"People like my sweat, it's not that appealing" - When Pete Sampras was 'flattered' by fans showing off his sweaty towels

Pete Sampras found a hilarious way to respond to fans showing off his sweaty towels at the 2000 Cincinnati Masters.

Sampras was told in one of his post-match press conferences that a few 12-year-old girls had one of his towels which had sweat on it, and were showing it off. Sampras responded saying he was flattered by that, jokingly stating that people like his sweat which was not very appealing.

"It's flattering. People like my sweat, I don't -- it's not that appealing. But, sure, it's flattering to have people like you and cheer for you and want a towel that has your filthy sweat on it, sure," Sampras said.

The American was also asked if he felt more comfortable to have secured the Grand Slam record (at the time). Sampras said while he felt great to have the record, he would still aim to win the next Grand Slam that was around the corner.

"Yeah. It's interesting. I mean being with 11 and 12 Slams, people talking about the pressure of breaking the record, I didn't look at it as pressure. Obviously I wanted to do it, but to be at 12 or 11 is a great achievement in itself," Sampras said.

"Now that I did break it and I do have that unbelievable record put away, sure, it feels great. But I'm sure when the US Open comes around I'll want to win that one just as much as I did the first one," he added.

Sampras started the 2000 Cincinnati Masters with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Mariano Zabaleta before triumphing 7-6(3), 7-6(3) over compatriot Taylor Dent. In the third round, he was beaten 6-3, 6-4 by Tim Henman.

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Pete Sampras won 14 Grand Slam titles in his career

Pete Sampras with Novak Djokovic at the 2019 Indian Wells Masters

Pete Sampras had an impressive career during which he won 14 Grand Slam singles titles out of 18 finals.

The American won his first Grand Slam at the 1990 US Open by beating his rival Andre Agassi in the final. He went on to win the New York Major four more times in 1993, 1995, 1996 and 2002. The latter was his last Grand Slam triumph.

Wimbledon was Pete Sampras' most successful Major as he won it a then-record seven times. He triumphed at the grass-court tournament in 1993, 1994, 1995, 1997, 1998, 1999 and 2000. The American won the Australian Open twice in 1994 and 1997, beating Todd Martin and Carlos Moya in the respective finals.

The French Open eluded Pete Sampras. His best performance at Roland Garros was reaching the semifinals in 1996, where he was beaten by eventual champion Yevgeny Kafelnikov.