“Do it for your coach": Pete Sampras' night of tears Down Under

In the quarterfinals of the 1995 Australian Open, world No. 1 Pete Sampras met Jim Courier. Sampras was the defending champion, his ’94 run including a semifinal victory over Courier, the winner in ’92 and ’93 during his years as No. 1 in the world. These two were good friends since their junior days, their kinship even extending to being doubles partners as young pros.

But a far bigger plotline had nothing to do with hitting tennis balls. A month prior to this match, Sampras’ coach, Tim Gullikson, had learned he had a blood clot in his brain. In Melbourne, Gullikson became extremely ill, suddenly needing to fly home for further diagnosis.

Gullikson had meant everything to Sampras, helping to take him from a dangerous contender and one-time Slam champion to the top of the world.  Gullikson also humanized the laser-focused Sampras, nicknaming him “Pistol” and showing his charge how to find the joy in earning a living playing a game.

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Alas, Sampras had blossomed during tennis’ charisma drought. The boom years of the ‘70s and early ‘80s were gone, stars Jimmy Connors, John McEnroe, Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova all retired by the end of 1994. During this time, Andre Agassi’s commitment wavered, Jennifer Capriati had vanished due to burnout, Monica Seles was off the tour and Stefanie Graf was exceptionally reticent. Nineteen-ninety-four was also the year of the Sports Illustrated cover story, titled, “Is Tennis Dying?”

As for Sampras, he preferred to let his racquet do the talking–and was therefore often regarded as boring, robotic, uninteresting. This context is critical for understanding the significance of what happened that evening in Melbourne.

Early on, Courier was the man in charge. Powered by his tremendous forehand, superb serve and unsurpassed fitness, Courier took a two sets to love lead. Sampras fought back to level the match.

But only as the fifth set began did the story take on the shape that it’s now remembered for. A fan yelled, “Do it for your coach.” Though Sampras would say he never heard that comment, at around that same time, Sampras began to cry–not just mildly, but weeping.

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“He is so exhausted from this whole thing,” Sampras’ girlfriend, Delaina Mulcahy, told ESPN’s Mary Carillo. “He wants to do it for Tim.”

Tears flew heavily from Sampras. So did all the tools Gullikson had helped sharpen: big serves, penetrating forehands, crisp volleys.

Seeking to comfort his friend, Courier said, “Are you all right, Pete?  We can do this tomorrow.”

Sampras continued to combine crying with tennis.  Said Carillo, “He is acing his way through tears.”

With Courier serving at 3-4 in that final set, Sampras broke and, at 1:09 a.m., closed it out. As the two shook hands, Courier said to Sampras, “I know you’re dead because I’m . . .  dead.”

Never again would it be possible to regard Sampras as heartless.