THE LIPTON CHAMPIONSHIPS

March 20, 1994

Pete Sampras

Q. How are you feeling, Pete?

PETE SAMPRAS: I'm feeling better now. When I woke up this morning I really didn't feel like I was going to be able to go out and play.

Q. What did you feel?

PETE SAMPRAS: I was heaving, you know, I mean I wasn't throwing up, but I was gagging quite a bit and it was just dehydrated, probably had a bad meal last night. I had IVs in me from about 10:45 all to probably 12:30 and I was just really dehydrated; I really didn't think I was going to be able to play, and fortunately the tournament and Andre, allowed me to get more time to get some more liquids in me and I just, just went out there and tried my best.

Q. What did you eat last night?

PETE SAMPRAS: I had some pasta and tomato sauce. I felt fine going to sleep. I woke up at seven in the morning, I was feeling nauseous and I went back to sleep, woke up at nine and I was having a hard time just getting through the morning. I called Todd Snyder, the trainer, I said I need to see the doctor as soon as I get here. I didn't know what was wrong with me, and I was, you know, trying to throw up and nothing was coming out, so -- I just wanted to share that with you.

Q. Did you hit at all this morning, did you hit anything?

PETE SAMPRAS: Probably two minutes to see if I can have the energy to do anything and I just talked it over with Tim and just, you know, if I played four games and had no energy, you know, couldn't go any longer, I was going to just probably quit. But it seemed like my adrenaline kind of kicked in when the match started. I didn't feel that great in the beginning of the match, I felt -- it was taking me a long time to recover, I just felt real tired and, you know, just really is surprises everyone in this room that I won.

Q. What did you eat last night, Pete.

PETE SAMPRAS: Pasta and tomato saws, Charlie.

Q. Was there any moments in the match -- a couple of times where you looked down, from where we were sitting it looked like you looked dizzy, were there moments in the match where you thought I gotta stop?

PETE SAMPRAS: Not really. I was -- I felt really tired, I mean I felt like I wasn't recovering the way I normally do and, you know, I wasn't feeling faint, I just felt like I was winded quite a bit and I'm usually -- after long points I seem to handle it pretty well and today I was just struggling. At the 40-Love points, I wasn't going to waste my energy and play really hard points and waste my game, I said forget it, go on with the game.

Q. Once you lost the first set 5-2 did you ask yourself how am I going to stay out for three sets?

PETE SAMPRAS: I felt after I lost that first set, I still felt I was making Andre work, at 5-2 losing my serve three times, I just couldn't buy a first serve, I was rushing a lot of groundstrokes and he started playing a little better and I just still felt like I could make him work on his service games and I feel like I was hitting my groundies really well. I just told myself to hang in there. As the match went on, I started feeling a little better, the doctor told me that might happen after half hour, you know, sweat it out and get all this, you know, junk out of me, and, you know, I just kind of hung in there. And that's all I tried to do.

Q. What happened at 5-2 you said you were just rushing and what?

PETE SAMPRAS: I was rushing, I mean, like I said, didn't -- couldn't serve on a doublefault, he hit a couple of good shots, you know, I just rushed, you know, I was going for the big shot too early, trying to end the set too quickly, and it obviously didn't pay off for me.

Q. In the second and third sets, you did not face a breakpoint, much is made of -- the last 7 of the last 9 points were aces in the match, is the serve your saving grace today?

PETE SAMPRAS: Yeah, the last couple of games I just told myself to relax when I get to the line because I was really, you know, I don't serve well when I'm real tight, you know, not loose, and I just told myself take a deep breath and go up after the ball. I haven't really been serving that great last couple of days and it just all seemed to come through last --

Q. Was this sickness like at the '92 Open, and did that concern you that you were sick before that final?

PETE SAMPRAS: Yeah, I mean, I obviously wasn't thinking about it today, but it was pretty similar circumstance. At the Open I was having a case of diarrhea and here it was just maybe just bad food and dehydration, I just needed to rehydrate my self.

