With the current suspension of the ATP and WTA Tours, we are opening up our US Open vault to bring you full match videos of classic encounters through the years in New York.
Watch on YouTube: Pete Sampras vs. Andy Roddick, 2002 US Open men's singles quarterfinals
In what would be the final tournament of his hall-of-fame career, Pete Sampras won the 2002 US Open at the age of 31. Entering New York, he was already the all-time leader for men's singles Grand Slam titles, with 13 (since surpassed by Roger Federer's 20), but in the midst of a two-year drought following his 2000 Wimbledon triumph.
Seeded No. 17, he defeated world No. 3 Tommy Haas in the Round of 16 to set up a marquee quarterfinal against Andy Roddick that brought together two generations of American greats.
Fresh off a quarterfinal run in 2001, the 20-year-old Roddick was stamped as the next best thing in U.S. tennis. While he ultimately lived up to that hype, finishing the 2003 season as world No. 1, he was taught a lesson that day in Arthur Ashe Stadium, by a man who won his first Grand Slam title when Roddick was 10.
Sampras pressured his compatriot throughout the three-set affair and blunted the youngster's trademark firepower with deft touch and well-timed approaches, even in the face of rocket-fueled serves.
Behind 13 aces and 43 winners, Sampras was near-perfect on his own serve, facing just one break point, which he saved with a serve-and-volley masterpiece.
History now lists these two men as US Open champions in successive years, with Roddick making his breakthrough in 2003, just after Sampras made his retirement official after 12 months out of action.
The 2002 US Open match, along with scores of other great content, is now available to watch on the USTA YouTube channel. For a coming attraction, view the highlights below.
