Sampras Falls Apart

Pete Sampras didn’t blame the crowd for its reaction to his precedent-setting performance at the Italian Open because it wasn’t the kind of history he wanted to make.

“The Italian crowd is very vocal,” the top-seeded American said after fans at Foro Italico jeered him for losing to an unseeded player. “They were just as disappointed as I was. It didn’t feel that great to walk off the court.”

He did so as the only top seed and defending champion ever eliminated in the first round. French journeyman Fabrice Santoro beat him 6-4, 6-3.

A year ago, Sampras looked invincible on the red clay as he ripped through the field and crushed Boris Becker in straight sets in the final.

What a difference a year makes.

“I dug myself into a hole and couldn’t get out of it,” Sampras said of the Santoro match. “I had an off day. On clay, it’s harder for me to get out of it than on other surfaces.”

Also, No. 9 Jim Courier, a two-time champion, was upset 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (7-3) by French qualifier Thierry Guardiola. No. 6 Yevgeny Kafelnikov of Russia lost 3-6, 7-5, 6-3 to Corrado Borroni.