Customer Reviews

Wimbledon Classic Match: Federer vs Sampras

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

It is the classic tale of the changing of the guard as the seasoned veteran is taken down by the upstart heir apparent to the throne. Sampras owned Wimbledon since '93 and his only loss was to Krajicek in '96, but Federer at the 2001 Wimbledon showed the great potential that he has, but still wouldn't be fully realized until a year later when he won the 2002 Tennis Masters Championship and the rest is history. He has dominated tennis since like no player before him, including Sampras. Nadal has been the only player able to show that Federer is beatable, even if it's only on clay. Sampras was on his way out and would retire the next year at the U.S. Open and Federer was just getting going. Both were at the top of their games on that day during the 4th round of Wimbledon. It was a great match with the classic Sampras serve and volley with Federer showing great poise under pressure which has become his trademark. When you watch Federer or Sampras, you can't tell if they are down or up in the match, they just play with the killer blank face. Sampras has a record 14 Grand Slams with seven of those at Wimbledon and was ranked #1 6 straight years. Federer has 9 slams at 25, 4 straight Wimbledon titles and is the first man in the Open era to win at least 10 titles three straight years in a row. Get the DVD to see history as they will both go down at #1 and #2 in the history of men's tennis. Which order they go is up to you, but there is no debating they are the two greatest ever. Sorry Laver. Sorry Borg. If Agassi didn't lose so many finals to Sampras, he would have went down as #2 behind Federer.

** This match has NO Commercials and the coverage continues during the changeovers. Kinda cool to watch what they are doing when the camera on TV normally cut away.

** I watched this DVD on my iMAC - the quality of the video was excellent

** The DVD is divided up (logically) by set. Each set was around 40-50 minutes - the whole match was too long for me to watch at once but I just watched a set each night. Since I was playing tennis some days in between, it was cool to be inspired by the match

who are the announcers anyway?? One is American by the way - Pat McEnroe?? I saw John McEnroe and Ted Robinson in the background doing the commentary and kinda wished they were announcing here....but the two we heard we very good.

Definitely worth it.

Tennis drama doesn't get better than this, especially in light of what Federer has accomplished since that match in 2001.

Since this is the only time that Pete Sampras and Roger Federer ever laced up their shoes and battled in a truly competitive setting, this is a historic match. The play is outstanding; Sampras's serve is so fluid and Federer's nerves are truly of steel. Sampras's resolve wavers slightly and it is all over. This match truly lives up to the idea that the tight matches hinge on just a few points. Get this match now!!

The highest video and audio quality for one of the most exciting tennis matches of history, I'm so glad of having it home!!!

I believe that any tennis fan that has not seen this 5-set nailbiter will very much enjoy watching the 'moment' when Sampras handed the keys to the castle to a young, immensely talented Roger Federer. Watching the 19 year old cry at the realization of his victory is worth the price alone.

This is truly a must have for tennis lovers since it is the only Federer-Sampras match. The tennis is not as good as I hoped. I say this not because of the few rallies (Sampras and Federer were both serving extremely well), but because Sampras was tired and late by half a step everywhere and Federer had not yet decided to stick to the baseline. (He played serve and volley and was not too good at it.) Sampras's serves and Federer's passing shots were breathtaking. Nevertheless, I really enjoyed this excellent DVD with outstanding tennis, good photography and the subdued and knowledgeable British comentators who are a welcome relief from their cacophonous American counterparts.

It was the first game Federer played in Wimbledon Central Court and What Debut!!! For Federe to win his idol, Sampras (our - at that momment 7 times Wimblendon winner) in 5 really well played 5 sets, the really prize was happy tears at the end. Unfortunatelly a real revenge - with both playing a first class tennis - have never ocurred.
If you are having problem to find time to stay 3:40 hours go directly to the last game of the last set. Federer's service returns to win the game showed what this teenager would be able to do in the future and I guarantee that you will find the time.

This is the best sports video I have seen.
The camera work is steady and focused.
It is shown in real time. It includes all the pauses between games and sets. This allows you to feel all the drama.
This is also an incredible match between two great champions.

This is required viewing for any die-hard tennis fan. You have the unique pleasure of witnessing here a cross-generational battle of sorts between the top-two grand slam champions. Naturally, the Nadal/Federer encounters, fought out largely from the baseline, contrast markedly to this affair, which is one of the last fine examples of serve/volley tennis. I have only become a tennis addict in the past three or four years, and I can say that watching Sampras (albeit slightly past his prime here) was a real treat. The video is worth the money alone for those who would admire Sampras' consummate serve. And yet Federer excels in this and in so many other categories, and the match is fought out with great intensity. I should add that the commentary is informative and entertaining, and it is remarkable how BBC commentator Peter Fleming mentions at one point that Federer will certainly win "multiple Grand Slam titles" even though he had not yet won any in 2001. Prophetic words indeed!