As we prepare for the Djokovic-Sinner semifinal, here's another one of those changing of the guard matches:
Federer vs. Sampras - 2001 Wimbledon
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Vince Evert
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you picked one of the greatest matches from a magnificent era of grass court tennis.
Over at Talk Tennis (of which i'm also member) Waspsting put up a very interesting summary including the match stats, in 2020, i'll just copy and paste a portion of it here:
Roger Federer beat Pete Sampras 7-6(7), 5-7, 6-4, 6-7(2), 7-5 in the Wimbledon fourth round, 2001 on grass
Federer was 19 years old, seeded 15th and would go onto lose in the next round to Tim Henman. Sampras had won the title the previous 4 years and 7 of the last 8.
Federer won 190 points, Sampras 180
Sampras serve-volleyed off all serves, Federer of vast majority off first serves and about half the time off seconds
Serve Stats
Federer...
- 1st serve percentage (113/181) 62%
- 1st serve points won (93/113) 82%
- 2nd serve points won (35/68) 51%
- Aces 25, Service Winners 1
- Double Faults 6
- Unreturned Serve Percentage (89/181) 49%
Sampras...
- 1st serve percentage (132/189) 70%
- 1st serve points won (101/132) 77%
- 2nd serve points won (26/57) 46%
- Aces 25 (1 second serve), Service Winners 3
- Double Faults 9
- Unreturned Serve Percentage (85/189) 45%
Serve Patterns
Federer served...
- to FH 37%
- to BH 55%
- to Body 7%
Sampras served...
- to FH 43%
- to BH 50%
- to Body 7%
Return Stats
Federer made...
- 95 (39 FH, 56 BH), including 1 return-approach
- 12 Winners (6 FH, 6 BH)
- 57 Errors, all forced...
- 57 Forced (22 FH, 35 BH)
- Return Rate (95/180) 53%
Sampras made...
- 86 (27 FH, 59 BH)
- 8 Winners (5 FH, 3 BH)
- 63 Errors, comprising...
- 7 Unforced (2 FH, 5 BH)
- 56 Forced (23 FH, 33 BH)
- Return Rate (86/175) 49%
Break Points
Federer 3/14 (7 games)
Sampras 2/11 (6 games)
Winners (including returns, excluding serves)
Federer 42 (19 FH, 10 BH, 6 FHV, 1 FH1/2V, 6 BHV)
Sampras 41 (12 FH, 9 BH, 7 FHV, 1 FH1/2V, 9 BHV, 3 OH)
Federer had 10 from serve-volley points
- 7 first 'volleys' (4 FHV, 1 FH1/2V, 2 BHV)
- 3 second volleys (1 FHV, 2 BHV)
- 1 other FHV was a swinging shot
- 12 returns (6 FH, 6 BH), all passes
- FHs - 3 dtl, 2 inside-out and 1 inside-in
- BHs - 1 cc, 3 dtl, 1 inside-out and 1 inside-in
- regular FH passes - 3 cc (1 at net), 4 dtl and 1 inside-out
- regular BH passes - 2 cc and 1 longline
- regular FHs - 2 cc, 1 inside-out, 1 inside-in and 1 drop shot at net
- regular BH - 1 dtl
Sampras had 22 from serve-volley points
- 13 first 'volleys' (4 FHV, 7 BHV, 2 FH at net)
- 8 second 'volleys' (2 FHV, 1 FH1/2V, 2 BHV, 3 OH)
- 1 third volley (1 FHV)
- 8 returns (5 FH, 3 BH), all but 1 FH being passes
- FH passes - 1 cc, 1 dtl and 2 inside-in
- regular FH - 1 cc
- BH passes - 2 cc and 1 inside-in
- regular FH passes - 1 cc, 2 dtl, 1 inside-out at net and 1 lob
- regular BH passes - 2 cc and 3 dtl (1 not clean)
- regular BH - 1 dtl
Errors (excluding serves and returns)
Federer 48
- 12 Unforced (3 FH, 3 BH, 4 FHV, 2 BHV)
- 36 Forced (12 FH, 12 BH, 4 FHV, 6 BHV, 2 BH1/2V)... with 1 BH running-down-drop-volley at net
- Unforced Error Forcefulness Index 55
Sampras 50
- 20 Unforced (3 FH, 4 BH, 7 FHV, 4 BHV, 2 OH)... with1 BH pass attempt & 1 BH at net
- 30 Forced (4 FH, 11 BH, 5 FHV, 3 BHV, 7 BH1/2V)
- Unforced Error Forcefulness Index 54
(Note 1: All 1/2 volleys refer to such shots played at net. 1/2 volleys played from other parts of the court are included within relevant groundstroke numbers)
(Note 2: the Unforced Error Forcefulness Index is an indicator of how aggressive the average UE was. The numbers presented for these two matches are keyed on 4 categories - 20 defensive, 40 neutral, 50 attacking and 60 winner attempt)
Net Points & Serve-Volley
Federer was...
