History was in the air from the very start in 2000; the
new millennium bringing with it great changes at the All
England Club. The Millennium Building - built on the site
of the old No.1 Court - was opened with extensive new facilities
for players and members of the press.
To mark the arrival of 2000, the club celebrated nearly
70 years of its history with a parade of former champions.
The seats were packed on the middle Saturday as 64 winners
of singles and doubles titles lined up the famous court.
From Sidney Wood, the 1931 champion, and the 93-year-old
Bunny Austin, through to Rod Laver, Margaret Court and Billie
Jean King and on to John McEnroe and Bjorn Borg, they were
introduced to the crowd, took their applause and then posed
for their photographs. The stellar gathering was led by
Andre Agassi, the link with the present, who, wrapped in
a track suit, appeared first and then sprinted off to prepare
for his match. An historic occasion, indeed.
Then there was Pete Sampras. He declined his invitation
to attend the parade as he had more pressing matters on
his mind. For most of his career he had been rewriting history
and as he came to The Championships for the 12th successive
year, his CV already looked very impressive. But there was
one record left to be broken, one more chapter left to write.
The year before, on Centre Court, he had equalled Roy Emerson's
tally of 12 grand slam singles titles. Now he could beat
it.
The problem was that he was not the same player who had
demolished Agassi in the final 12 months before. A serious
back injury had scuppered the end of 1999 - even if he did
manage to win the ATP Tour championships in Hanover - and
since then he had won only one title. His back was still
a problem and the long haul around the clay courts had done
his confidence little good.
Still, Wimbledon was where Sampras felt most at home and
none but the most foolish were prepared to write him off.
He had lost only one match in seven years in SW19 and, as
he walked through the gates, the All England Club had its
usual, magical effect on the great man.
All was well for a round and then, taking on Karol Kucera
on a dark and gloomy evening, the unthinkable happened.
Sampras stopped. He called for the trainer and, as his foot
and ankle were massaged, taped and strapped, it became clear
he was in serious trouble. It turned out to be tendinitis
in his right shin, a painful enough complaint when you are
sitting still but one which makes moving feel like walking
on razor blades. Somehow he limped on to victory but his
tournament plan was now in tatters.
Unable to train in between matches and trying every remedy
known to man to cure his still throbbing shin, Sampras picked
his way gingerly, often painfully, but, at last, successfully
through the draw to make his way to the final. Justin Gimelstob,
Jonas Bjorkman, Jan-Michael Gambill and Vladimir Voltchkov
were dispatched for the loss of only two sets. That left
him with Pat Rafter to face for his seventh Wimbledon title
and his record-breaking 13th grand slam trophy - and that
would have been a hard enough assignment with two good legs.
As is the way of life at Wimbledon, the rain played a huge
part in the
outcome of the final. They played four sets over the course
of six, damp hours - and even then they started an hour
late thanks to the drizzle - and the delays played havoc
with their nerves. From honours even in the first set, the
rain set in for the second time and Sampras was left to
twitch in the locker room.
Back at work, Sampras stumbled through the first set tiebreak,
offering it up with a double fault but then sniffed the
scent of blood as Rafter blew a 4-1 lead in the second.
At a set apiece, Sampras, at last, began to settle and as
the night drew in, he closed out his emotional 6-7, 7-6,
6-4, 6-2 victory. He burst into tears and then ran for the
back of the stands to find his parents, Sam and Georgia,
who had flown in overnight to see their son make history.
It was Sampras's last great moment at the All England Club.
Two lean and title-free years later, he was rewriting the
record books again, winning his 14th grand slam title at
the US Open by beating Agassi. That, he thought, was enough
and with nothing left to achieve and no prospect of bettering
those last two grand slam triumphs, he called it a day.
History could take care of itself from now on.
Written by Alix Ramsay
