The day that tennis feared has come. roger federer says goodbye to the courts of tennis and of course that tributes to `Your Majesty´ will be present by many sports figures. Pete Sampras already did his.
The 14 times Grand Slam champion only played once once morest Roger Federer. That game was in 2001 and the winner was Her Majesty, just in the early years of his career, but it predicted a great path.
Now, following the retirement of Roger Federer, Sampras He shared a video where he expressed what the Swiss has been to him, both on and off the pitch.
“I’m not really sure where to start,” Sampras said. “I will start from the beginning, when I played with you for the first time. You were 19 years old, you were a promising player, people were talking regarding you and we had a great battle on Center Court at Wimbledon and you beat me in a tough five-set match. I just remember leaving the court feeling like I had found my rival, a really special player. I did not know that 20 years later you would have 20 Majors, you would be number 1 for years, you would dominate our sportbasically you would do it all”.
Sampras highlighted Federer’s preparation and sacrifice throughout his 20-plus-year career, in which, in Pete’s words, he made the game look easy.
“I know that through those 20 years that you sacrificed yourself, you had your body well. I don’t think people have seen that side of you because you made the game look easy. But I know that you are the best professional when it comes to preparation, it is quite extraordinary what you have done”.
Like many others, Sampras also highlighted the work and humility of Federer, who always showed himself without masks before the world, being a gentleman in both victory and defeat.
“I admire the way you handled everything from start to finish. You are always kind in your defeats, kind in your victories. I sat and watched 20 years of brilliance, heartache, triumph, and throughout your entire career, you’ve never really changed. You are true to yourself and where you come from. You should look back on your career and feel really proud of what you have been able to achieve.”.
Finally, Sampras spoke regarding his friendship with Federer and his feelings following this retirement.
“On a personal note, I’ll never forget the week we had in Asia, playing, playing some exhibitions, that’s when I got to know you pretty well. We have developed a very good friendship since then, just keeping in touch. We’re all going to be sad to see you retire, but I know this is part of the sport.”.
“I just want to yell at you and tell you that we will miss you in our game, but you left tennis in good hands. I just want to wish you a great retirement, hopefully I can see you sometime and catch up.”
