"Did you guys miss me?" asked Pete Sampras when he faced the media at the Royal Albert Hall on his first visit to London in six years this week.

The 14-times grand slam champion is appearing in the final seniors tour event of the year, having recently rekindled his passion for the sport he dominated in the 1990s.

The American's vice-like grip on tennis was at its most destructive in London and especially Wimbledon, where he chalked up seven major titles between 1993-2000.

Sampras, 37, last played in the capital at Wimbledon in 2002, where he was infamously scheduled to play Swiss journeyman George Bastl in the second round on the 'graveyard of champions' Court Two.

It was his final match on the prestigious turf of SW19 and the start of the harsh realisation that his career was over.

"Last time I was here was a major low point," said Sampras, who briefly contemplated a return to Wimbledon in 2003 to try to wipe out the memory of the five-set defeat to Bastl.

"Once Wimbledon came and went the year after I won the (2002) US Open I knew it was time for me to move on."

As is common with many retiring athletes, Sampras found that moving on was not so easy.

Playing Poker

"(For) three years I didn't do a thing," he said. "I put on some weight. I wasn't feeling too good about myself. Playing golf, playing poker.

"You wake up (and say) 'Okay, what am I going to do today?' To be 31, 32 and retired is great but at the same time I've always been a worker, since I was a teenager.

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