the world in a battle of the ages. Anyone who has seen the movie would have to know its pretty close. __________________ Bjorn.....POWWWW!!!!