Sampras forfeited the world number 1 ranking to Agassi when injury forced Sampras to withdraw from that year's US Open.

Both Pete Sampras and Serena Williams could not defend their titles from 2002 ; Sampras unofficially retired after winning his final Grand Slam title the previous year ; Serena Williams was forced to miss the tournament after withdrawing through injury.

Sampras lost a five-set US Open semifinal to the eventual winner Patrick Rafter, after leading the match two sets to one.

Sampras won 12 of the 16 matches he played against Rafter, including eight of their first nine.

Their rivalry began to truly develop after Rafter shocked the tennis world by winning the 1997 US Open, a tournament that many expected Sampras to win, having won in 1995 and 1996.

In 1998, after Rafter defeated Sampras in the Cincinnati Masters final, Sampras, at the time winner of 11 Grand Slams, when asked about the difference between himself and Rafter, famously stated " Ten grand slams ", that a controversial line-call cost him the match, and that a player had to come back and win another Grand Slam title in order to be considered great.

Following his successful defense of his 1997 U. S. Open title by defeating Mark Philippoussis in the 1998 final, when asked about Sampras ' earlier comments about having to win another Grand Slam in order to be considered great, Rafter replied: " Maybe you can ask him that question, if he thinks that now.

For his part, Sampras said about Rafter, " When I see him holding the US Open trophy, it pisses me off.

After losing for a third consecutive time against Rafter, Sampras won their final four meetings, including a four-set victory in the 2000 Wimbledon final, after being down a set and trailing in the second-set tiebreaker.

In 1996, he reached the 4th round of the Australian Open upsetting Pete Sampras in the 3rd round and in doubles with Patrick Rafter.

In the 1997 U. S. Open, he was the odds-on favorite to win after Sampras was upset by Petr Korda ; however, Chang lost to eventual champion Patrick Rafter in the semifinals in straight sets.

Blanco had two high profile wins in majors, beating former 2-time US Open Champion, Patrick Rafter, in the first round of the 2000 US Open, and in beating Pete Sampras in the second round of the 2001 French Open.

Throughout his singles career Arthurs experienced victory over no fewer than six players to reach the number 1 world ranking: Pete Sampras, Marat Safin, Yevgeny Kafelnikov, Patrick Rafter, Andy Roddick and Gustavo Kuerten.

Woodbridge also had a career high singles ranking of 19 after reaching the semifinals of Wimbledon in 1997, beating Patrick Rafter before losing to Pete Sampras.

Spadea has ATP career singles wins over Roger Federer ( 1 – 2 record ), Pete Sampras ( 1 – 4 ), Andre Agassi ( 2 – 4 ), Rafael Nadal ( 1 – 1 ), Andy Roddick ( 1 – 2 ), Patrick Rafter, Richard Krajicek, Yevgeny Kafelnikov, Jim Courier, Michael Chang, Marat Safin, and Gustavo Kuerten.

Mantilla said about his game " I don't have the serve of Sampras or the volley of Rafter or the talent of Agassi, you know.

And for me, when you play like me that you must be running all the day, I don't have the serve of Sampras or the volley of Rafter or the talent of Agassi, you know.

Other male tennis players known for their serve-and-volley technique include Rod Laver, John McEnroe, Stefan Edberg, Boris Becker, Pete Sampras, Patrick Rafter and Richard Krajicek.

Pete Sampras won his fourth consecutive Wimbledon title, defeating Patrick Rafter in the final.

In singles play, Santoro defeated 18 players who were ranked World No. 1 at some time during their careers: Novak Djokovic, Jimmy Connors, Mats Wilander, Boris Becker, Stefan Edberg, Jim Courier, Andre Agassi, Pete Sampras, Thomas Muster, Marcelo Ríos, Gustavo Kuerten, Carlos Moyà, Pat Rafter, Juan Carlos Ferrero, Marat Safin, Lleyton Hewitt, Andy Roddick and Roger Federer ( with whom he has a 2 – 9 record ).

Sampras debuted on the professional tour in 1988 and played his last top-level tournament in 2002 when he won the US Open, defeating rival Andre Agassi in the final.

Sampras won the first of his two Australian Open titles in 1994, defeating American Todd Martin in the final.

Sampras also won a 1998 clay court tournament in Atlanta, defeating Jason Stoltenberg in the final.

Sampras won his second and final Australian Open title in January, defeating Carlos Moyà in the final.

Sampras also won singles titles in San Jose, Philadelphia, Cincinnati, Munich, and Paris, and the ATP Tour World Championships in Hanover, Germany.

) Sampras failed to defend his Australian Open title, losing in the quarterfinals to Karol Kučera, and won Wimbledon only after a hard-fought five-set victory over Goran Ivanišević.

Sampras reached the semifinals of the Australian Open in early 2000 ( falling to the eventual champion Agassi in a five-set match ) and won the Ericsson Open in Key Biscayne, Florida for the third time in March.

Sampras won 64 top-level singles titles ( including 14 Grand Slam titles, 11 Super 9 / ATP Masters Series / ATP World Tour Masters 1000 titles and five Tennis Masters Cup titles ) and two doubles titles.

Sampras won 20 of the 34 matches he played against Agassi.

With both Sampras and Agassi participating, the U. S. won the Davis Cup in 1995. Notable Sampras-Agassi matches of 1995 included the finals of the Australian Open, the Newsweek Champions Cup, the Lipton International Players Championships, the Canadian Open, and the US Open, with Sampras winning the Newsweek Champions Cup and the US Open.

The next time Sampras and Agassi met in a Grand Slam final was at Wimbledon in 1999, where Sampras won in straight sets.

Sampras won his first two events on tour, defeating Todd Martin in both finals ( one of which included Sampras's first trip to his ancestral homeland, Greece ).

In 2009 Sampras won two Outback Champions Series titles.

Pete Sampras, runner-up in 2001, won his fifth US Open title, and his 14th and final Grand Slam title, defeating his rival Agassi in the final in four sets.

The clear favourite was Pete Sampras, who had won the title for the past three consecutive years.

He won two hard-court titles, including the Lipton International Players Championships, the same tournament where his career had nearly ended just eight years earlier — by defeating Sergi Bruguera in the final, after Bruguera had defeated Pete Sampras in the semifinals.

Only Sampras, Emerson, and Roger Federer have won more Grand Slam singles titles.

He advanced to the quarter-finals at Wimbledon in 1999 for the second straight year, where he retired in the second set against Sampras after having won the first set.

He won his first Grand Slam title at the 2000 U. S. Open after defeating Pete Sampras, and won the 2005 Australian Open, defeating Australian Lleyton Hewitt in the final.

At the Australian Open, Sampras upset twelfth-ranked Mayotte in the first round before losing to thirteenth-ranked Yannick Noah in the fourth round in four sets.

France again faced the US, and this time Leconte defeated Pete Sampras in straight sets in a critical singles rubber, and also teamed with Guy Forget to win the doubles rubber, as France upset the heavily-favoured US team 3 – 1.

Korda was also a part of the Czech Republic's team which won the Hopman Cup in 1994, and upset defending champion Pete Sampras in five sets in the fourth round of the 1997 US Open.

In May 2001 Levy upset the world's top player, Pete Sampras, at the Italian Open, 7 – 5, 2 – 6, 6 – 4, saving 13 of 17 break points.