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PALO ALTO, California (Reuters) - Pete Sampras's coaching merry-go-round continued this week when he rehired Paul Annacone until the end of the year.
Sampras has won 13 grand slams but is currently in the worst slump of his career, without a title victory since taking his seventh Wimbledon crown two years ago.
Annacone split with Sampras last November and the player has now changed his coaching staff three times in the last nine months.
"Getting back to the top is the biggest challenge of Pete's career," Annacone told Reuters by telephone from Toronto.
"I told him yesterday, 'This is a great opportunity for you to do something that no other player has done before.'
"Getting back to his old level should be enough to get him fired up and motivated again."
The 31-year-old Sampras parted ways with coach Jose Higueras shortly after his stunning second round loss to George Bastl at Wimbledon in June.
Sampras claims the pair split because he wanted his coach to travel with him more often while Higueras wanted to continue on a part-time basis.
Higueras has previously coached Jim Courier and Michael Chang to grand slam titles.
Sampras and Higueras were together for four and a half months following the hiring and dismissal of former U.S. Davis Cup captain Tom Gullikson, who lasted just two months.
Annacone coached Sampras for nearly seven years and was named the USTA's managing director for the USA Tennis High-Performance program after parting ways with the player.
He is in Toronto with Sampras this week preparing for the Canadian Open, but said that he would not be able to travel with the player all the time.
MORE STABILITY
"Both Pete and Jose were happy with the coaching part of it, but Pete felt he needed more stability when he's travelling," Annacone said.
"Everyone realises what a great coach Jose is, but Pete told me that if he was to go with someone part-time, he wanted someone who he has more of a history with.
"Pete and I have remained very close friends."
Annacone is hoping that in the next five weeks before the U.S. Open begins, the 13th-ranked Sampras can regain the confidence that enabled him to defeat three former champions in succession before losing to Lleyton Hewitt in last year's final.
"I wouldn't put anything past Pete," Annacone said.
"He's the greatest player of all time.
"You cannot categorise him and say he has no chance of being an elite player again.
"His emotional disposition has been off for a while and he needs to be more positive and get back to dictating the points again.
"The tour is so deep now that there are a lot of guys who can hit the ball hard and challenge him but that doesn't mean he can't raise it up a level."
Annacone added what Sampras really needed was confidence.
"Practice can be a little overrated, " he said. "Pete needs a lot of matchplay, but the only way he is going to get that is to win some matches.
"He looks great in practice right now and hopefully next week he can carry that into matches and get some wins."
The Canadian Open begins on Monday.
