Tennis returned to Madison Square Garden in a big way this week.  We all knew there would be a lot of hype and, thankfully, a great deal of interest in the Pete Sampras/Roger Federer match.  But I was pleasantly surprised to see a sold out crowd pack the Garden Monday night. 

The Garden is one of the world’s largest stages for sports.  For tennis to not only return to the Garden after an absence of many years, but for it to return with a packed house is a good sign for the sport.  You have to go back to the days of the Virginia Slims Championships, the Volvo Masters and World TeamTennis’ New York Apples to find a time when the Garden meant so much to tennis.

The night was as much about the “then and now” of tennis as it was about Pete and Roger.  It was a treat for all of us to see the legedary Roy Emerson on court with Pete and Roger.  I’m not sure the three of them have ever been together, but they will forever be known as the history makers and the record breakers, when it comes to Grand Slam singles titles on the men’s side. Roy’s record of 12 Grand Slam singles titles stood for many years until Pete broke it on his way to his record 14 major singles championships.  Roger already has 12 and who knows where he will end up, as many of us believe some of his greatest playing days are still ahead of him.

Kudos to Jerry Solomon and his team for opening the night with an exhibition of top flight juniors.  It was great to see Denis Kudla (Arlington, Va.) and Junior Ore (Gaithersbug, Md.), two of the nation’s top Boys’ 16 players, get to enjoy the moment of playing on one of the biggest stages in all of sports.  I’m sure it is something they will never forget.

For me the night was very enjoyable and it was a great night for the entire tennis community to come together.  I know that we can’t move forward unless we honor and appreciate those who have come before us and I felt this special evening was just what our sport so badly needs right now.

The night was reminiscent of a night in my life celebrated 35 years ago at the Houston Astrodome.  While things today are very different than they were in 1973, I am hopeful that this match between these two great champions will be a shot in the arm for tennis.  It is my hope that people will get up off their sofas and go hit a few tennis balls -- that young girls and boys will be inspired by what they saw on television and want to play tennis.

These matches are both historic and impactful.  When I played Bobby Riggs it wasn’t about the tennis as much as it was all about creating social change.  I hope that Pete and Roger will look back on this week’s match at the Garden and not focus on what happened on the court, but look at the impact this great event had on growing tennis.