Friday, November 23, 2007

1999 Wimbledon Final: Sampras def. Agassi

Sampras def. Agassi: 6-3, 6-4, 7-5.
Classic: No, but a must-have for Sampras fans.
Rating: 86

The Plot: Sampras put in possibly his greatest performance ever at Wimbledon in this 1999 final. Agassi was playing amazing tennis prior to this final after having miraculously won the French Open the month before. But Sampras put his foot down and showed who was the master at Wimbledon with a performance reminiscent of Edberg's defeat of Courier in the 1991 US Open final.

The Match: Early in the 1st set things are tight, and Agassi has 4 break chances early on Sampras' serve. Sampras saves them all with great serves, and then seems to kick into a higher gear, as Agassi lets down his guard in the next game. From then on Sampras is completely dominant for the remainder of the match. He takes the first set 6-3. Agassi gets a bad start on the 2nd set and loses serve, and is in danger of going down a double break. He doesn't, but all attempts at getting back on level terms are thwarted by Sampras. In the 3rd set Agassi manages just barely to stay on serve until 5-5 when he drops serve, and Sampras serves out the match in the next game.

The bottom line: Sampras is overwhelmingly dominant, and Agassi is not at his best. Sampras is a joy to watch as he not only serves great, but also plays some great volleys, including two spectacular diving volleys. But unless you're a great Sampras fan (like me), you probably don't need to see this match.

2 comments:

Shims said...

"don't need to see this match"???

you're kidding, right? this is the greatest display of shot making and power tennis, ever.

Sampras was nearly flawless - this is MUST WATCH TENNIS for any tennis fan.

David said...

a must see. this was one of the greatest performances in a final you will EVER see in this life or the next. a spectacular display with a flurry of baseline winners beating Agassi at his own game.