"I wonder if I’m growing accustomed to losing to Pete in big matches" - When Andre Agassi recalled losing to Pete Sampras in US Open quarterfinals

Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras forged a fierce rivalry throughout the 1990s and early 2000s and locked horns on 34 occasions, with the latter leading the head-to-head 20-14.

One of their meetings came in the quarterfinals of the 2001 US Open, where Agassi was seeded second and Sampras tenth. The former had won both of his previous matches against his rival that year and reached the last eight after a comprehensive 6-1, 6-2, 6-4 win over Roger Federer.

Agassi started the match well and won a tightly fought opening set via a tiebreak. The next three sets were also decided in a similar way, but Sampras won them all to claim a 6-7(7), 7-6(2), 7-6(2), 7-6(5) victory and book his place in the semifinals of the US Open.

Andre Agassi wrote about the match in his book "Open: An Autobiography", and claimed that both he and Sampras knew that it would be their fiercest battle yet. He also stated that the quarterfinals would decide their rivalry.

"From the moment we come out of the tunnel, we know this will be our fiercest battle yet. We just know. It’s the thirty-second time we’ve played, he leads 17–14, and each of us wears an unusually grim game face. Right here, right now, this one will decide the rivalry," Agassi wrote.

The eight-time Grand Slam champion added that he did not feel bad despite trying and wondered if he had gotten used to losing to Sampras in big matches or was just becoming content with his career.

"Winner take all. I actually feel my pulse decrease. I don’t feel bad. I try to feel bad, but I can’t. I wonder if I’m growing accustomed to losing to Pete in big matches, or simply growing content with my career and life," Agassi stated.

"Whatever the case, I put my hand on Pete’s shoulder and wish him well, and though it doesn’t feel like goodbye, it feels like a rehearsal for a goodbye that can’t be far off," he added.

Sampras went on to reach the final of the 2001 US Open, where he lost 7-6(4), 6-1, 6-1 to Lleyton Hewitt.

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Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras locked horns in nine Grand Slam matches

Andre Agassi at the 2019 Australian Open

Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras faced one another in nine Grand Slam matches, with the latter winning six of those. Agassi's first win over his rival in a Major fixture came in the 1992 French Open quarterfinals, when he triumphed 7-6(6), 6-2, 6-1.

His second victory over Sampras came in the final of the 1995 Australian Open, where he won 4-6, 6-1, 7-6(6), 6-4.

Agassi's third and final win over Sampras at a Grand Slam came in the semifinals of the 2000 Australian Open, where he registered a 6-4, 3-6, 6-7(0), 7-6(5), 6-1.

The last meeting between the two actually came in a Grand Slam final at the 2002 US Open. Pete Sampras won 6-3, 6-4, 5-7, 6-4 to win his 14th Major title.