- 88/121 (73%) at net, including...
- 78/107 (73%) serve-volleying, comprising...
- 58/77 (75%) off 1st serve and...
- 20/30 (67%) off 2nd serve
---
- 0/1 return-approaching
Sampras was...
- 103/160 (64%) at net, including...
- 99/152 (65%) serve-volleying, comprising...
- 74/105 (70%) off 1st serve and...
- 25/47 (53%) off 2nd serve
---
- 0/2 retreating
Match Report
Great, serve-dominated and net-heavy match that's very close. Sampras has the better serve, Federer returns exceptionally well and both are solid in forecourt. Federer has the better of action but match is sufficiently serve-dominated that it wouldn't necessarily guarantee a win, i.e. its a who-plays-big-points-better encounter, as Big Game matches on grass tend to be
Federer with 1 more winner, 2 fewer errors, +4% unreturned serves and 3 fewer double faults shows his leading slightly in all areas. Of quality, he's even further ahead with 12 UEs to Sampras 20 (Sampras does force 6 more errors)
Its still not enough to be comfortable. Not only does match go to 5 sets, but Sampras has two break points at 4-4 and on the first in particular, Fed has to play an outstanding point to win. Match could have gone either way, but Fed maximizes chances of it falling the way it ends up doing
If this is Federer's break out match, it bears much resemblance to Sampras' win over Ivan Lendl in 1990 US Open quarter-finals
- Sampras was going for his 5 title in a row here. Lendl was going for his 9th final in a row there
- Both matches going 5 sets
- Winner of both matches being 19 years old
- the composure of the winner standing out as much as their play itself
Not a hint of nerves from the young Federer. Short of Bjorn Borg, he conducts himself as coolly as anyone you'll see. Only after the last point does he fall to his knees and cries silently afterwards
Serve, Return & Serve-Volley
Sampras serve-volleys 100% of the time, Federer does so 89% off first serves and 48% off seconds
Both serve well, Sampras particularly so. He's remarkably served at 70% first serves in... a stat that would suggest he held back on the shot. In fact, if anything, he goes extra hard with it. There are small lulls (read: 'just' regular strong serving - especially in third set) but otherwise, he's bombing down first serves about as hard as he can. Second serves would make decent first serves too... the harder hit ones (which are sent down regularly) are roughly on par with even Federer's typical first serves
So why does Federer lead unreturned rates 49% to 45% and aces/service winners are dead even 25/1 despite Sampras serving 19 extra first serves? Because Federer returns superbly. This is possibly the best returning I've seen of Pete Sampras on grass, especially at Wimbledon. Other areas of Sampras' game (especially the return) may have declined from his heyday - but the serve is as strong as ever
tt.tennis-warehouse.com
Over at Talk Tennis (of which i'm also member) Waspsting put up a very interesting summary including the match stats, in 2020, i'll just copy and paste a portion of it here:
Roger Federer beat Pete Sampras 7-6(7), 5-7, 6-4, 6-7(2), 7-5 in the Wimbledon fourth round, 2001 on grass
Federer was 19 years old, seeded 15th and would go onto lose in the next round to Tim Henman. Sampras had won the title the previous 4 years and 7 of the last 8.
