ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Monday, January 27, 1997 TAG: 9701280021
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-5 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA
SOURCE: Associated Press
Of the nine Grand Slam singles titles Pete Sampras has won, the Australian Open was the most punishing to his body.
Suffocating heat, soft, heavy balls, a slower than usual hard court and long, draining matches conspired to wear him down.
Not that anyone could tell by the way Sampras dispatched young Spaniard Carlos Moya 6-2, 6-3, 6-3 on Sunday in the final.
Sampras played as if he had enough legs left, even after two five-setters, to go the distance again - even if he only needed 87 minutes. Moya, the 20-year-old surprise of the tournament, was the one who seemed sluggish.
``This is the toughest major I've won, physically, with the heat and the heavy balls,'' said Sampras, who had to ice his aching right arm after every match and practice. ``The balls are not favorable to my game. It's tough to put the ball away with these balls.''
The oven-like heat - more than 100 degrees on the court Sunday and up to 140 degrees other days - made this tournament tougher for Sampras even than the U.S. Open he won last year after vomiting and nearly collapsing on the court in a quarterfinal against Alex Corretja.
But in winning his second Australian title, Sampras was threatened only by strings popping on five of his rackets.
The victory, in the most one-sided Australian final in eight years, separated the world's top-ranked player from all but one of the greats of the open era.
Only Bjorn Borg, with 11 Grand Slam titles, has more majors than Sampras since the start of open tennis in 1968. Sampras had been tied at eight with Jimmy Connors and Ivan Lendl. Roy Emerson leads the all-time men's list with 12 majors, Rod Laver won 11 - five in open play - and Bill Tilden captured 10 in the 1920s and '30s.
``That's how you base your career, on Grand Slam titles,'' Sampras said. ``I put pressure on myself to do well in them. To have won one is a great start to the year.''
Sampras served 12 aces to Moya's two, but it wasn't sheer power that earned him this title. With the temperature 90 degrees in the shade and a bright sun burning through a partly cloudy sky, Sampras sacrificed speed for placement as he kept his unseeded opponent guessing where the ball was going next.
``Pete, we want a fourth set!'' a spectator yelled after Sampras took a 3-1 lead on his serve in the third set.
Sampras responded with a forehand drop-shot winner on the next point.
Sampras had no desire to let this match go longer than necessary, and only a shortage of string or rackets could have stopped him on this day. He popped a string in the second game of the match, another one two games later, two more in the second set, and another in the third set as heat and humidity played havoc with his tightly strung rackets.
Sampras had played enough tennis in this tournament, surviving two five-setters as he did at the 1996 U.S. Open, and this victory extended his Grand Slam winning streak to 14 matches.
Sampras said that when he awoke Sunday he thought about his late coach, Tim Gullikson, who was diagnosed with brain cancer during the tournament two years ago. Sampras said Gullikson always would be on his mind when he plays.
``This is where it all happened,'' Sampras said. ``I'm sure he's looking down and is very happy that I fought through some tough matches.''
Moya, the first Spanish man to reach the Australian Open final since Andres Gimeno in 1969, leaped from No.25 to No.9 in the computer rankings after beating defending champion Boris Becker in the first round and No.2 Michael Chang in a semifinal.
``He showed why he is No.1 in the world,'' Moya told the Australian fans, who had voted him the sexiest player in the tournament. ``The crowd gave me support throughout the tournament and made me feel like I was playing at home. Probably, without you I wouldn't have made it here.''
LENGTH: Medium: 77 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: AP. Pete Sampras hoists the trophy Sunday after winningby CNBhis second Australian Open title by beating Carlos Moya. KEYWORDS: TENNIS