Saturday, January 2, 2010

Classic Match 1 -- Agassi vs Sampras 1999 Wimbledon Final

This is a truly magnificent grasscourt match. Not so much in terms of drama, but the overall excellence of play. Its one of the first finals with "new grass", where the court surface was slowed down, but Pete definitely played it like how grass tennis is meant to be played.



Some things to watch for:

1) Sampras's underrated backhand. Its much better than people give it credit for. He rolls it with excellent topspin (around 4:50) and plays an excellent flick with it (6:20) too that probably formed the basis for Federer's famous backhand flick.

2) Sampras's pickup volley is probably the best in the world and history, especially on the forehand side. He has this ability to really wait and hold for the longest possible time, to force a commitment from his opponent before playing it beyond his reach. Exceptional.

3) Sampras's serve is truly exceptional. He doesn't serve the hardest, but the spin on it borders on being ridiculous. Opponents know he goes for the T far more than then corners but the spin just takes it out of reach. Watch how he tosses at the same spot for every serve too.

4) Agassi has an exceptional slice serve out wide on the Ad court too. This is somewhat negated though by Sampras's excellent move to his wide forehand position.

5) Sampras's running forehands are done with the same Eastern forehand grip that he uses for his normal forehand. I actually think Eastern forehand grip gives better coverage on the running forehand than semi-western or western due to its natural alignment with the direction of your run.

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