Federer won 190 points, Sampras 180
Sampras serve-volleyed off all serves, Federer of vast majority off first serves and about half the time off seconds
Serve Stats
Federer...
- 1st serve percentage (113/181) 62%
- 1st serve points won (93/113) 82%
- 2nd serve points won (35/68) 51%
- Aces 25, Service Winners 1
- Double Faults 6
- Unreturned Serve Percentage (89/181) 49%
Sampras...
- 1st serve percentage (132/189) 70%
- 1st serve points won (101/132) 77%
- 2nd serve points won (26/57) 46%
- Aces 25 (1 second serve), Service Winners 3
- Double Faults 9
- Unreturned Serve Percentage (85/189) 45%
Serve Patterns
Federer served...
- to FH 37%
- to BH 55%
- to Body 7%
Sampras served...
- to FH 43%
- to BH 50%
- to Body 7%
Return Stats
Federer made...
- 95 (39 FH, 56 BH), including 1 return-approach
- 12 Winners (6 FH, 6 BH)
- 57 Errors, all forced...
- 57 Forced (22 FH, 35 BH)
- Return Rate (95/180) 53%
Sampras made...
- 86 (27 FH, 59 BH)
- 8 Winners (5 FH, 3 BH)
- 63 Errors, comprising...
- 7 Unforced (2 FH, 5 BH)
- 56 Forced (23 FH, 33 BH)
- Return Rate (86/175) 49%
Break Points
Federer 3/14 (7 games)
Sampras 2/11 (6 games)
Winners (including returns, excluding serves)
Federer 42 (19 FH, 10 BH, 6 FHV, 1 FH1/2V, 6 BHV)
Sampras 41 (12 FH, 9 BH, 7 FHV, 1 FH1/2V, 9 BHV, 3 OH)
Federer had 10 from serve-volley points
- 7 first 'volleys' (4 FHV, 1 FH1/2V, 2 BHV)
- 3 second volleys (1 FHV, 2 BHV)
- 1 other FHV was a swinging shot
- 12 returns (6 FH, 6 BH), all passes
- FHs - 3 dtl, 2 inside-out and 1 inside-in
- BHs - 1 cc, 3 dtl, 1 inside-out and 1 inside-in
- regular FH passes - 3 cc (1 at net), 4 dtl and 1 inside-out
- regular BH passes - 2 cc and 1 longline
- regular FHs - 2 cc, 1 inside-out, 1 inside-in and 1 drop shot at net
- regular BH - 1 dtl
Sampras had 22 from serve-volley points
- 13 first 'volleys' (4 FHV, 7 BHV, 2 FH at net)
- 8 second 'volleys' (2 FHV, 1 FH1/2V, 2 BHV, 3 OH)
- 1 third volley (1 FHV)
- 8 returns (5 FH, 3 BH), all but 1 FH being passes
- FH passes - 1 cc, 1 dtl and 2 inside-in
- regular FH - 1 cc
- BH passes - 2 cc and 1 inside-in
- regular FH passes - 1 cc, 2 dtl, 1 inside-out at net and 1 lob
- regular BH passes - 2 cc and 3 dtl (1 not clean)
- regular BH - 1 dtl
Errors (excluding serves and returns)
Federer 48
- 12 Unforced (3 FH, 3 BH, 4 FHV, 2 BHV)
- 36 Forced (12 FH, 12 BH, 4 FHV, 6 BHV, 2 BH1/2V)... with 1 BH running-down-drop-volley at net
- Unforced Error Forcefulness Index 55
Sampras 50
- 20 Unforced (3 FH, 4 BH, 7 FHV, 4 BHV, 2 OH)... with1 BH pass attempt & 1 BH at net
- 30 Forced (4 FH, 11 BH, 5 FHV, 3 BHV, 7 BH1/2V)
- Unforced Error Forcefulness Index 54
(Note 1: All 1/2 volleys refer to such shots played at net. 1/2 volleys played from other parts of the court are included within relevant groundstroke numbers)
(Note 2: the Unforced Error Forcefulness Index is an indicator of how aggressive the average UE was. The numbers presented for these two matches are keyed on 4 categories - 20 defensive, 40 neutral, 50 attacking and 60 winner attempt)
Net Points & Serve-Volley
Federer was...
