Monday, Jun 02, 2003
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Tennis
Top seed Serena Williams after a fall at the net during her fourth round game against Ai Sugiyama in the French Open in Paris on Sunday. — AP
The match was much more arduous than Serena's 6-0, 6-0 victory over Barbara Schett in the previous round. This time Serena was down a service break twice in the first set but rallied from a 4-2 deficit. ``I just wasn't hitting my shots the way I was the other day,'' Serena said. ``I was a little upset with myself. But it helps me — it's nice to have a tougher match under your belt.'' She escaped injury in the sixth game when she slipped on the clay chasing a shot and tumbled into the net, landing hard on her left side. The victory was the 32nd in a row in Grand Slam events for Serena, who has beaten sister Venus in the past four major finals. Her opponent in the quarterfinals on Tuesday will be Frenchwoman Amelie Mauresmo, who upset Serena in the Rome final May 18. ``She's definitely going to have the crowd on her side,'' Serena said. ``I'm just going to go out there and do my best and really enjoy myself. I've played in the most hostile arenas possible, so it definitely won't bother me at all.'' Mauresmo, seeded fifth, advanced by beating Magui Serna 6-1, 6-2. American Chanda Rubin, seeded eighth, reached the quarterfinals at Roland Garros for the third time by beating Petra Mandula 4-6, 6-2, 7-5. Rubin next plays No. 4 Justine Henin-Hardenne, who defeated No. 19 Patty Schnyder 6-3, 2-6, 6-2. In the final third-round match, three-time champion Gustavo Kuerten beat No. 21 Gaston Gaudio 7-6 (1), 7-5, 5-7, 6-3. The match was suspended midway through the third set on Saturday because of darkness. Dutchman Martin Verkerk, who had never won a Grand Slam match coming into the tournament, upset No. 11 Rainer Schuettler 6-3, 6-3, 7-5. Serena worked harder than she wanted on another sunny, muggy day, with temperatures hitting 30 degrees Celsius (in the upper 80s). After winning every game in her previous match, the top-seeded American lost seven of the first eight points against Sugiyama, a 10-year tour veteran seeded 16th. Serena fell behind 2-0, reached 2-all and then lost her serve again with a double-fault on break point. She had 13 unforced errors in the first five games and was often on the defensive chasing Sugiyama's deep groundstrokes into the corners. The worst moment for Serena came when she fell racing forward for a shot. Her right ankle bent awkwardly as she went down in a tangle with the net, but she quickly got up and resumed play. She rallied with the help of some shaky serving by her opponent. Sugiyama double-faulted on break point to make it 4-all, then hit another double-fault — her eighth — in the final game of the set to lose it at love. Serena slammed a service winner to take a 4-3 lead in the second set, punctuating the shot with a shout of ``Yes!'' She closed out the victory in 92 minutes, more than twice the length of her previous match. ``She's very fast,'' Sugiyama said. ``She's all over. I would hit a ball down the line, and still for sure I knew the ball was coming back.'' It was small consolation to Sugiyama that she won as many games as Williams' first three opponents combined. Andre Agassi advanced to the quarterfinals by beating Flavio Saretta 6-2, 6-1, 7-5. Mauresmo, a native of suburban Paris may be the crowd favourite, but she knows she'll have her hands full against Serena. ``Four Grand Slams in a row — what can you say except total respect?'' Mauresmo said. ``You've really got to try and get your head clear of all the media hype around the Williamses, and realise that these are not players from outer space.'' No. 4 Carlos Moya, the 1998 champion, beat No. 13 Jiri Novak 7-5, 6-3, 6-2. Saretta entered his match against Agassi bothered by a sore muscle in his rear, and he twice required treatment during changeovers. The injury left Saretta with little chance against Agassi, who was so sharp that in one game he landed winners not just in both corners, but on them. Saretta, forced far out of position during one rally, offered his racket to a spectator even before Agassi finished off the point. During the ensuing changeover, the colourful Brazilian kept the ball in the air by repeatedly bouncing it off the top of the feet, desperate to give the centre-court crowd its money's worth.
Paes-Rikl advance
The fifth-seeded Leander Paes and Czech David Rikl rallied past the American duo of Brian MacPhie and Rick Leach 3-6, 6-2, 6-1 to reach the third round in men's doubles action on Saturday. The results: Men: singles: Fourth round: Martin Verkerk (Ned) bt 11-Rainer Schuettler (Ger) 6-3, 6-3, 7-5; 4-Carlos Moya (Esp) bt 13-Jiri Novak (Czech) 7-5, 6-3, 6-2; 2-Andre Agassi (U.S.) bt Flavio Saretta (Bra) 6-2, 6-1, 7-5. Third round: 15-Gustavo Kuerten (Bra) bt 21-Gaston Gaudio (Arg) 7-6 (1), 7-5, 5-7, 6-3. Women: singles: fourth round: 1-Serena Williams (U.S.) bt 16-Ai Sugiyama (Jpn) 7-5, 6-3; 4-Justine Henin-Hardenne (Bel) bt 19-Patty Schnyder (Sui) 6-3, 2-6, 6-2; 5-Amelie Mauresmo (Fra) bt Magui Serna (Esp) 6-1, 6-2; 8-Chanda Rubin (U.S.) bt Petra Mandula (Hun) 4-6, 6-2, 7-5. Saturday's results: Men: singles: third round: 28-Tommy Robredo (Esp) bt 1-Lleyton Hewitt (Aus) 4-6, 1-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-3; 20-Felix Mantilla (Esp) bt Fernando Vicente (Esp) 7-6(3), 6-3, 6-3; 3-Juan Carlos Ferrero (Esp) bt 25-Tim Henman (Bri) 4-6, 6-2, 6-4, 6-2. — AP
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