THE SCOOP, AUGUST 17

Sampras didn't want into Washington, claims lame wrist

By Sandra Harwitt
tennisreporters.net

Susan Mullane Camerawork USA, Inc.

INDIANAPOLIS, Aug. 15 – I’m sure that tennisreporters.net readers have heard that Pete Sampras withdrew from the Legg’s Mason Tennis Classic in Washington, D.C. this week.

Sampras was reportedly in the D.C. area, but made a last minute withdrawal late Saturday afternoon, only minutes before the draw was made. The reason offered for hightailing it out of the nation’s capital – a right wrist injury.

Let's be honest, here. Sampras wasn’t looking forward to his trip to Washington – not even being born in the area finds Sampras having any affection for the neighborhood. Sampras made it clear that he wasn’t interested in playing the Legg’s Mason when he was at the TMS-Cincinnati tournament last week, but wouldn’t get into how he ended up entered in the event. A tour official friend of tennisreporters.net shed some light on the situation, revealing that someone at Sampras’s management company AMG Sports accidentally entered him into the D.C. tournament. That was pretty darn odd since according to RCA Championships Tournament Director Rob MacGill, his event received word from the ATP tour on either Dec. 20th or 21st, 2000 that Sampras had been designated to this Indianapolis-based tournament for 2001 – this has been a favorite summer spot of Sampras’s through the years.

Clearly, the Indy people were sorry to see that Sampras, who won the title here in 1991, 1992 and 1996, wasn’t going to be making the trip to their fine city this year, as we’re sure the Washington folks were pretty unhappy. But MacGill told tennisreporters.net on Wednesday evening “Pete Sampras has done so much for this tournament the past 10 years that, in this situation, all we wanted for Pete to do was what was best for Pete Sampras.”

MacGill was taking the high road and tennisreporters.net wonders if Sampras has possibly failed to do the same. It’s not that we don’t believe Pete if he says he’s injured in the wrist, but it was also very clear he wasn’t in the Washington D.C. frame of mind. When Sampras lost a 6-4 6-4 second round match to Alberto Martin of Spain at the Tennis Masters Series-Cincinnati tournament he told the media, “I don’t know if I’m playing Washington. I’m on a wait-and-see schedule. But I do need to play something, play some matches.”

Sampras does need matches if he’s going to have a chance to challenge at the upcoming U.S. Open, the very place he won the first of his record 13 Grand Slams as a 19-year-old in 1990. Having just celebrated his 30th birthday on Sunday, Sampras has not won a trophy since taking his lucky 13th at Wimbledon in 2000. This year the former world No. 1 has journeyed to only two finals, losing both the Indian Wells and recent Los Angeles title to Andre Agassi. Hopefully, Sampras will take stock of his situation and ask for that wildcard at next week’s Long Island tournament or he’ll be heading to Flushing Meadow without enough matches to be a serious factor at the last Grand Slam of the season.