TENNIS : It's Time for Answers as U.S. Open Begins : Sampras renews quest for singular record and Davenport aims to defend title against some hungry, young competition.

By LISA DILLMAN

Aug. 30, 1999 12 AM PT

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NEW YORK — When we last left Pete Sampras and Lindsay Davenport at a Grand Slam event, she was fretting about finding the proper dress and making a speech at the Wimbledon dinner.

She was ably helped by a woman who brought in 15 dresses, all her size. Her dining companion, Sampras, assisted with the second task amid all the august British personages.

“Pete was sitting there smoking a cigar,” Davenport said. “He was totally in his element. He said, ‘You should just enjoy it.’ Then, in the speech, of all things, I forgot to mention him. I told him, ‘I’m so sorry. I always leave someone out.’ ”

So, will Davenport get another shot at congratulating Sampras? And vice versa?

All questions--and more questions--to be answered in the final Grand Slam of the 1900s, the U.S. Open, which starts today at the National Tennis Center. Sampras’ place in history is secure, and now he is on the verge of a singular distinction: A victory here would give him 13 Grand Slam singles titles, moving him past co-leader Roy Emerson.

His approach has sparked another inevitable question: Can Sampras be considered the greatest player in tennis history, even without a French Open crown?

“He’s certainly up there,” television commentator John McEnroe said. “He bypassed me, in my opinion, and [Jimmy] Connors, as far as his ability to take the game. He’s up there with my man Rod Laver. He’s 28, that’s not that old.

“Presumably, he could have a fair amount left. It’s hard to say. It’s not going to get easier as you get older. You’ve got to think he’s a threat at Wimbledon for the next three to five years minimum, if he’s healthy. The [U.S.] Open, the same way.”

The Wimbledon victories took the pressure off Sampras and Davenport, according to both players. Sampras, a six-time Wimbledon winner, responded with a brilliant summer on the hard-court circuit, beating Andre Agassi at L.A. and Patrick Rafter in Cincinnati. His winning streak--including Queen’s and Wimbledon--reached four tournaments and 24 matches before he suffered a hip flexor injury against Vince Spadea at Indianapolis.

Sampras, most likely, won’t be able to coast in his opening match against rising teenager Marat Safin of Russia. It is a rematch of their meeting last year at the U.S. Open in the fourth round, which Sampras won 6-4, 6-3, 6-2.

This time, Safin is fresh off his first ATP tournament victory Sunday in Boston. And considering that Sampras has not played an event since the injury, the match against Safin holds more intrigue than usual for a first round.

Rafter, the two-time defending Open champion, is injured as well, succumbing to tendinitis in his right shoulder. The fittest guy around is that kid, 29-year-old Andre Agassi, the French Open champion. People often compare Agassi to Madonna, considering they both have the ability to reinvent themselves.

Maybe he’s more like another singer, Cher. A survivor who has been written off time and time again. Agassi has lost only four times in his last 32 matches, three times to Sampras and once to Australian Open champion Yevgeny Kafelnikov of Russia. But Agassi avenged the loss to Kafelnikov a couple of weeks ago in the final at Washington, D.C.

The women’s side has been just as democratic as the men’s--three different winners at the three Slams: Martina Hingis (Australian Open), the now-retired Steffi Graf (French Open) and Davenport (Wimbledon).

If you simply substitute Serena Williams for Graf, and toss in Serena’s older sister, Venus, there are about four contenders for the U.S. Open, including Hingis and Davenport, the defending champion.

Venus and Serena Williams have been the most impressive this summer. Venus lost to Davenport in the final at Palo Alto, Calif., and then beat her twice, both times in straight sets.

Hingis, who had been looking frazzled and frayed, pulled herself together after the collapse in the French Open final and first-round loss at Wimbledon. She beat Venus Williams to win the title at Carlsbad, Calif., and defeated Monica Seles in the final in Toronto. In between, she was blown off the court by Serena Williams at Manhattan Beach.

Serena Williams would be considered a stronger contender if not for her recent shoulder injury and her record in previous Grand Slams. She has not advanced past the fourth round of a Grand Slam event. Venus Williams has not reached a Slam final since advancing to the U.S. Open championship match in 1997.

But no player has had the summer Davenport did in 1998. She knew it would be nearly impossible to win three tournaments in a row again. Still, Davenport was embarrassed by the way she played in her semifinal loss to Julie Halard-Decugis at Manhattan Beach.

Simply returning to the site of her first Grand Slam triumph might bolster Davenport’s spirits.

“I haven’t been as fired up as I should have been,” she said. “I can’t wait to get back there and start playing. That’ll probably help energize me.”

PARENT TRAP

Another thing Sampras and Davenport have in common is low-key parents. His parents do exist, just not at tournaments. Her mother was at the U.S. Open last year but stays home in California for the other Grand Slams.

“Fortunately, I love to say that my parents have a life,” Davenport said.

This remark came on a recent conference call, when some comments from Wimbledon semifinalist Alexandra Stevenson were relayed to Davenport. Stevenson said she was going to beat Davenport the next time they played. But Stevenson has had problems defeating anybody lately, failing to win a match in her three WTA events since Wimbledon.

Davenport criticized Stevenson’s mother, Samantha, who created a furor with a series of controversial remarks at Wimbledon.

“I have no problem with her [Alexandra],” Davenport said. “Speaking about the parents now, if my parents said the things the other parents said, I would never let them come [to tournaments].”

U.S OPEN

WHEN

Today through Sept. 12

WHERE

USTA National Tennis Center, Flushing Meadows, N.Y.

DEFENDING CHAMPIONS

Men--Pete Sampras

Women--Lindsay Davenport

MEN’S SEEDINGS

1. Pete Sampras: United States

2. Andre Agassi: United States

3. Yevgeny Kafelnikov: Russia