Quirky Foe Can’t Give Agassi Much Of A Test Top Seeds Have Easy Time Reaching Second Round In The French Open
The only problem Andre Agassi had in his opening match Monday at the French Open was figuring out his opponent’s herky-jerky service motion. He was more bemused than confused.
Karsten Braasch, a left-handed German, has a windup similar to that of a baseball pitcher. Dipping his racket and head unusually low, he then uncoils, springing forward over the baseline and hitting the ball with both feet in the air.
“I have trouble reading his serve every time I play him,” Agassi said. “There is so much body happening that it is tough to keep your eye on the yellow fuzzy thing.”
The top-seeded Las Vegan saw the ball well enough to pound out a comfortable 6-1, 6-4, 6-4 victory in 93 minutes, a perfect start to Agassi’s quest to win his first French Open title and complete a career sweep of all four Grand Slam tournaments.
“When you have played here so many years and you have had so many big matches, you have a certain chemistry with it that give you a sense of peace and spirit out there,” Agassi said. “It has been really nice to be back.”
Agassi, who lost in the finals here in 1990 and 1991, comes in as the favorite after winning the last two Grand Slam events - the 1994 U.S. Open and the Australian Open in January.
“There is no question that I am here to accomplish something that I have to do,” he said. “By the same token, there is such a safe feeling being back here because I feel like I just know this place so well.”
It was a quiet day at Roland Garros, with no major upsets and little drama.
Two-time champion Jim Courier won in straight sets and Thomas Muster extended his clay-court winning streak to 29 matches. Also advancing were Wayne Ferreira, 1994 runner-up Alberto Berasategui, Yevgeny Kafelnikov and Andrei Medvedev.
On the women’s side, top-seeded Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, No. 2 Steffi Graf and No. 8 Gabriela Sabatini won in straight sets - all in less than an hour.
In the day’s only surprise, Japan’s Ai Sugiyama - ranked No. 87 in the world - outlasted 15th-seeded Helena Sukova 4-6, 6-3, 9-7. It was Sugiyama’s first victory at a Grand Slam event.
Not even Agassi could generate much excitement on this uneventful day.
The Center Court crowd was muted and lifeless through most of the match. The biggest cheers - a standing ovation in fact - were for members of the French handball team that won the world championships in Iceland eight days ago. The players entered the stadium during two changeovers, bowing and waving to the crowd.
“I didn’t have the slightest idea of what was going on there,” Agassi said.
But that didn’t affect his game. Agassi played unspectacular but effective tennis against an opponent with no real weapons to hurt him. Braasch was always on the defensive, hitting off-speed shots and going for drop shots whenever he could.
“The strength of his game is just his quirkiness,” Agassi said.
The only time Agassi looked in difficulty was when he fell on his back while reaching for a shot in the second-to-last game. After being dusted off by a ball boy, Agassi promptly served out the match - finishing off with an ace.
“I think that any time you get through the match it is a good warmup lap,” Agassi said. “You can win in five sets or you can win in the three sets. To get through and to feel your confidence building is the most important thing.”
Courier said much the same thing after beating his close friend Jeff Tarango 6-4, 6-3, 6-3. It was only his second match on clay this year after a firstround loss at the Italian Open.
“That is a perfect match to get through in straight sets - hit a lot of balls and get myself into the tournament,” Courier said.
Muster, undefeated on clay this year and winner of five tournaments, lost the first set to French qualifier Gerard Solves before rallying to win 3-6, 6-4, 6-2, 6-1. After trailing 3-2 and going down a break in the second set, Muster won 16 of the last 20 games.
Sanchez Vicario needed just 52 minutes to beat Sung-Hee Park of South Korea 6-1, 6-0. Graf needed just eight more minutes to dispense of Ines Gorrochategui, 6-1, 7-5.
xxxx French Open Opening-day highlights: Winners: Andre Agassi, Jim Courier and Thomas Muster all won first-round matches. Among the women, Arantxa Sanchez Vicario and Steffi Graf advanced. Losers: The only seed to lose was No. 15 Helena Sukova, eliminated by Japan’s Ai Sugiyama.