TENNIS / FRENCH OPEN : Bogged-Down Sampras an Easy Target for Bruguera

PARIS — Betrayed by his serve, disappointed by his volley, deflated by his ground strokes and abandoned by his confidence, Pete Sampras was merely another clay pigeon Wednesday, leaving the French Open a rueful outcast under overcast skies.

Sampras was dispatched in the quarterfinal round of the world’s premier clay-court event by a 22-year-old Spaniard who either grew up on red clay or put the stuff in his salt shaker. Sergi Bruguera, who could just as well have been whipping up some paella, tossed Sampras, 6-3, 4-6, 6-1, 6-4.

And Sampras’ desultory performance left the 21-year-old top-ranked player in the world grasping for an explanation.

There wasn’t a lot to talk about.

“You can only say so much about a tennis match,” Sampras said. “It just wasn’t a good day for me.”

No it wasn’t, which was something of a surprise, since Sampras seemed to be playing so well on clay, a foreign surface if there ever was one for him.

Actually, Sampras probably was lucky he didn’t lose in straight sets. Bruguera led, 6-3, 4-1, before Sampras finally pulled himself together to rattle off five straight games and take the second set.

As far as highlights go, there were no others. Sampras dropped the third set in 22 minutes, winning only 10 points. After that, he kept the ball on the court just enough to stay close, which lasted until Bruguera broke him in the eighth game when Sampras won only one point.

Sampras seemed to regress to the type of player he used to be, one completely reliant on his serve and totally lost when it starts to stray. He made only 49% of his first serves and scored eight aces, but he was also maddeningly inconsistent with his ground strokes and wound up with 60 unforced errors.

“My serve kind of let me down and then once we started baseline points, I really didn’t feel in control,” Sampras said. “(My serve) was the only chance I had. From the baseline, the longer the point went, the lesser chance I had.”

Bruguera served for the match at 5-4 and closed it out when Sampras knocked consecutive service returns long. While Bruguera was celebrating his first Grand Slam event semifinal, Sampras threw his racket in disgust, packed his bag and walked quickly into the tunnel and off the court.

It wasn’t the type of exit he had expected to make. For one thing, it was four days early, since his expectations involved climbing into the stands Sunday to collect the trophy.

Sampras’ poor play might also have stalled his drive to be considered an all-court player, not merely a heavy-handed power hitter who thrives on grass and concrete but is a pushover on clay.

“Certainly it hurts,” he said. “I beat a couple of decent clay-court players this tournament, but Sergi is another class. I didn’t take two steps back, I thought I progressed this year, but I am not satisfied like last year. I was hoping to win this tournament. . . . I feel like I can win here. I am going to be here for the next 10 to 15 years, hopefully, one year I will win it.”

But he also had been beaten by Bruguera on clay two weeks ago in Dusseldorf, Germany, and seemed to lug that psychological baggage with him onto the court at Roland Garros.

Sampras lost to Andre Agassi in last year’s quarterfinal round, but that was not regarded as a particularly damaging defeat, since Sampras hadn’t expected much. With more intense preparation this year, he was seen in a different light. And since expectations were greater, the fall was harder.

Since there were no expectations of Bruguera, his rise to prominence is a bit surprising. Viewed mostly as a clay-court pest, Bruguera has a very small serve, surviving primarily on resiliency and topspin so heavy you need a crane to lift it.

Bruguera has won seven tournaments, all on clay, and arrives in the semifinals having lost only one set. The 1987 Spanish junior champion, whose mother stuffed him with sandwiches as a youth because she thought he was too small, is now a big man. At 6 feet 2, Bruguera is capable of breathtaking highs and paralyzing lows: He beat Thierry Champion, 6-0, 6-0, 6-0, in the second round but he also lost the deciding first-round Davis Cup match to Mark Koevermans of the Netherlands after winning the first two sets.

In his post-match interview, Bruguera proved to be a player of much topspin and few words.

Question: Do you think Sampras was nervous? Answer: “I don’t know.” Q: If you win, will there be a celebration in Spain? A: “I don’t know.” Q: Do you think you can win it now? A: “Me?” Q: Yes. A: “I don’t know.” Hey, nobody knows. Maybe it will be Richard Krajicek, carrying the banner for the now depleted serve-and-volley forces after finishing off a five-set, rain-postponed victory over Karel Novacek.

Krajicek advanced, 3-6, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4, in a match that was carried over from Tuesday at the end of the fourth set. Krajicek meets Jim Courier in the semifinals.

Bruguera won’t know until today his opponent in the semifinals. Andrei Medvedev led third-seeded Stefan Edberg, 6-0, 5-5, in their quarterfinal when the match was suspended because of rain.

Medvedev, the 11th-seeded player, won the first set from Edberg in 16 minutes.