Q. Thinking about changing your diet?

PETE SAMPRAS: My diet is pretty good, you know, just bad luck. I mean it happens to everybody.

Q. Is that all you took was just the IV for the fluids or some medicine, or other stuff you took?

PETE SAMPRAS: I didn't have -- I couldn't -- I didn't want to eat, I didn't eat at all the whole day and I just, maybe speak to the doctor, he took really good care of me and he put some glucose and IV and I was basically getting IVs for an hour and a half, and that's what helped me recover and gave me some energy.

Q. Last year the shin splints here, you had a rough final, and this year sickness, what's going to happen next year?

PETE SAMPRAS: Maybe I won't play. No, that wouldn't be fair, I'm going to play here next year. I don't know, I just hope to stay healthy.

Q. Were you a little surprised at Andre and the gesture he made by doing that in allowing you the time you needed?

PETE SAMPRAS: That's the type of person Andre is, that's what I would do for him. We want to go out and give it our best shot, you know, for the fans and for the game itself, and Andre and I have good matchups and our personalities are very different, and so, I would have done the same thing if he was in the same boat I was in.

Q. Do you think there are a lot of other players that might not have?

PETE SAMPRAS: I think mostly everyone in a final big tournament, you know, would do it. I mean, I don't -- I can't speak for everyone, but I would have done the same thing.

Q. The last time you closed out a match so --

PETE SAMPRAS: What's that again?

Q. Do you remember the last time you closed out a match like that?

PETE SAMPRAS: I don't know, I mean, I mean I just got in a good rhythm on my service, nothing different than in other matches. I got the serve in, you know, it just seemed like he wasn't reading it that well, you know, it wasn't any different than any other match.

Q. Given how you felt this morning, what does this tell you about yourself; that you were that sick and able to win this tournament today?

PETE SAMPRAS: Win the match today?

Q. Yeah.

PETE SAMPRAS: I felt, you know, maybe, I might not look like I'm that competitive and really that intense, but deep down, I'm as competitive as anyone else on the tour. And I just, you know, Tim just said give it a shot and, you know, as the match wore on, the adrenaline started kicking in and kind of told me, you know, I could play well and come through when the chips are down, when I'm not feeling great and that kind of shows me that, you know, I do have guts and, you know, maybe a lot of people might not think that.

Q. Started using the word surp -- then you stopped, are you a little surprised?

PETE SAMPRAS: Yes, I'm surprised. I'm a little surprised that I basically walked out on the court because come 12:30, I told the doctors I can't, I can't do it and I just, fortunately had more time to hit a couple of balls, see how I feel, it was nice of Andre to postpone the match, you know, it was just a class move.

Q. After the match, did you feel any -- did your stomach feel any pain?

PETE SAMPRAS: Where is your badge? I felt very empty, you know, I had nothing in my system except some IVs, no food, so I was pretty empty.

Q. Have you eaten anything yet?

PETE SAMPRAS: No.

Q. There is a Burger King --

PETE SAMPRAS: That's where I'm going.

Q. Pete, did you dine at a restaurant last night?

PETE SAMPRAS: No, stayed in.

Q. Like a room service?

PETE SAMPRAS: Uh-huh.

Q. Are you playing this year in Davis Cup?

PETE SAMPRAS: Yeah, I plan on playing possibly in Holland if -- I'm assuming our team is going to win and Holland is going to beat Belgium, I plan on possibly playing there.

Q. Yeah, coming up now to one of your tough surfaces, which is clay, I want to know how you plan to --

PETE SAMPRAS: I plan on playing the next couple of weeks in Asia, then I've got four weeks off, you know, before I go to Rome and Dusseldorf and the French, in those four weeks I'm just going to be training really hard and practicing as much as I can, getting in good shape and that's my preparation. I'm not playing quite that many events, more or less the same amount as the last couple of years.

Q. One more question. Knowing that you're number 1, what do you think makes a champion?

PETE SAMPRAS: You know, it takes dedication and hard work and keeping a good head on my shoulder and enjoying the game. That's what I basically have been trying to do the last couple of years.

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