"That was the reason I wanted to retire" - When Boris Becker handed Pete Sampras the keys to his 'living room' on Wimbledon's Centre Court
Boris Becker and Pete Sampras faced off in the 1995 Wimbledon final. The American emerged victorious and lifted his third Wimbledon trophy after defeating Becker 6-7 (5), 6-2, 6-4, 6-2.
Boris Becker holds the record for being the youngest Wimbledon champion in history since he won the title in 1985 at the age of 17. Over the course of his career, the German won three Wimbledon championships and enjoyed an 85% win record at the Grand Slam.
Becker recalled feeling confident as he walked into the final against Sampras in 1995. Despite being in his late 20s the German had kept himself in good shape and remained fit and healthy. He was also in good form and had defeated Andre Agassi in the semi-finals.
"I thought I was in great form. I had just beaten Agassi in the semi-final," the German said on the London Real Youtube channel.
While the three-time Wimbledon champion had previously competed against Pete Sampras, he wasn't expecting the American to beat him when he was at his best, especially at Wimbledon, which Becker would call his 'living room'. Sampras formerly defeated the six-time Grand Slam champion in the 1993 Wimbledon semifinals in straight sets.
The German revealed that his belief that no one could beat him at Wimbledon when he was at his best changed when Pete Sampras came onto the scene.
"On my best day, nobody can beat me. When Pete came around that changed," Becker said.
After Becker lost the final, he made a statement that he had passed the baton over to Pete Sampras as the player to dominate Wimbledon's Centre Court in the future.
"I'd given Pete the keys to my living room so he owned it now," he said.
The former World No. 1 said passing over the ascendancy to the American was the reason he wanted to retire. He added that he always played to win and knowing that there was a player like Sampras who would defeat him even at his best made him want to retire.
"For me, that was the reason I wanted to retire," the 55-year-old revealed. "There is somebody that on my best day and on his best day on the Wimbledon center court, he would beat me."
Boris Becker picks Pete Sampras as the best player he faced in his career
Boris Becker also gave his thoughts on who he considers the best player in history. He named Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic as the players who immediately come to mind when such a question is asked.
However, since the German never played against any of the three, he couldn't comment on who came out on top among them. He said that of the players he did play against like John McEnroe, Ivan Lendl, Andre Agassi and Mats Wilander, he considered Pete Sampras to be the best.
Becker added that Sampras's serve, physicality and on-court ability set him apart from the rest. He also called Sampras's serve the best in tennis history.
"For me, in that generation, Pete Sampras was the best because on his good day, you can't touch him," Becker said. "He had the best serve of all time in my opinion."
Boris Becker faced Pete Sampras 19 times in his career and trailed in the head-to-head 12-7.