- 88/121 (73%) at net, including...
- 78/107 (73%) serve-volleying, comprising...
- 58/77 (75%) off 1st serve and...
- 20/30 (67%) off 2nd serve
---
- 0/1 return-approaching
Sampras was...
- 103/160 (64%) at net, including...
- 99/152 (65%) serve-volleying, comprising...
- 74/105 (70%) off 1st serve and...
- 25/47 (53%) off 2nd serve
---
- 0/2 retreating
Match Report
Great, serve-dominated and net-heavy match that's very close. Sampras has the better serve, Federer returns exceptionally well and both are solid in forecourt. Federer has the better of action but match is sufficiently serve-dominated that it wouldn't necessarily guarantee a win, i.e. its a who-plays-big-points-better encounter, as Big Game matches on grass tend to be
Federer with 1 more winner, 2 fewer errors, +4% unreturned serves and 3 fewer double faults shows his leading slightly in all areas. Of quality, he's even further ahead with 12 UEs to Sampras 20 (Sampras does force 6 more errors)
Its still not enough to be comfortable. Not only does match go to 5 sets, but Sampras has two break points at 4-4 and on the first in particular, Fed has to play an outstanding point to win. Match could have gone either way, but Fed maximizes chances of it falling the way it ends up doing
If this is Federer's break out match, it bears much resemblance to Sampras' win over Ivan Lendl in 1990 US Open quarter-finals
- Sampras was going for his 5 title in a row here. Lendl was going for his 9th final in a row there
- Both matches going 5 sets
- Winner of both matches being 19 years old
- the composure of the winner standing out as much as their play itself
Not a hint of nerves from the young Federer. Short of Bjorn Borg, he conducts himself as coolly as anyone you'll see. Only after the last point does he fall to his knees and cries silently afterwards
Serve, Return & Serve-Volley
Sampras serve-volleys 100% of the time, Federer does so 89% off first serves and 48% off seconds
Both serve well, Sampras particularly so. He's remarkably served at 70% first serves in... a stat that would suggest he held back on the shot. In fact, if anything, he goes extra hard with it. There are small lulls (read: 'just' regular strong serving - especially in third set) but otherwise, he's bombing down first serves about as hard as he can. Second serves would make decent first serves too... the harder hit ones (which are sent down regularly) are roughly on par with even Federer's typical first serves
So why does Federer lead unreturned rates 49% to 45% and aces/service winners are dead even 25/1 despite Sampras serving 19 extra first serves? Because Federer returns superbly. This is possibly the best returning I've seen of Pete Sampras on grass, especially at Wimbledon. Other areas of Sampras' game (especially the return) may have declined from his heyday - but the serve is as strong as ever
Match Stats/Report - Federer vs Sampras, Wimbledon fourth round, 2001
Roger Federer beat Pete Sampras 7-6(7), 5-7, 6-4, 6-7(2), 7-5 in the Wimbledon fourth round, 2001 on grass Federer was 19 years old, seeded 15th and would go onto lose in the next round to Tim Henman. Sampras had won the title the previous 4 years and 7 of the last 8. Federer won190 points...
tt.tennis-warehouse.com