What's the ?Sampras curse"?
Pete Sampras' quest to lay waste to the current ATP, thus preserving his claim of having played in a stronger era.
Plays Federer in a series of exhibitions in Macau in fall of 2007 and Madison Square Garden in spring of 2008. What happens? Fed contracts a case of mono, loses to Djokovic in the semis of AO 2008, loses a heartbreaking Wimbledon final to Nadal and relinquishes his #1 ranking.
More recently, played that exhibition with the Bryan Brothers, and then they proceed to lose in the first round of a GS for the first time.
There are plenty more examples.
The only person known to have survived the Sampras curse is Novak Djokovic - "The Boy Who Lived". He only had dinner with Pete.