GREAT AMERICAN INSURANCE ATP CHAMPIONSHIP

August 10, 1997

Pete Sampras

GREG SHARKO: First question for Pete.

PETE SAMPRAS: Well, against Thomas it's so easy to keep on going crosscourt, his backhand. I wanted to try to open up the court and hit it that way. It's one of my best shots and I seem to hit it pretty consistently every match. And today and really made a point to go out wide to that forehand and open up the backhand.

PETE SAMPRAS: Probably over the claycourt season. Where I wasn't playing that well and struggling a little bit. But when the grasscourt season came around and winning Wimbledon and then coming here, I've really played well for the past couple months. You know, confidence is there and that's what you need. I'm pleased because I mean the feel of the field here is just like a Grand Slam. Everyone's pretty much playing here. And to come through and play like I did this week was great for the confidence.

PETE SAMPRAS: Well, that's really hard to say. I mean, you know, as a kid I really didn't look at the French Open. It wasn't something realistic that I thought I could win growing up. But over the past four or five years, it is something that is realistic. I've played well in the past. It's going difficult, a challenge for me as far as the rest of my career is concerned. And that will keep me working hard and motivated for that for one goal, to one day win the French. So I'm going to try again next year and give it my best shot like I always have. But sure, to win the French you really can't do anything more in the game than win all four majors. Hopefully one year I'm going to come through and win them.

PETE SAMPRAS: No. I don't think that's the only thing. I'm still going to love to play and I love to compete; I love to play. I love to play like I did today in front of a packed house. That's what it's all about to me. But sure, you know, it's the one I haven't won and I'm going to do what I can to win it. It's going to be a challenge, and I'm looking forward to that challenge.

PETE SAMPRAS: Well, I don't look at myself and think of myself as the best ever or one of the best ever. I feel like I'm in the middle of my career and I'm doing quite well. And that's really it. You know, I don't like to be compared to those guys. It's going to happen the more you win, but I really don't look at myself like that.

PETE SAMPRAS: No. I don't feel that like that. Feel like I'm playing the guys today, and that's it. You know I played Muster today and Costa yesterday. I'm looking at those guys as competitors. And guys that are trying to knock me off, and that's how I look at it.

PETE SAMPRAS: Well, I've had points in my career where I've won 25, 27 straight matches a couple years ago, and earlier the year I had maybe a 17-match winning streak. So there are certain times of the year. A lot depends on the surface that I'm playing on. I don't think I played this consistent. You know I really haven't played a bad match in a couple months, and so you know, it just goes show after Wimbledon I took sometime off but when it came time to start working and training I put the time and effort into it. And when you do that, that's going to happen. That's what happened this week.

PETE SAMPRAS: Well, once I saw him walk up and it was on the line, I felt like it was in. I was a little bit surprised, but I think we both knew it was in.

PETE SAMPRAS: I saw him. He waved to the ball kid to give him a ball so that was it.

PETE SAMPRAS: Me?

PETE SAMPRAS: Well, I really don't know. Like I said all week when you have such a long lay off and after Wimbledon, it was such a great high, it would be easy to come here, and I haven't played great here Cincinnati because it's usually my first tournament back. But you know since the first match since Gimelstob, you know the only struggled match I really struggled on was against Rafter. But other than that, I mean I obviously I love coming back to the hardcourt tennis. I love hardcourts and things just clicked. You know, the confidence is there and guys know I'm playing well, so that helps out.

PETE SAMPRAS: I need that.

PETE SAMPRAS: Not that unusual. You got a lot of guys that like to play every week, but for me after the French and Wimbledon, a pretty stressful time of the year, it's important to put a hole in your schedule so that you can have sometime to regroup and get fresh for the hardcourt season. And I made an efforts to do that this year. But when it came time to start working on it, I did that. I need time off to get away from the game.

PETE SAMPRAS: Well, if I'm playing well like I did this week, you know, as far as the game, it comes pretty easy to me. But there are weeks and days that I don't play well and there are guys that are hungry to beat me. Those are challenges that I have to face every week. You know, ever since I've been No. 1 it's always-- the press was on me and it's something that I think I've dealt with pretty well over past number of years.

