Agassi At His Best When Unseeded
In the yo-yo world of tournament tennis, Andre Agassi has had his share of ups and downs.
He can rattle them off by memory.
“Three in the world to 11 in the world,” he said. “Back to four in the world. Back to 13 in the world.”
And right now 63rd in the world, behind No. 62 Todd Martin, who was injured and did not play from February until last week.
So Agassi came into the U.S. Open in a down mode, unseeded and ordinary.
Or did he?
His 6-2, 6-2, 6-4 victory over Mark Woodforde on Sunday thrust him into the fourth round of the tournament and reminded the field how dangerous he can be when he is unseeded here. He won the tournament from that position in 1994, the only player in the open-tennis era to do that.
Seles rallies past Pierce
The fourth-round match between second-seeded Monica Seles and No. 9 Mary Pierce produced a first-time result. In the sixth career meeting between them, the U.S. Open battle was the first time the two had played a three-setter.
Seles won 1-6, 6-2, 6-2, her fifth victory in six career meetings. Pierce’s only win came on clay at the Italian Open this past May.
Diana honored
The death of Britain’s Princess Diana created a somber mood at the U.S. Open.
There was a moment of silence before the featured match in Arthur Ashe Stadium between Agassi and Woodforde as a capacity crowd and the players stood quietly. Agassi, his head bowed, wore a black mourning ribbon on his right shoulder.
“After that complete tragedy last night, you could feel it in the air,” Agassi said. “It was an absolute tragedy. It’s a loss for the world. If civilization doesn’t learn from this, it’s telling for where we’re headed. It’s a debacle that goes on for so many in the public eye. For her life to be taken in the same vein and torture in which she lived is a complete shame.”
Agassi recalled incidents when he and his wife, actress Brooke Shields, wanted to flee from paparazzi but “refused … to run and make it some kind of chase. In all honesty, Brooke and myself have remained very responsible to not allowing people to take our heart, to take our life, to take our plans that evening and change them.
“Looking back at the tragedy last night, I thank God that’s not been a temptation for me. But I can certainly understand the feelings that go along with that.”
MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: U.S. OPEN AT A GLANCE Associated Press NEW YORK Highlights of Day 7 Sunday at the $11.82 million U.S. Open tennis championships: Weather: Mostly sunny and breezy. Afternoon high was 82 degrees. Attendance: Day session, 24,882. Night session, 21,781. Total 46,663. Men’s Singles, Third Round: No. 2 Michael Chang beat Sargis Sargsian 6-1, 6-3, 7-5; No. 10 Marcelo Rios beat Tommy Haas 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, 1-6, 6-1; No. 13 Patrick Rafter beat Lionel Roux 6-1, 6-1, 6-2; Cedric Pioline beat Leander Paes 3-6, 7-6 (7-5), 1-6, 6-3, 6-4; Andre Agassi beat Mark Woodforde 6-2, 6-2, 6-4; Wayne Ferreira beat Justin Gimelstob 5-7, 7-6 (7-3), 6-3, 6-0. Women’s Singles, Fourth Round: No. 2 Monica Seles beat No. 9 Mary Pierce 1-6, 6-2, 6-2; No. 11 Irina Spirlea beat No. 5 Amanda Coeztzer 7-6 (7-4), 6-4; Venus Williams beat Joannette Kruger 6-2, 6-3; Sandrine Testud beat Karina Habsudova 6-3, 4-6, 7-6 (7-1). Stat of the Day: Leander Paes had more aces (13-11), fewer double faults (3-7), more winners (62-49) and more points (151-146), but lost to Cedric Pioline 3-6, 7-6 (7-5), 1-6, 6-3, 6-4. Quote of the Day: “I feel that I can make any shot anywhere on the court. That’s just the way I feel.” - Venus Williams. Today’s key matches:Women’s singles - Jana Novotna (3), Czech Republic, vs. Mary Joe Fernandez (12), Key Biscayne, Fla.; Martina Hingis (1), Switzerland, vs. Florencia Labat, Argentina; Lindsay Davenport (6), Newport Beach, Calif., vs. Magui Serna, Spain Arantxa Sanchez Vicario (10), Spain, vs. Rachel McQuillan, Australia. Men’s singles - Pete Sampras (1), Tampa, Fla., vs. Petr Korda (15), Czech Republic.