New York ? Pete Sampras was right all along: He did have a 14th Grand Slam title in him. And just like the first, all those years ago, it came in a U.S. Open final against his old rival Andre Agassi.

His serve clicking and his volleys on target, Sampras beat Agassi 6-3, 6-4, 5-7, 6-4 Sunday to win America’s major for the fifth time. At 31, Sampras is the Open’s oldest champion since 1970.

And though he stopped short of saying he’ll quit, Sampras did sound like someone who’s thinking about retiring on a high.

“To beat a rival like Andre, in a storybook ending, it might be nice to stop,” he said. “But I still love to compete. I’ll see in a couple of months where my heart is and my mind. My head is spinning.”

Sampras’ play faded in the third set and the fourth, and it was hard to tell whether Agassi or time was taking the bigger toll. But Sampras managed to hold on, the rebuke to his doubters as loud as the sound made by his 33 aces as they slapped the walls behind the baselines: Pop!

Sampras hadn’t won a title since Wimbledon in July 2000, a drought of 33 tournaments, and he was seeded just 17th at the Open. He’s deflected questions about whether he’d keep going for some time now, insisting he still could produce on the big stage.

“This one might take the cake,” Sampras said. “The way I’ve been going this year, to come through this and play the way I did today was awesome.”

When the 32-year-old Agassi put a backhand into the net to give Sampras the last break he would need, making it 5-4 in the fourth set, Sampras was so drained he barely lifted a fist, slowly pumping it once as he trudged to the changeover.

He then served it out, with an ace to match point, and a volley winner to end it. And he had enough energy to climb the stairs in the stands to kiss and hug his pregnant wife, actress Bridgette Wilson.