Is time up for Sampras and Agassi?

In winning the ATP Masters Cup, Brazil's Gustavo Kuerten pocketed $1.4m and became the world number one.

But he was chased all the way to the accolade by another young gun, Russia's Marat Safin.

Andre Agassi made the Masters Cup final and Pete Sampras sauntered to the semi-final stage, but has time caught up with these golden oldies?

Tell us what you think.

Kuerten, Safin, Lleyton Hewitt and Magnus Norman have proved they can hold their own against the world's best.

Hewitt humbled Sampras in the opening round of Masters Cup matches while the in-form Kuerten only needed three sets to see off Agassi in the final.

But can you really discount the old guard?

After all, Sampras decided to take a 10-week break prior to the tournament in Lisbon while Agassi has been troubled by injury.

Tell us what you think?

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To those who say time's up for Sampras and Agassi, I say, "Not so fast!". Despite injuries and a seriously curtailed schedule, Sampras had a mathematical chance to finish number one when the Masters Cup started. As for Agassi, injuries and personal factors had more to do with his descent in the rankings than age. He still finished in the top eight. Let's see how many of the young guns maintain their standing next year.
S. Ravishankar, USA

The time has come to see new faces, new techniques and new strokes. I'm sick and tired of the same faces over and over. Let someone else share in the big pot of gold.
Joe Monzer, U S A

Both Pete and Andre have given an amazing amount to the game

  Anna, Great Britain

Sampras and Agassi have formed the biggest rivalry in the history of the game winning 19 grand slam titles between them and this year they won two of the majors. How can you say they are off the boil and old? Agassi may still defend his Australian crown along with Sampras' Wimbledon title, of which no one can get near. This year Sampras reached the semis of the Australian open, won Wimbledon and got to the final of the US open. Agassi won the Australian and got to the semis of Wimbledon.
Charles, England

It's true that a younger breed of players is coming up and challenging the likes of Sampras and Agassi, but it really doesn't mean that all of a sudden we should just write them off. They are great players and still have a lot to offer on court. After Safin defeated Sampras in the US Open final, no one would have thought that in Lisbon he would come back that strong. Sampras is one of the greatest players ever and still is, it's just the age factor that he is not that consistent any more.
Irfan Mirza, Pakistan

I think Pete and Agassi should make way for the new generation of super stars. It is clearly evident that both players are losing their speed, stamina and most of all their dominance of the game. I do not think they will be able to compete with the young guns from Russia, Australia and South America in the coming few years.
Abel, Ethiopia

It is true that the likes of Hewitt, Safin, Norman and Kuerten are challenging players like Sampras and Agassi increasingly more. However Andre just reached the finals of Lisbon, Pete won Wimbledon and despite various injuries and time off both have proved they can come out and play as well or better than these younger guys. Both Pete and Andre have given an amazing amount to the game of tennis and until they start to loose constantly and are making little impact in the game, they still have a big part to play in the tennis world.
Anna, Great Britain

You cannot just write of Agassi and Sampras. Players come and go.....remember Rios who was number one for a while? Sampras and Agassi are still making it to finals and semi-finals and they have been around for years. Everyone goes through bad patches. Agassi won Wimbledon in 1992 and went of the boil and came back stronger than ever. Sampras will win Wimbledon again next summer and if they continue playing both of them will stay around the top. And they aren't exactly old!
Gavin, England