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As a huge tennis fan who grew up loving Pete Sampras (I even copied his serve, as best I could, and utterly failed to imitate his signature "slam-dunk" smash ma
by bshimmin 11y ago
As a huge tennis fan who grew up loving Pete Sampras (I even copied his serve, as best I could, and utterly failed to imitate his signature "slam-dunk" smash many, many times more than my coach or team mates really thought was acceptable), I loved everything about this.
Tennis always seems to have more than its fair share of real gentlemen, and Pete is front and centre amongst them.
- crusso 11y agoTennis always seems to have more than its fair share of real gentlemen There's something about the isolation and the spotlight that burns off the rough edges of tennis players. Most team sports tend to let bad behaviors and elements fester in the shadows.
- argumentum 11y agoJohn McEnroe?
- puranjay 11y agoHis kind is rare. Roger Federer and Pete Sampras are still the norm as far as tennis champions are concerned. I remember reading about Nadal how he showed up to his hotel restaurant after a match in shorts. The restaurant had a shoes and jacket policy, but the manager was obviously willing to make a compromise for the distinguished guest. His uncle (and coach), however, scolded Nadal in front of the manager and commanded him to change into something more presentable. So the champion, after having played a four set match, trooped back to his room, wore a jacket and shoes, and came back to eat his dinner. Can you imagine a NFL player ever doing something like that?
- smeyer 11y ago>Can you imagine a NFL player ever doing something like that? Absolutely. Sure, there are many NFL players I couldn't imagine doing that, but there are tons of NFL players and many of them are class acts. I could easily imagine hearing the same story about an NFL player.
- crusso 11y agoLet's compare Mcenroe to Aaron Hernandez.