| | Associated Press
PARIS -- Head down, shoulders slumped, legs heavy, Pete
Sampras shuffled away from the French Open as he has year after
year, frustrated, disappointed, yet doggedly vowing to try again
for as long as he plays.
This is where Sampras goes each spring in search of a personal
validation, proof that he can win on clay and capture the Grand
Slam title that keeps getting away. Each year he leaves early, the
victim of more punishment.
|  | | Mark Philippoussis reacts after beating Pete Sampras on Monday. |
The beating came this time in the first round Monday against
Australia's Mark Philippoussis, 4-6, 7-5, 7-6 (4), 4-6, 8-6, and it
was all the more painful to the No. 2 Sampras because he played so
well in defeat and because he knows that at 28 time is running out
on him.
He knows, too, that his trend at the French doesn't look
promising -- third round and out three years ago, second round the
past two years, first round this year.
After more than 3½ hours in blustery weather that kept shifting
from hot to cold, from sunny to cloudy and back again, this match
between serving titans ended in the most ignoble way at 8:06 p.m.,
when Sampras double-faulted on match point.
Ever the stranger in a strange land at Roland Garros, Sampras
had asked the umpire at 6-6 in the fifth set whether they play a
tiebreaker now.
No, the umpire said, no tiebreaker. At the French, unlike the
U.S. Open, the fifth set is played out in games.
Sampras never won another point. He watched Philippoussis serve
his 23rd ace in taking a 7-6 lead at love before Sampras fell at
love in the final game.
Sampras looked the picture of misery and weariness at the end,
though he denied that fatigue was a factor. His legs moved slowly,
his socks and shoes seemed caked with a couple of pounds of clay,
and he had no punch in his game. When he tried to describe his
emotions a few minutes later, his voice was as soft and weak as
some of his shots in the final games.
"I'm sitting here very disappointed about what happened,"
Sampras said. "Very close match. Could have gone either way. I
feel like I had some chances, but Mark, I give him all the credit.
He served huge."
Sampras took solace in playing a solid, tough match that showed
he can adapt his serve-and-volley style to a modicum of proficiency
on clay. There weren't many long rallies, but there also weren't a
lot of embarrassing gaffes, as there had been in Sampras' other
early round exits.
In 11 appearances at the French, Sampras has lost in the first
round twice, the second round four times, and the third round once.
He reached the quarters three times and the semifinals once.
"I certainly haven't gotten the breaks at this event over the
years," Sampras said. "One year, hopefully, I'll get those
breaks.
"I feel like my game was there today. I didn't feel like I
played poorly. I played fine. But it's frustrating flying home
tomorrow. I was certainly hoping to be a threat here."
For some of the greatest players in tennis history, certain
tournaments eluded their grasp. For Bjorn Borg, it was the U.S.
Open. For Ivan Lendl, it was Wimbledon. For Sampras, it is the
French.
And like the others in their time, Sampras won't concede that
his game is ill-suited to this surface, that he can't win here.
"There's never been a question in my mind that I can play well
here," he said. "I played fine today. I came up short. I feel
like the court here is quick enough to serve and volley. I was
doing well today. The game's there. It's just a matter of putting
it all together and winning a close match like this.
"It's a tough draw to play Mark in the first round, to try to
get your bearings ... against someone who gives you no rhythm and
serves that big."
Sampras said he expects to keep trying at the French until he
retires.
"I'm turning 29 this year and the years are going," he said.
"I see myself playing this game for a lot of years, but certainly
every year the French goes by and I don't win here, it's one
opportunity missed. But I'll be back next year and every year that
I'm playing this game."
Asked whether it would bother him if he never won the French,
never completed the career Grand Slam as rival Andre Agassi did
last year, Sampras replied:
"In a perfect world, a perfect career, you'd like to win all
the majors, do everything in the game. I have a very high bar that
I've raised. It kind of would be disappointing if I would not win
it, but life will go on. It's certainly nothing to be ashamed of,
not winning here. I would certainly one day love to do it."
In other men's action, Jan-Michael Gambill beat No. 8 Nicolas Kiefer 6-3, 7-5, 6-1; No. 4 Yevgeny Kafelnikov blew a big lead but still
edged Ivan Ljubicic 6-4, 6-4, 3-6, 3-6, 6-4; and Gustavo Kuerten, the 1997 champion who is seeded No. 5, won the
first 15 games to beat Andreas Vinciguerra 6-0, 6-0, 6-3. | |
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Agassi, Hingis get top seeds for French Open
AUDIO/VIDEO
 Pete Sampras is discouraged by his poor performance.
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