Battle of tennis icons actually lives up to the hype

Pete Sampras showed flashes of his old form Monday night, but the 14-time Grand Slam winner admitted he would be sore Tuesday. Nick Laham/Getty Images

NEW YORK -- It was a night where the old building in New York, which bills itself as the most famous arena of all, lived up to its billing.

The boldface names -- Rupert Murdoch, Chloe Sevigny, Luke Wilson, Anna Wintour and Tiger Woods -- were milling about near the court. Somebody said the opera legend Placido Domingo was also in the house. Thankfully, Isiah Thomas and Stephon Marbury were not.

The well-heeled set came to Madison Square Garden on Monday to see Roger Federer and Pete Sampras, winners of 26 Grand Slam between them, slug it out for two hours and 14 minutes in a best-of-three-set exhibition match. It was billed as a battle of eras, the kind of sports debate (Michael Jordan vs. Oscar Robertson, Peyton Manning vs. John Unitas) normally contested in barrooms instead of arenas.

In the end, the younger man won but just barely -- a 6-3, 6-7 (7-4), 7-6 (8-6) victory for the 26-year-old Federer. There were moments of brilliance: a Sampras cross-court backhand late in the final set that was as good as any he hit in his career; Federer hitting four consecutive aces in the third to tie the match at 5-5. There was also some sloppy tennis: Federer and Sampras had barely played on the slick surface beyond a 45-minute afternoon practice.

"I pushed as hard as I could tonight, but that's why he's the best player in the world," said Sampras, who led 5-2 in the third set. "Sure, I'm little disappointed. I had the match on my racket but he came up with some great passing shots. All credit to him."

"I don't think winning or losing was really the issue tonight," added Federer. "We both tried to do our best and have a fun night. That's what I turned out to be. That I won is not even a bonus. I think the winner was tennis and tennis in America."

The crowd was announced at 19,690 -- the top ticket went for $1,000 -- and for once it was a legit count at an arena. Tickets went on sale Jan. 7 and sold out in three weeks. It was the first tennis match in the Garden since the women's season-ending championships in November 2000.

"My heart was nervous for the first three games," said Sampras, 36. "Remember, I don't do this anymore."

The tennis icons had met once on the ATP Tour, with Federer winning in five sets in the fourth round at Wimbledon in 2001. Sampras said after he retired that he wished he could have gotten one more crack at Federer. He fulfilled that wish last November in Asia when the two played a trio of matches: Federer beat Sampras (6-4, 6-3) in Seoul, and two days later (7-6, 7-6) in Kuala Lumpur. Sampras, in a bit of a surprise, won the third match, a 7-6 (10-8), 6-4 win in Macau. "I still hit the ball quite well but I just don't move as well," said Sampras.

The two paid homage to each other at a news conference before the match at a hotel just off Central Park. Federer called Sampras his hero. Sampras predicted Federer would blow past his record of 14 Grand Slam singles titles.

"He is a humble champion," Sampras said. "He's not brash or abrasive. He's my sort of player with his character and the way he plays. He doesn't show up his opponent. He doesn't lose his cool. Some people might call that boring but I love it."

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