One July afternoon on Centre Court, Pete Sampras touched perfection with his outstretched racket, with a performance encapsulated by a diving volley that made Andre Agassi stand and stare for five seconds after the point was over.
It was as close as Sampras, or anyone else in the history of The Championships, has ever come to playing the perfect grass court match. "That was by far the best tennis I ever played - it was close to perfect tennis," Sampras recalled of his near-faultless display in the 1999 Wimbledon final.
Twenty years later, the American's tennis that day glows as brightly as ever. No one previously, or since - not even his friend Roger Federer - has played tennis at a higher level in a Wimbledon final. Make that any Grand Slam final. It was the afternoon when Agassi, who was then at the peak of his powers, having just completed his career Grand Slam at Roland-Garros, felt as though he "ran into a bus".
In an exclusive interview with Wimbledon.com, Sampras said he doesn't know for sure how he reached those heights. "To be able to play that well in the final of a major, I just can't explain it. It's very rare, because of the nerves and the match-up," said Sampras.
Players talk longingly about being in the zone; they don't expect to achieve that state of tennis bliss against their greatest rival when there's a Wimbledon title on the line. "I was feeling good going into the match, and Andre had just won the French Open so he was in good form. At the beginning of the match, in the first set, we were trying to feel each other out, and I remember I got down love-40.
"I served my way out of that game, and then broke him for 5-3. Once I got that break and served for the set, I relaxed a bit," Sampras recalled. "From that point on, for the rest of the match, I really just got into the zone. I was moving well, I was serving well. My returns, my baseline game, everything just clicked."
...I hit a diving volley. I remember seeing a replay and Andre was standing there for five seconds as if to say: 'You know, this guy is too good'
There's one moment that stands out in his 6-3, 6-4, 7-5 victory, which brought him the sixth of his seven Wimbledon titles. "I remember one point when I hit a diving volley. I remember seeing a replay of that and Andre was standing there for five seconds as if to say: 'You know, this guy is too good'. After that point, I hit an ace. I think he felt my presence. He felt that I was in the zone and there was nothing that he could do about it," Sampras recalled.
"I was hitting my backhand return well. That was the shot that he could expose. The rhythm that I had at the back court, I think he had a hard time breaking me. And I felt loose from the back court, and I felt as though I could stay with him at the back court. In some points, I was even dominating him."
Sampras never enjoyed playing another big server on the Wimbledon grass; he much preferred an opponent who stayed back, even if Agassi was the greatest returner of their generation.
"That Wimbledon stands out a bit more because of my opponent, and because of my history with Andre, and because of the contrast between how I played and how he played. I never liked playing big servers at Wimbledon. It was a hit-and-miss kind of thing, a battle of nerves, as we would both be serve-and-volleying. They could take the racket out of my hand," he said.
"I used to look forward to playing a baseliner at Wimbledon as then I would have some time to play. I could just show more of my game, that there was more to it than serve-and-volleying and hitting returns. With Andre staying back, he gave me some time to actually play."
In the last 20 years, Sampras and Agassi haven't once spoken about the match. "But I did read his quotes after the match - he said he stepped on the court and stepped off the court, and there was nothing he could have done."
When Sampras retired in 2002 with 14 Grand Slam titles, he imagined that his record would stand for some time, but he has since been eclipsed by Federer (20 majors), Rafael Nadal (18) and Novak Djokovic (15).
"It's unbelievable how those three have dominated. I really felt when I retired with 14 that my record would stay for a little bit. Now Roger, Rafa and Novak have all passed me. It's been fun to watch their dominance," Sampras said.
"The younger crowd really hasn't pulled through in some of these moments. That just tells you how great these three guys still are, and how fit they still are, and badly they still want it. Roger is 37, Rafa is 33 and Novak is 32, and they still have the motivation to put in the time and practice. The matches are the easy part. People don't really appreciate what these guys have been doing behind the scenes for the past 15 or 20 years."
Sampras said any one of Federer, Nadal and Djokovic could finish with the most Grand Slams. "It's hard to give you an answer. I think Roger can add some to his 20. I think all three can add more to their number. Roger is always going to be a threat at Wimbledon, the US Open and the Australian Open. He will always be in contention," Sampras said.
"Novak's a little younger so he will have the next three or four years to add a few more. It's exciting to see. If Rafa plays the French Open for the next three or four years, the way he's been dominating, he could go past 20. With all of them, it depends on their health and what they want to do, and how important it is to them."
I've always liked Roger at Wimbledon. If he's playing well, and he gets his game going, he's the best grass court player
In Sampras' view, Federer's decision to play at Roland-Garros should help him on the Wimbledon grass. "I've always liked Roger at Wimbledon. If he's playing well, and he gets his game going, he's the best grass court player. I think playing the French Open will help him at Wimbledon, keeping his game sharp," he noted.
"Novak is motivated. He's back to his winning ways, even though he lost to Thiem in Paris. Rafa can be vulnerable on grass but he will probably be in the mix. (Stefanos) Tsitsipas can do some things. If I were a betting man, I would say one of the top three guys to win it. It should be a good one."
Sampras disclosed that his 13-year-old son, Ryan, is "heavy into tennis" and has started playing junior tournaments. "He's playing a lot. He's playing some tournaments, and he's really getting his teeth into junior tennis and what it takes to play this game. He's heavy into it. He's trying to figure out the sport, and the emotion of the sport, and being competitive on your own in junior tennis. Until now, he had only really played team sports," said Sampras.
"So we are a long way from talking about professional tennis, that's down the road. It's hard to make it in the professional ranks, but we will see where it goes. I just like the fact he has a passion, and he's enjoying it."
At home in Los Angeles, Sampras and his son sometimes discuss his past glories at Wimbledon, including the 1999 final. "We talk about some of my matches. With YouTube, you can go back and see some of these things."