"If Pete was working as hard as Andre Agassi, he would've won 24 Majors" - When Pete Sampras' former coach compared the two American World No. 1s
Pete Sampras' former coach, Pete Fischer, once stated that he would've had as many as 24 Grand Slam titles to his name if he worked as hard as Andre Agassi.
In his formative years, when Sampras showed signs of his talent, his parents enlisted Fischer, a pediatrician and an amateur player, to coach him. Fischer, who took up the mantle of a tennis coach for the first time, started working with Sampras when he was seven years old and helped him rise the ranks of American juniors.
They parted ways in 1989 after a serious falling out during the US Open that year.
Fischer, later, became infamous after being convicted of molesting some of his young patients and even served time in prison. After three years behind bars, he was paroled and began working on getting his life back together.
In an interview with The New York Times at the time, Fischer spoke about a variety of topics, with Sampras taking centerstage. He recalled his time in prison and stated that finding out that Sampras won the Wimbledon Championships title was the highlight of a bleak time.
''That was the high point of my year, finding out that Pete had won Wimbledon. Everything else in my life seemed like a complete disaster," he said.
Comparing Sampras with Agassi, the two American stars who ruled the ATP tour at the time, he said that his former charge would have won many more Major titles if he worked as hard as Aggasi.
''I think if he had the attitude to prove he was the best still, then he might be able to go out and do it. I think physically, he probably still is the best. If Pete was working as hard as Andre Agassi, he would have won 24 majors by now,'' he opined.
''But it's not in his nature. I don't even know if that would change his approach to the game. He certainly can still win a couple of more Wimbledons with probably minimal effort, which probably means I'm not convinced he's putting in minimal effort," he added.
Pete Sampras retired with 14 Grand Slam titles, 6 more than Andre Agassi
Despite not working as hard as Andre Agassi, according to his former coach Pete Fischer, Pete Sampras did end up winning more Grand Slam titles than his compatriot.
Agassi won eight Majors in his career; four at the Australian Open, two at the US Open, and one each at the French Open and the Wimbledon Championships. He also registered seven runner-up finishes across the Slams, with Sampras responsible for four of them: thrice at the US Open (1990, 1995, and 2002) and once at Wimbledon (1999).
On the other hand, Sampras had won 14 Majors by the time he retired, with seven Wimbledon titles, five US Opens, and two Australian Opens. His only defeat to Agassi in a Slam final came in 1995 in Melbourne.