Pete Sampras enjoyed a stunning career and he was widely considered the best to have ever swung a racket when he was in his pomp.
When it came to Wimbledon, he was the king. Way before Roger Federer came along, Sampras was the man to beat when it came to the grass court season and very few could overcome him.
When talking about the game’s best players ever, Sampras actually chose Novak Djokovic as his GOAT over Rafael Nadal or Roger Federer.
Sampras finished his career with 14 Grand Slam titles and seven of those came at SW19 in front of the Wimbledon crowd who grew to love him.
At that time, it was hard to imagine anyone would come along and win Wimbledon more than seven times and certainly Sampras thought his record would stay intact for a while.
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Pete Sampras made a prediction on his Grand Slam haul after winning Wimbledon in 2000
After beating Pat Rafter on Centre Court, Pistol Pete was quizzed on whether or not his haul of 14 Grand Slam titles would ever be beaten.
Back then, little did he know that Nadal, Federer and Djokovic would dominate the sport and completely blow the total set by Sampras.
In 2000 after winning Wimbledon for a seventh time he said in his press conference that he’d be surprised in the modern era if anyone beat his total.
He said: “Well, time will tell if it will be broken. I think in the modern game, it could be difficult. It’s a lot of commitment, a lot of good playing at big times. You know, it’s hard to see one guy or three guys that I see maybe doing it.