If Sampras Is Armed, He’s Still Dangerous

Pete Sampras isn’t exactly marching toward the record books. Limping along is more like it.

His inflamed left shin has been the most newsworthy aspect of his six victories this fortnight at Wimbledon. He has proceeded through the brackets without much flair against a string of unseeded opponents. He has not been dominant; he has not been pushed to greatness.

And yet he has arrived at the doorstep of history, needing one more victory to win his 13th career Grand Slam title after moving past Vladimir Voltchkov in the semifinals Friday.

Patrick Rafter, who crafted a masterful five-set victory over Andre Agassi, will be across the net in the final. But throughout Sampras’ run here, the competition has come from within and beyond--from a body so sore he can’t practice in between matches and from an opportunity to separate himself from the rest of tennis’ all-time greats.

“I think even getting to the final has been one of my best efforts,” said Sampras, who called on the trainer to tend to his shin twice during his 7-6 (4), 6-2, 6-4 victory. “It would obviously be great to win it.

“I’ll appreciate this time much more when I’m done, looking at what I’ve gone through. You know, it’s part of what we do. You get through tough situations.”

His game has always been characterized by an economy of movement, and now it’s down to a minimum amount of energy. His most flamboyant move--his signature leaping overhead slam--hasn’t been seen much this fortnight.

He’s drawing inspiration and comfort from the locale. Wimbledon is the most prestigious tournament and also the site of half of his 12 Grand Slam victories (a career record he shares with Roy Emerson). The playing surface hasn’t hurt, either.

“As long as I have my right arm, on grass I’m still a threat,” Sampras said.

That arm delivered 13 aces Friday and has been good for 94 during the tournament.

Sampras has never had the distinction as the tour’s hardest server (that has been the territory of guys such as Mark Philippoussis or Goran Ivanisevic), but his serve has always been among the most accurate and dangerous.

“I guess it must be a power and a spin combined, because a few times I had read it and I went forehand, the ball just jumped here,” said Voltchkov, gesturing at eye level. “‘Where is it coming from?”

So, clearly, the arm is fine. It’s the rest of his body that will determine how far Sampras can extend his record.

He turns 29 on Aug. 12. He is in the legacy-shaping stage of his career--and also drawing closer to the end of it.

Boris Becker is only 32 and he’s done. Stefan Edberg wasn’t a threat to win Grand Slams after he turned 28. Neither was Ivan Lendl after he hit 31.

“I think you can play at a high level until your early 30s,” Sampras said.

“Look at what [Jimmy] Connors did. He’s a rare athlete, but he played at a high level until he was 33, won the U.S. Open at that point.”

(Actually, Connors was 31 when he won it for the fifth and final time in 1983).

“I feel as long as I’m playing the game, I’ll always be in contention--especially here. I feel like I can possibly win here at 30 and beyond.

“You can definitely look at Michael Jordan, Wayne Gretzky . . . they played at a high level until they were 36. Tennis is a different sport, but it can be done. It’s more of a mental battle.”

Sampras won’t say it, but he wants the comparisons of him to extend beyond tennis and to the other great athletic figures. He wants that icon status, when the names are virtual synonyms for excellence.

On Friday, there was the matter of handling the previously unknown name of Vladimir Voltchkov. The Belarussian was one of Wimbledon’s charming stories. After making the tournament as a qualifier, he knocked off sixth-seeded Cedric Pioline and Wayne Ferreira on his way to the semifinals.

He didn’t play scared in his first match on Centre Court, against the imposing Sampras. He was diving all over the grass the way Becker used to, and he took Sampras into a tiebreaker in the first set.

“I guess to beat Pete, you have to do something special,” he said. “I just felt that . . . the ball is there, if you can’t get there by your feet, then you have to jump.

“It also looks good.”

A lot of attention was focused on Voltchkov’s clothing, which received almost as much coverage as Anna Kournikova’s off-court attire.

Lacking any sponsorship, he wore a cross-company outfit consisting of a Nike shirt and Adidas shorts. After he beat Byron Black in the quarterfinals, Voltchkov said he was approached by an apparel company, but it wasn’t ready to make a long-term commitment to him. So he wore the same mismatched outfit for the semifinals.

“I washed it, of course,” he said.

He did quite well during his stay.

“He can probably get a contract now for some clothes,” Sampras said.

Sampras already has a building named after him at Nike’s world headquarters in Oregon.

On Sunday he gets the chance to stamp his name in the record book, perhaps bring it a little closer to the tips of sports fans’ tongues.

One more match to go, making the pain that much bearable, raising his spirits noticeably.

“You just let it all hang out, just go out there and not think about it,” he said. “The adrenaline, the occasion can really get you through a lot of tough situations on the court.

“Sunday, I’m sure that will be the case.”

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J.A. Adande can be reached at his e-mail address: j.a.adande@latimes.com

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

Men’s Box Scores

SAMPRAS-VOLTCHKOV MATCH

No. 1 Pete Sampras wins, 7-6 (4), 6-2, 6-4, over Vladimir Voltchkov:

*--*

Sampras Voltchkov 1st Serve Pct. 59 60 Aces 13 10 Double Faults 6 7 Unforced Errors 34 46 1st Serve Winning Pct. 93 74 2nd Serve Winning Pct. 71 50 Winners (Including Service) 17 19 Break Points 3-7 0-0 Net Approaches 22-31 15-29 Total Points 97 73 Time of Match 1:35

*--*

*

RAFTER-AGASSI MATCH

No. 12 Patrick Rafter wins, 7-5, 4-6, 7-5, 4-6, 6-3, over No. 2 Andre Agassi:

*--*

Rafter Agassi 1st Serve Pct. 61 61 Aces 18 7 Double Faults 7 8 Unforced Errors 59 64 1st Serve Winning Pct. 69 70 2nd Serve Winning Pct. 58 58 Winners (Including Service) 56 52 Break Points 5-12 4-9 Net Approaches 62-124 17-24 Total Points 161 157 Time of Match 3:09

*--*