| |
 |
|
Time grinds down champions By Curry Kirkpatrick ESPN The Magazine WIMBLEDON, England -- Time beats the bejeezus out of everybody. Cal Ripken can't get around on the fastball anymore. Richard Gere plays suburban dad rather than dangerous stud. Hey, it happens. When you get old, you get old.
If the evidence wasn't there before -- and it was, it was; check that oh-for-29 record in tour events since he won his seventh Wimbledon in the summer of 2000 -- Pete Sampras at 30 found himself aging into oblivion right before his own eyes on Wednesday afternoon. Not on Centre Court either -- the place he called "home" just the other day, the place he'd set that all-time Slams record of 13, the place on which the All England Club chose to sic the biggest dog in the game, second-seeded Marat Safin (who promptly was taken out by 5-foot-5 Olivier Rochus) instead of Sampras. No, Wimbledon elected to throw Sampras off the show courts and onto the mercies of Court Two -- a smaller tighter, claustrophobic and invariably noisy lawn called "the graveyard of champions" -- where a wavy-haired, unshaven former Swiss hockey player named George Bastl turned from a "lucky loser" ranked 145th in the world into the ultimate undertaker. As far back as 1973, Ilie Nastase was the No. 1 seed when he was upset in the graveyard. In 1983, Jimmy Connors was No. 1 when he was beaten there, as well. In addition, Court Two has been boot hill for: 1988 and '94 -- Connors again and again. '94 -- Michael Stich, second seed out in the first round. '96 -- Andre Agassi, third seed, out in the first round (to Ken Flach, ranked 281). '98 -- Marcelo Rios, second seed, out in the first round. And in recent years Grand Slam champs Richard Krajicek, Gustavo Kuerten and Yevgeny Kafelnikov also have been buried in the cemetery. Sure enough, when the bell tolled for the second round on Wednesday, to the tune of 6-3, 6-2, 4-6, 3-6, 6-4, Bastl -- American born of Swiss parents who raised the husky, 6-footer in the town of Villars-sur-Ollon -- shoveled a shocked Sampras not only six feet under and smack out of Wimbledon but maybe all the way out of the game, as well.
That would be a drastic decision, but what might else could be expected:
After Bastl got out of Dodge as suddenly as he got into the tournament, Sampras sat on his chair for a long time as silence enveloped the area. For the first time in any match, he had gazed throughout the changeovers at personal notes his wife had written to him. Was it for the last time, too? Soon, the great champion trudged off and slowly raised his arm in a half-wave as the crowd roared. "A shock to me," he called the loss. (And he wasn't the only one in the family. Wife Bridgette Wilson, the actress, was presumably so sure of victory, she shuffled into the spectator box, shopping bags in tow, about midway through the thing.) "It's going to be a tough flight home, a tough next couple of weeks, just knowing that this is going on and I'm not here." Then his eyes welled up and Sampras struggled to finish his thought, blowing air to attempt composure. "Long distance future, I plan on being back... You know, I'm not going to end my time here with that loss... And so..." And so... To further illustrate how incomparably whacko the event actually was -- Bastl's father, George, played pro hockey for ten years in the Chicago Blackhawks organization, from Flint to Dallas, and yet George Jr. has never even dated Anna Kournikova -- we take you to the surprising winner's press conference. Reporter: "Where does this victory rank in your career?" Bastl: "Quite up there." Reporter: "Who is the highest ranked player you've ever beaten before?" Bastl: "You got me there." Reporter: "Were you were aware of Court Two's reputation? The graveyard? You've now become part of the lore. You know that?" Bastl: "I thought it was the other court, like the one with glass. Court 1? Used to be court 1?" Say what?
While everybody was still trying to digest George Bastl, still another fairly unrecognizable figure was bidding adieu to none other than Agassi, who was allowed on Centre Court. This turned out to be Paradorn Srichaphan, 23, an admitted kick boxing addict and probably the best tennis player in the history of Bangkok, Thailand. Srichaphan -- truly "Hard Pan" to Agassi; a bold and brilliant shotmaker on this day -- merely polished off the 32-year-old veteran in straight sets by 6-4, 7-6 (5), 6-2. But even as Double A was obviously Thai-ing one on -- looking out of rhythm, sluggish and, yeah, old and washed up himself -- the smiling Paradigm, uh, Paradorn forgot to engage in his usual practice of touching the ground for good luck and shoving some grass into his pocket. Which is an idea he says he got from the Pope. Say who? A confirmed Buddhist copying stuff from the leader of the world's Roman Catholics is about as strange as...? How about as strange as America's longtime tennis touchdown twins -- 20 Grand Slams between them -- being ousted from Wimbledon back-to-back by a sometime hockey player and an erstwhile kick boxer? Back to Bastl. What did it look like, you looking across the net at the all-time Wimbledon champion? Bastl was asked late Wednesday. "Well, I was looking at him for over three hours, so I knew what he looked like," said the fun-loving Swiss. We've all known what Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi look like for a lot more than three hours. But we should keep looking while we can. Time beats the bejeezus out of everybody. Especially, legends. Curry Kirkpatrick is a senior writer for ESPN The Magazine. E-mail him at curry.kirkpatrick@espnmag.com.  Send this story to a friend | Most sent stories |
 Sampras, Safin upset in second round Washington: No others like them Serena, Capriati advance to third round Kirkpatrick: All in the family |
 |