Due to the coronavirus pandemic, tennis fans have not seen the sport for months. However, they had the chance to be aware of some emotional moments excavated from the tennis archives. One such post was from the Australian Open about Pete Sampras’ emotional victory at the 1995 Australian Open.
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Pete Sampras at the Australian Open in 1995
As you can see in the video above, Pete Sampras was playing Jim Courier at the 1995 Australian Open. The American managed to level the game in two sets each after losing the first two sets.
In the middle of the fifth set, Pete started to cry. His trainer Tim Gullikson had suffered an attack and was to be taken home to the United States for treatment. Clearly, this must have played in Sampras’ mind and may have been the reason behind the sudden tears.
In a moment of compassion, his opponent Jim Courier offered to finish the game the next day, given the emotional turmoil that Sampras seemed to face. However, Pete overcame his emotions and played a fantastic game, eventually winning the game to get to the semifinals. He reached the finals of the event where he lost sadly with Andre Agassi.
The American dedicated the event and all future events to Tim Gullikson. He describes Gullikson as a good friend and mentor. Unfortunately, Tim was subsequently diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor and died in 1996.
Tim’s death must have left a mark on Sampras and permeated him with the desire to be an even better player.
He clearly achieved this while winning many other Grand Slams after 1995, taking his tally to 14. This was a record at the time, but players have now beaten him. Even so, Pete is still considered one of the greatest players of all time.
Source: Australian Open Twitter
