8th August, 1999

CALL TO PETE CLEARS THE AIR

The "war" between Pete Sampras and myself is over. The truth is, it never existed.

I called Sampras this week to resolve some issues I felt needed addressing in the wake of my media conference last week. Even though I stand by some of the things I said about him, Sampras was very receptive and apologised for anything he might have said to upset me.

I feel we have opened up the lines of communication and I can not see a problem developing again. I was concerned Sampras might have been unfairly hurt by some of the things attributed to me. The last thing I wanted was for him to be hurt by a misinterpretation.

Basically, we are different characters who love to win. I wanted to make clear that, as a competitor, I love to beat Pete. He has been the No. 1 player in the world for a record 271 weeks now, so who would not want to?

And since I have been at No. 2 for much of the past two years, Sampras would see me and Andre Agassi as the players he loves to beat. It is a natural thing and after our chat this week, I know much of the confusion has been cleared up.

MY schedule from now to the end of the year is incredibly busy, but one event I can not wait for is the Davis Cup semi-final in Brisbane.

Queenslanders love Davis Cup tennis and this is a great opportunity for them to support Australia as it pushes for a place in its first Davis Cup final since 1993.

Unlike some promoters, I am sure Tennis Australia will again ensure ticketing for this tie will be within the reach of the average Queenslander.

I played Davis Cup in Townsville last season against Uzbekistan in a qualifying match and it was a thrill to be playing at home, but Brisbane is where my family is and where a lot of my friends come from.

I am sure there will be a lot of pressure, but I am really looking forward to it.

MY stay at world No. 1 lasted less than a week, but that is the way the rankings system can work sometimes.

I knew as soon as I was there Sampras could take over again if he reached the final in Los Angeles. He did that and then beat Andre in the final, so nobody can say he is not the best player in the world at the moment.

I played my first match since Davis Cup this week against Alex O'Brien and was pleased with my form. Sadly I went down to Nicolas Kiefer in three sets yesterday.

I served OK but because my right shoulder is still giving me trouble, I am concerned I will not be able to maintain the consistency.

The soreness is not too bad at the moment and it is OK once it is warm. I tend to feel it when I have cooled down and when I go to bed.