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ATP World No. 1 Roger Federer won the first of three exhibition matches over American Pete Sampras 6-4, 6-3 in Seoul, South Korea, on Tuesday.
ATP Profiles:
Roger Federer | Pete Sampras The pair will now travel to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, for a second clash on Thursday, before playing again in Macau, China, two days later.
Sampras fired two aces in his first service game to bring the crowd to their feet at the Olympic Tennis Arena in Seoul. He went on to break the Federer serve to move into a 4-2 lead courtesy of a delicate drop shot.
“I feel pretty good,” said 36-year-old Sampras after the game. “I made it competitive, which was my goal. Obviously Roger is the best player in the world and I retired five years ago. I am grateful that he invited me.”
The trademark service action and solid volleys were on display, but the 14-time Grand Slam champion was slower around the court and made a number of unforced errors that Federer capitalized on to take the first set.
Federer, who captured his fourth Tennis Masters Cup title on Sunday, took control of the second set with a minimum of fuss.
“Pete was one of my idols growing up and it's great to play him,” Federer said. “It wasn't easy for me, it wasn't easy for him as he's been retired five years. I am number one and everyone expects me to win.”
Sampras won his final competitive match over Andre Agassi in the US Open final in September 2002. The American, who finished year-end World No. 1 six straight years between 1993-1998, officially retired one year later.
Federer and Sampras met only once at Wimbledon in 2001. Federer won the fourth round match 7-6(7), 5-7, 6-4, 6-7(2), 7-5. Match Stats
The three exhibition matches are being broadcast live on The Tennis Channel. For more information click here.
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