"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." is a famous quote said by Pete Sampras. Have you ever wondered whom the greatest tennis player is of all time? Is it Roger Federer, Ivan Lendl, or John McEnroe? No. Pete Sampras is the best tennis player of all time. Roger Federer is close behind him, but with the titles Pete has won, I think he is the greatest player ever. Pete Sampras has and had many records that can prove he is the best. He has 14 Grand Slam titles including 7 Wimbledon, 5 U.S. Opens, and 2 Aussie Open wins. With 64 titles including 14 Grand Slams he has more titles than Roger Federer. Pete had more records than anyone in his time.
With 10 records during his time Pete wasn't going to be beaten in all of those for decades to come. Pete had a record of most weeks as number one with 286 weeks. He was recently passed by Roger Federer, which stripped one record from him. A back-injury ended the 302-weeks streak, but the humble Roger Federer wouldn't make an excuse and he faced the facts. Pete also has a record for the most year-ends as number one with 6. Six year-ends are outstanding. That means he was number one for five complete years. Last, he was the youngest person to win a grand slam, and one of the youngest to go pro.
"Everything I did worked, "Pete Sampras would say after he won his first U.S. Open at 19. At the early age of 16, Pete Sampras, became one of the youngest to become a professional tennis player. (biography.com) Not only does he have a lot of records, but also he has a ton of Grand Slam wins.
Seven Wimbledon titles in 8 years and three of the wins were in straight sets. That's how Pistol Pete rolls. 1988, Pete Sampras, one of the best tennis players ever, turned pro. (biography.com) 1993 was the first year he won, beating Jim Courier in the finals 7-6(7-3), 7-6(8-6), 3-6, 6-3. 1994 was the second win for Sampras. Pete beat Goran Ivanišević in straight sets. 7-6(7-2), 7-6(7-5), 6-0. The next year he beat Boris Becker 6-7(5-7), 6-2, 6-4, 6-2. In 1996 Pete Sampras lost to the 17 seed, Richard Krajicek, who won the tournament. That would be Pete's only Wimbledon loss between 1993-2000. 1997 The champion was back. He beat Cédric Pioline in straight sets 6-4, 6-2, 6-4. 1998 Pete defended his title by beating Goran Ivanišević 6-7(2-7), 7-6(11-9), 6-4, 3-6, 6-2. The following year Pete Sampras beat his archrival, Andre Agassi 6-3, 6-4, 7-5. He also tied with Roy Emerson's 12 Grand Slam titles. 2000 Pete Sampras defeated Patrick Rafter 6-7(10-12), 7-6(7-5), 6-4, 6-2. Pete not only had 7 Wimbledon titles, but he had 5 U.S. Open titles. 1990 was not only Pete's first U.S. Open, but it was also his first Grand Slam win. Pete Sampras defeated Andre Agassi 6-4, 6-3, 6-2. www.biography.com states "In 1990, Sampras, the fifth ranked player in the world, powered his way through the U.S. Open, defeating Ivan Lendl and John McEnroe on his way to the finals. There, in a showdown of America's young guns, Sampras beat Agassi in straight sets to become the tournament's youngest-ever champion." 1993 Pete beat Cédric Pioline 6-4, 6-4, 6-3. 1995 Pete Sampras defeated Andre Agassi again 6-4, 6-3, 4-6, 7-5. In 1996 Pete beat Michael Chang 6-1, 6-4, 7-6(7-3) with almost no competition. 2000 Pete Sampras lost in the finals to Marat Safin 6-4, 6-3, 6-3. 2001 was a tough year at the U.S. Open for the 4-time winner. He lost to Lleyton Hewitt 7-6(7-4), 6-1, 6-1, in the finals. The 2002 U.S. Open was Pistol Pete's last tournament and he was going to shine. On his last tournament he was able to beat his rival one more time. The match would seem closer than it actually was. 6-3, 6-4, 5-7, 6-4, was the final score. Pete had two wins in the Aussie open and none in the French Open. Pete Sampras defeated Todd Martin 7-6(4), 6-4, 6-4, in the 1994 Australian Open. It wouldn't be until 1997 when Pete won his second title. Pete Sampras defeated Todd Martin 7-6(4), 6-4, 6-4, with a very aggressive serve on both sides. You don't win 14 grand slams without making some rivals.
Sampras has beaten many people and has made many rivals. Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras had one of the biggest rivals in tennis history. With one of the most interesting careers ever, Agassi had eight Grand Slam titles. He is part of the few that have won all Grand Slam titles. The rivalry Agassi and Sampras is still one of the greatest rivalries to tennis. (www.ibtimes.com) One U.S. Open Sampras beat many top players at that time to win the tournament. Another huge fan rivalry is Pete Sampras and Roger Federer. The one time they player Pete was on his last year on tour. Roger won, but in 5 sets. The reason I use Roger Federer and not John McEnroe is because Pete and Roger played at two different times. Federer is still on tour, but he won't be able to play for much longer. There is no actual way to tell who is better. Pete Sampras is more aggressive where Roger is very consistent and gets the majority of his balls back and into the court. Roger does have more Grand Slam titles, but he has played longer than Pete. Pete and Goran Ivanišević also had a small Wimbledon rivalry. Rafael Nadal says, "Personally, to watch a Pete Sampras versus Goran Ivanisevic match, or one between those kind of players, is not enjoyable. It's not really tennis, it is a few swings of the racquet." The style of play that Pete and Goran have is so aggressive that the points are very short. Who is the best tennis player of all time? What does make a person the best tennis player? What has changed with racquet technology that can affect the best tennis player? I personally think that Pete Sampras is the best tennis player of all time. Prize money does not determine how good you are at tennis because tournaments have been giving more and more money as the years progress. Racquets have gone from wood to metal and the strings don't even look like the same invention. If you think that some modern player is the best, then learn the difference of then and now.

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