I’m used to Roger breaking my records: Pete Sampras
Sampras happy to concede records to his ‘good friend’.
Tennis legend Pete Sampras said that he would be happy for his friend Roger Federer to equal his record for Wimbledon titles and number of weeks spent at the top of the rankings.
If Federer beats Andy Murray in today’s final, the Swiss will put himself level with Sampras on seven Wimbledon finals and also return to the top of the world, allowing him to equal the American’s mark of 286 weeks at the top of the rankings.
“It’s easier to have my records broken by a guy who I admire and who I consider to be a friend,” Sampras told The Tennis Space. “I’m used to Roger breaking my records, that’s the way it’s been for a number of years. There’s nothing I can do about it. I just sit here being impressed at what Roger’s been able to do.”
Sampras insisted that staying at the summit of men’s tennis is not easy and only someone ‘incredible’ like Federer can achieve the feat.
“I know how hard it is to stay on top for many years. The fact that it’s Roger will make it a little bit easier for me to take. Roger’s done incredible things on and off the court and really deserves all the accolades of being a great champion.”
Published in The Express Tribune, July 8th, 2012.