Pete Sampras best surface

[PhiEaglesfan712]

We can all agree that Pete was dominant on grass, hard courts, and carpet. Which surface was Pete at his best?

 

[britbox]

We can all agree that Pete was dominant on grass, hard courts, and carpet. Which surface was Pete at his best?

Hard to say, as carpet was such a niche surface, but the Sampras win over Becker at the 96 Masters was probably one of the greatest individual performances. I'd still lean toward grass though - Pete was almost unplayable for a few years.

 

[Jelenafan]

Hard to say, as carpet was such a niche surface, but the Sampras win over Becker at the 96 Masters was probably one of the greatest individual performances. I'd still lean toward grass though - Pete was almost unplayable for a few years.

If I had to pick one player with all mankind at stake for a match to save us, if it’s on grass the player is Pete Sampras. His weapons on grass spearheaded by that uncanny serve nullified any perceived weaknesses he had. Pete was also an underrated mover on the grass, pantherlike..

 

[PhiEaglesfan712]

At his peak, Pete was unbeatable at Wimbledon. However, outside of his peak, in his early and late years, Pete had some early exits there.

Pete at the US Open wasn't as dominant at his peak, but performed more consistently there throughout his career. Pete even has more wins at the US Open (71) than at Wimbledon (63), in the same number of appearances (14).

But I've never seen tennis more beautifully played than Sampras on carpet in the 1990s. 1998 was the last real year of carpet tennis. It would have been interesting to see his performance on carpet in his declining years (1999-2002). Would it have mirrored his quick decline on grass, or would he still be successful like on the hard courts?

 

[El Dude]

I'd have to go with grass. Why? Because he's got a legitimate argument for being the greatest grass player of the Open Era. Roger's overall stats are better--one more Wimbledon, nine more titles, and a higher Elo (2547 vs. 2501)--and Novak is very close, maybe even #2 over Pete. But you can make a case that Pete was even better than both at his peak, because stats don't fully capture what happens on court, and of course the problem of stat comparisons across eras.

On hards, it is Novak and Roger, then everyone else. Pete's in the mix with Agassi, Nadal, and maybe Lendl for #3, but he's no higher than #3, and the gap between Roger at #2 and whoever is #3 is larger than the "grass gap."

On carpet, I don't know how you get past the overwhelming evidence that it was McEnroe above everyone else, then Lendl and Becker and maybe Connors, then Pete's in the mix with Laver and Borg for the 5th spot. But he's no higher than #5. Plus, Pete's carpet Elo (2407) is significantly lower than the other guys. And note his 4-7 record vs. Becker on carpet, and 1-2 vs Lendl on carpet. He never faced anything close to peak Connors or McEnroe on carpet.

Of course all of that is relative to other players. Going purely on Pete alone, from what I've seen, I'd still give the edge to grass, but I didn't see much of him on carpet. Part of that is his competitive spirit, and that he brought his best to Wimbledon and Slams in a way that he didn't at lesser tournaments.

 

[Fiero425]

At his peak, Pete was unbeatable at Wimbledon. However, outside of his peak, in his early and late years, Pete had some early exits there.

Pete at the US Open wasn't as dominant at his peak, but performed more consistently there throughout his career. Pete even has more wins at the US Open (71) than at Wimbledon (63), in the same number of appearances (14).

But I've never seen tennis more beautifully played than Sampras on carpet in the 1990s. 1998 was the last real year of carpet tennis. It would have been interesting to see his performance on carpet in his declining years (1999-2002). Would it have mirrored his quick decline on grass, or would he still be successful like on the hard courts?

Well Pete's USO #'s were helped by his 1st upset win in '90! He took out Lendl, McEnroe, & Agassi so it's no wonder he has more USO wins!