Sampras, Jordan still may have a few thrills left
April 9, 2002
Within the space of four days last week, two of the modern sports world's greatest icons went ker-plunk before our very eyes. Until last Tuesday, Michael Jordan had never been held to two points. Until Friday, Pete Sampras had never blown a two-set lead on a grass court.
It's coincidental, of course, and the circumstances were quite different -- Jordan's woes are physical; Sampras' appear mostly mental -- but the superficial message to be gleaned from these sad, almost simultaneous events seems the same.
Michael's done.
Pete's done.
Except neither is in fact. Jordan sounds adamant about returning to play a second season for the Washington Wizards, even though he's done for the current one. And Sampras hasn't come close to conceding anything on the sensitive subject of his retirement after almost 13 years spent accumulating more Grand Slam titles than anyone before him.
Others have on his behalf, however. Yevgeny Kafelnikov, who owns two Slam championships to Sampras' 13, popped off in Moscow on Sunday after the Russian team also advanced in Davis Cup play, saying Pete's hanging on in the face of increasingly un-Sampras-worthy results is "a disrespect to himself," and that "he should think of quitting."
We don't know how Kafelnikov feels about Jordan's encore as a still-explosive, albeit largely ground-bound Wizard, nor do we care. Kafelnikov has a lot of punk in him, and Pete's buddy Jim Courier is absolutely right that the Russian has grossly underachieved in his own career, which Kafelnikov hints may conclude if his country wins its first-ever Davis Cup in December.
But when an athlete's comrades begin speaking thusly, out of school or not, it raises valid questions. Sampras' long slide -- no wins in his last 24 tournaments -- already had suggested his "A" game was gone. But watching clay-court specialist Alex Corretja tackle Pete from behind on the Westside grass became the most graphic illustration yet of where he is today.
Sampras didn't look especially tired. He was moving fine at the end. His serve had lost a bit of oomph, but he and Corretja had been playing for nearly four hours. What we did see, however, was a man utterly lacking in confidence -- in a setting where he should have been supremely confident.
On grass, Sampras should have made mulch out of Corretja. Instead, he let the ever-persistent Spaniard fight his way back into the match, then became utterly incapable of reversing the momentum. It was an astonishing thing to observe for anyone who has spent much time in a press seat on Wimbledon's Centre Court, Pete's personal Mt. Olympus.
So yes, we must wonder where he goes from here, besides home to a rocking chair. Sampras watchers have long believed his Roland Garros quest was futilely quixotic and should be abandoned, to save bodily wear and tear. Painful beatings by much younger players in consecutive U.S. Open finals suggested his hard-court days are numbered, too. But most assumed he had another Wimbledon title or two in him on muscle memory alone.
Instead, Corretja showed Pete to be vulnerable any time, anywhere. All terras have become infirma for him.
Sampras, nonetheless, clearly has earned the right to decide when to say when, the same as Jordan. It's their legacy to further polish or tarnish. If they believe they can recapture the magic, let 'em try. If they're still having fun, bless 'em. They aren't erasing their memories, or anyone else's, of the sunshine hours by stubbornly raging against the dying of the light.
Willie Mays, to cite one obvious example, hung on far too long and played pathetically at the end. But when somebody brings up Willie Mays' name today, which Willie Mays pops into the mind's eye -- the Say Hey Kid or the one who said goodbye?
It will be no different for Jordan and Sampras.
In Pete's case, a new, hard-driving coach in the person of Jose Higueras has been hired. Until Higueras' influence has been allowed to run its course, we can't pooh-pooh the notion that Sampras' attaining a higher level of fitness will help him offset his waning mental game.
Sampras owes us nothing except an honest effort, and he's giving that. He didn't lose to Corretja because he gave up or didn't care. He lost because he has forgotten how to win.
To be sure, nobody will be rooting against Pete's revival, should there be one. His reign has been equal parts grace, class and record accomplishments. And if you are the people who run the Davis Cup, wouldn't a U.S.-Russia final be hotter than hot with Pete vs. you know who for the tie's decisive match?
I, for one, wouldn't wager large sums on Kafelnikov.
In the same vein, assuming Jordan has two fully working knees the next time he crosses paths with the Lakers, the suspicion here is he'll play more than 12 minutes and score more than two points.
Any takers?
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