Wimbledon: Fire still burns bright in Sampras

Pete Sampras will walk onto Centre Court in time-honoured fashion this afternoon to begin the defence of his Wimbledon crown.

Pete Sampras will start play on Wimbledon's Centre Court this afternoon in defence of his Wimbledon crown.

The opponent with the dubious distinction of facing the greatest tennis player Wimbledon has seen is Francisco Clavet, a 32-year-old Spaniard with a clay-court double-handed backhand and a passion for science fiction.

Sampras is bidding for his eighth Wimbledon singles title and his fifth in a row.

But the big question remains. Will 2001 finally see the King of the Centre Court dethroned?

‘‘When you love someone as much as I do it is hard to leave them behind,’’ he said in a rare show of tenderness on being parted from his wife at a recent tournament.

‘‘It is very important to be happy in your personal and professional life. I really want to enjoy every moment of my marriage before we eventually have kids.’’

It remains to be seen if the tennis fires still burn as strongly as his romance.

He arrived in Britain smarting from a comprehensive second-round defeat in the French Open which hinted his physique lacked preparation and his mind sharpness.

But everything he has done since suggests the focus is firmly on holding that famous golden trophy one more time.

His form at Queen’s, despite losing in the semi-final to Lleyton Hewitt, was encouraging - especially the quality of his serving which has always been the key to grass-court success. He has been the most frequent visitor to Wimbledon’s practice courts this past week.

And, at 29, he has recognised that he is not going to blaze a trail much longer at all the Grand Slam events - not with tennis young guns such as Hewitt, Gustavo Kuerten and Marat Safin, his conqueror at last year’s US Open, increasingly hungry for glory.

The suspicion is that Sampras has already ditched his once-desperate desire to win a Grand Slam on clay, a surface on which he has always struggled and which is now saturated with Spanish and Latin specialists.

The US Open, a fast and true hard-court surface which rewards his precision serving, remains a possibility.

But by far his best chance to take tennis history almost beyond the bounds of credibility is on the green grass of Wimbledon where it is possible he could win for another two years.

That might be bad news for those who believe his dominance this past decade to have been detrimental to the mystique of the world’s most prestigious tennis event.

But Wimbledon, more than any other tournament, rewards experience, nous and natural ability - all the ingredients which the passing years are last to devour and which Sampras retains in triplicate.

Remember, last year Sampras virtually won the title on one leg after being struck down by a bout of tendinitis.

In the end whether he furthers his legend comes down to his desire to put his body through the relentless grind and his mind through all the pressures inherent in the preparation and duration of a Grand Slam event.

There is no doubt he has slackened his commitment to a sport which has consumed his every waking thought since he was a young boy.

In that respect the once-permanent air of invincibility is gone. But not the danger.

For this is Sampras, a man who still has to pinch himself when he recalls his achievements on the tennis world’s most famous strip of grass - but, like all great champions, he is reluctant to let go.

‘‘Tennis is still very much a part of my life,’’ he says. ‘‘And it will be as long as I remain in contention for the Majors. I’m not thinking about retiring. There are still some challenges out there for me. I have the motivation still and the desire to be champion.

‘‘I feel I can beat these guys coming up, maybe not week in, week out, but when it matters most.’’

Apologies if it sounds familiar but don’t be surprised if this year he kisses that golden trophy for an eighth time and then blows one across to wife Bridgette in the Centre Court crowd.

After all, they are the two greatest loves of Pete Sampras’s life.