THE SCOOP, JUNE 26

Alexandra: "He's always been moral to me"
Fisher gets out of jail, is back with Stevenson

By Matthew Cronin
tennisreporters.net

Alexandra Stevenson, the 1999 Wimbledon semifinalist, is back with her former junior coach, Dr. Pete Fisher, who was just released from a Southern California jail after serving three and half years in jail for molesting boy patients.

Stevenson told tennisreporters.net that she is completely comfortable being coached by Fisher, who was also Pete Sampras' junior coach and id credited with the formation of the 13-time Grand Slam champion's classic -serve-and-volley game.

"I don't believe he's what they say he is," Stevenson said of Fisher, a Rolling Hills-based pediatrician who pleaded guilty in late 1997 to two felony counts of sexual molestation brought by four former patients at a hospital in Downey, California. "My opinion is that he shouldn't have gone to jail. There's a lot that I don't know and everybody doesn't know. He could have gone to jail for life. I just have to trust him. I think he's a good human being and he's always been moral to me and he's always going to be my friend."

After pleading guilty, Fisher lost his physician's license. At the time, his lawyer said that he decided not to stand trial because he was facing 11 felony counts and the risk of a longer jail sentence was too great. both Stevenson and Sampras have been supportive.

"He and Robert Lansdorp were my first coaches. He never did anything to me," said Stevenson, who scored a three-set win over Tathiana Garbin on Tuesday. "He was my coach for nine years. It's over with. You don't look to the past. He paid his dues and now he's getting back to his life.

Stevenson added that the 59-year-old Fisher looks better than he ever has. "He's actually fit," she laughed, but added that they didn't have a lengthy discussion over his time in jail. "He's not a girl so we're not going to have a gossip session."