Sampras helped Venus win title

Updated 17.36 Sun Jul 08 2007
Keywords: Wimbledon, Pete Sampras, Venus Williams, tennis, sport

Venus Williams has revealed Pete Sampras played a part in her fourth Wimbledon victory.

The American beat Marion Bartoli 6-4 6-1 in the final and admitted she and her sister Serena had watched Sampras enjoy his seven Wimbledon titles while they were aspiring players.

"When he was playing obviously we would try to study it" - Venus Williams

Williams said: "Serena and I were inspired by anything and everything and we always tried to have something to be an example to us.

"We would always say we needed to hold serve the way he did. Look, he didn't lose serve all summer. C'mon why are we losing serve?

"We would pump each other up, do whatever it took to get to the next level. For a few years when he was playing obviously we would try to study it."

Williams has now won six Grand Slam titles while Serena has claimed eight but Sampras matched the sisters' total of 14 Grand Slam wins on his own.

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