Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi will renew their long standing tennis rivalry in an exhibition to be held in Macau on October 25, 2009.
The two players were at the height of their careers and rivalry in the 1990s. Sampras praised Agassi service returns and passing shots. He also said, “We always had really tough matches and we brought out the best in each other.”
The American also acknowledged Agassi as his rival saying, “When people ask me who my great rival is I always tell them - Andre.”
In the 34 times that Sampras and Agassi met on court, Sampras won 20. His wins included the 1990, 1995 and 2002 US Opens as well as the 1999 Wimbledon. Agassi took the Australian Open title from Sampras in 1995.
Sampras also predicted that his record of winning the most grand slam tournaments will be equaled by Swiss player Roger Federer this year at Wimbledon. Federer is only one win short of Sampras’ record of 14 and like Sampras, Federer has not yet won the French Open title. “Roger is very hungry for the title and he came so close last year,” said Sampras. “If I was to put my money on it, I would say Roger, but he’s not a shoo-in.”