PETE SAMPRAS: I think my personality has a lot to do with that. I'm a pretty laid back type. And, you know, just like to keep things in my life, especially my tennis life, pretty simple. And tennis is the priority and just -- I don't get sensitive to what the media thinks or whatever I just go out and play. That's really it. You know, I don't need a lot of big entourage. I don't need to complicate things with my tennis. I've always tried to just keep things simple.

PETE SAMPRAS: I think people, you know, recognize that after I win my 7th and 8th and 9th major and tenth, the only way you can really deal with that is with respect. And I think I've gotten that over a the past couple of years and -- there were a number of years in any my early 20s where I was winning matches and it was kind of taken for granted. So now it's a little bit different.

PETE SAMPRAS: No. Not really because I saw -- you know over five, ten years guys got to be No. 1 and really didn't enjoy it. I made an effort that if I ever got to No. 1 not worry about what's being written or said about me. Just go out and play, and that's what I tried to do. I'm a pretty simple and laid back guy and I think that helps.

PETE SAMPRAS: Yeah.

PETE SAMPRAS: Yeah. It was over in London at Wimbledon when, you know, I just went out and played and the British media didn't really have a lot to write about me, so they just put the boring label on me. And that was the one time that I was pretty sensitive and didn't really understand it. But over the past number of years as far as my results, you know, as far as the media, I just let my results take care of itself.

PETE SAMPRAS: No. It was like -- I one 1 in the world and I think it was -- I won Wimbledon that year -- or the first couple years, and they just didn't really know me so they put the boring label.

PETE SAMPRAS: I was crushed. (Laughter). You know, I wasn't hurt, but I was disappointed. I always felt, especially over there in England that someone that just went out there and played kind of like an Edberg or a Borg. But the way things are over there, you need to have a couple tatoos and a couple earrings.

PETE SAMPRAS: No. I'll bite my tongue on that one.

PETE SAMPRAS: You tell me. I don't know. I just think the way I can play on the court and some of shots I'm able to hit, you know, that's what I'm all about. I'm not going to do anything different out there to please the media or whatever, to make your jobs easier. I'll make you guys write about the tennis.

PETE SAMPRAS: Uh-huh.

PETE SAMPRAS: Yeah.

PETE SAMPRAS: Well, you know, I'm not too into commercials. You know I play so much and I hardly have any time off and the last thing I want to do is spend 15 hours doing a commercial. I don't need the money. I don't need the fame. I can go out and play golf. I just want to do a couple things. The Nike ads are nice and maybe a couple other things. Tennis is what I want to do. And the marketing is something that I've done a little bit more of over the years, but you know, it's something that I'm not -- maybe later on in my career, but not right now. Right now it's tennis.

PETE SAMPRAS: I don't know. I don't know what other guys want to do. Some guys love to do the commercials and be on T.V. a lot. I kind of prefer to have the low key approach and not do too much. My time off is so important to me. When it's off I don't want to think about makeup artist or other stuff, doing commercials, so. You know overtime maybe I'll change, I don't know. The way it is now I'm very happy.

PETE SAMPRAS: Well, it's just such a great story from winning the Masters at 20, and there's so much hype going into the Masters. Golf needed that and they certainly got it with him.

PETE SAMPRAS: I guess so. But I don't know how happy I would be if I was as big as Tiger. You know, I feel like I can still go out to malls and restaurants, and have some stares and whatever, but I'm sure it's at a point where he can't go anywhere. And I don't want a life like that. I'm happy with where I am in my day-to-day stuff. Because he's really, he's huge. He's like Michael Jordan now. And that's tough to deal with sometimes.

PETE SAMPRAS: Yeah. It's like what I've been saying here for ten minutes I've always kept things low key and there's not a lot of controversy when it comes to me. And when it's all said and done, it's not the fame or the money, it's what I've done in the game, and that's the major tournaments. I've always kind of looked at the big picture.

PETE SAMPRAS: Well, he's getting older now. And you know, he's -- I don't know. I didn't realize he was such a ham out there.

PETE SAMPRAS: Not really. I mean he's pretty much playing the same. I mean he hits the ball very heavy from both sides. I really didn't know he changed racquets.

PETE SAMPRAS: There's no check in there.

PETE SAMPRAS: Nothing in the envelope. I don't open the envelope.

PETE SAMPRAS: No.

End of FastScripts….