Boorish Becker Gets Blown Out Romanian Scores Big Upset; Agassi, Sanchez Vicario Win
Boris Becker fell victim to a player he’d never heard of. Jim Courier failed to reach the quarterfinals for the first time in five years. Mary Pierce left center court to scattered jeers.
It was a rough day Sunday for three top French Open contenders.
Becker, the No. 3 seed, was the day’s first casualty, tumbling in four sets to a qualifier from Romania with a world ranking of 128.
Still fuming over being forced to start the match in dark, wet conditions Saturday night, Becker couldn’t overcome a two-set deficit and lost 6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 7-5, to Adrian Voinea.
Next to fall was Pierce, the women’s third seed, last year’s runnerup and the darling of the French fans. Hobbled by a groin strain and suddenly abandoned by the French crowd, Pierce was ousted 6-2, 6-3, by No. 12 Iva Majoli.
Finally, as dusk fell on Court A, the tournament ended for Courier, the No. 13 seed and champion here in 1991 and 1992. He was outplayed by Alberto Costa, 6-4, 1-6, 7-6 (7-4), 6-4. And in a minor upset, ninthseeded Kimiko Date downed No. 7 Lindsay Davenport, 6-4, 6-3.
Some of the big names did get through safely, including top seeds Andre Agassi and Arantxa Sanchez Vicario.
And in the Open’s first major men’s matchup, Thomas Muster overwhelmed Andrei Medvedev 6-3, 6-3, 6-0 to extend his clay-court winning streak to 32 matches.
The Becker-Voinea match had been halted Saturday night with the Italian-based Romanian leading two sets to love. No matter how much Becker tried to pressure or intimidate him, Voinea held his nerve Sunday.
Becker was furious that the match had started at 7:30 p.m. Saturday in dark and wet conditions after a 4-hour wait.
“They said it’s good weather,” he said. “We look out and we say, ‘Are they talking about Paris or some place in Africa?’ I can’t believe they made me play. Then it’s 9:30, and I’m home, and down two sets to love against somebody I never heard of before.”
The conditions were dry and fast Sunday, favoring Becker. But even after the German took the third set, Voinea wouldn’t buckle as he counter-attacked with a sharp forehand and two-handed backhand.
After Becker was broken to end the match, he offered a perfunctory handshake without even glancing at Voinea. It was typical of the disdain Becker showed all day. He glared at Voinea between points and snarled at him in German. When Voinea drilled a passing shot near his body, Becker took a few menacing steps toward him.
After Becker was aced early in the fourth set, he flailed his arms and wiggled his hips in derision.
Voinea said he lost all respect for Becker. “Before the match, I had a very good impression about Becker,” he said. “For me, he was the best one as a person and a tennis player. But I have to say I feel the opposite because of his behavior on the court today. He tried in every way to intimidate me. I felt shame for him because this kind of behavior is not at the same level we expect from him.”
Becker was denied another chance to win the French to go with his Australian, U.S. Open and Wimbledon titles. He has never won a clay-court tournament in 47 tries.
A few hours after Becker’s exit, Pierce lost to Majoli on Center Court, leaving no French players in the tournament.
When Pierce took a 3-minute injury timeout in the second set to have her right leg strapped, Majoli won over the crowd by rallying with 14-year-old ballboy Vincent Ricard.
By the end of the match, the French were cheering Majoli and jeering Pierce.
Other top contenders had no problems. Agassi powered into the quarterfinals with a 6-4, 6-2, 6-2, win over Moroccan qualifier Younes El Aynaoui.
“We’re on our way,” said Agassi, who hasn’t lost a set as he pursues the only Grand Slam title to elude him. “Now it really kicks in.”
Agassi is heading toward a possible semifinal showdown against Muster, who posted a surprisingly easy win over Medvedev.
Two-time defending champ Sergi Bruguera won his suspended thirdround match against Brett Steven of New Zealand, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4.
In women’s fourth-round matches, defending champion Sanchez Vicario beat Anna Smashnova, 6-4, 6-0. She’ll next face surprising 18-year-old American Chanda Rubin, a 6-2, 1-6, 6-2 victor over Ai Sugiyama.
Mary Pierce, last year’s runner-up, was eliminated by Croatia’s Iva Majoli. Linsday Davenport, No.7, was defeated by Kimiko Date, No. 9.
A look ahead: Bruguera meets Sweden’s Magnus Larsson, No. 10, while Michael Chang, No. 6, faces Michael Stich, No. 12.
xxxx FRENCH OPEN Winners: Two-time defending champion Sergi Bruguera won his third-round match against Brett Steven. Top-seeded Andre Agassi breezed past Moroccan qualifier Younes El Ayaoui. Fifth-seeded Thomas Muster beat Andrei Medvedev in straight sets. Top-seeded Aranxta Sanchez Vicario beat Anna Smashnova, Steffi Graf downed Anke Huber. Also advancing were Conchita Martinez and Gabriela Sabatini. Losers: Third-seeded Boris Becker was upset by Romanian qualifier Adrian Voinea, while twotime champion Jim Courier was ousted by Alberto Costa.