King Agassi, Russian royals make impressive start

King Agassi, Russian royals make impressive start
AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE

MELBOURNE, JAN 15: Andre Agassi, the reigning king of Melbourne Park, joined Russia's tennis royals, Marat Safin and Anna Kournikova, on a regal procession into the second round of the Australian Open on Monday.

On an opening day in which the established order was shown unusual respect, American Chanda Rubin, suffering knee problems, was the only seed to fall by the wayside, beaten in straight sets by Slovakian qualifier Janette Husarova. Her exit leaves Kournikova with a seed-free path to the quarters.

Agassi, who swept past Jiri Vanek of Slovakia 6-0, 7-5, 6-3 was upbeat about his prospects of retaining his title.

``For the first match, I couldn't really have done it better today, and if that continues I have a good feeling of how quickly I'll get into my best form,'' he said.

Safin, 20, said he had no discomfort from the elbow which forced him to withdraw from last week's Kooyong Classic. ``It feels normal at the moment. If you don't give everything, you don't come to play in a Grand Slam,'' he said after struggling to beat Spaniard Galo Blanco 6-4, 1-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7/5).

This is the man who was fined last year for failing to make sufficient effort during a first round loss to qualifier Grant Stafford of South Africa.

What a difference a year makes. Since he annihilated Pete Sampras in the final of last year's US Open, Safin has come to be regarded as the future of the men's game.

And he insists there will be no change to the aggressive style that has earned him his success. ``Why does everyone feel I should change my character when I got to No 1 playing the way I always have?'' he asked after setting up a second round clash with Romanian Andrei Pavel.

Kournikova meanwhile lit up an overcast Melbourne day by sporting an electric yellow body-hugging top and matching shoes as she dispatched Slovakia's Daniela Hantuchova 6-2, 7-5.

It was yet another demonstration of why, when it comes to attracting hordes of photographers, Kournikova has no peers.

She also showed why, despite all the hype, she has still to win a single tournament after nearly four years on tour full-time.

After cruising through her first set on Court No 1, she suffered one of her habitual lapses in concentration and quickly found herself in trouble at 3-0 and then 4-1 down in the second.

But she pulled herself together in time to oust Open debutant Hantuchova and avoid what would have been a nerve-jangling third set.

``After I won that first set pretty easy I kind of relaxed and started to make a few more mistakes,'' she said.

``But then I found my rhythm again and played well. It was really good for me to fight and that I didn't give away that second set.''

Kournikova, who has reached the last 16 in her last two appearances in Melbourne, faces Hungarian Rita Kuti Kis in the second round.

Monica Seles was awarded the honour of playing first on the new 10,000-capacity Vodafone showcourt. But it was a less than auspicious baptism. American Brie Rippner lasted barely five minutes before an ankle sprain forced her to retire.

Seles was leading 1-0 at the time and will now meet Miroslava Vavrinec of Switzerland.

``I'm so disappointed,'' said Rippner, who has never been beyond the second round here. ``The crowd was awesome and I was really looking forward to playing Monica.''

In other men's action, eighth seeded Tim Henman overcame a cold and erratic Moroccan Hicham Arazi to set up an intriguing second round tie against Nicolas Lapentti of Ecuador, a former semi-finalist here. Lapentti had to dig deep before squeezing past South Korea's Lee Hyung-Taik 8-6 in the fifth set.

Spain's Juan Carlos Ferrero, the ninth seed, Australia's Pat Rafter (12) and France's Cedric Pioline (13) also advanced. Seles and Kournikova were joined in the second round by Conchita Martinez (5) and France's Sandrine Testud (14).

RESULTS:

Men's Singles Round I: Mikhail Youznhy (Rus) bt Jacobo Diaz (Spa) 6-1, 6-1, 6-4; Max Mirnyi (Blr) bt Todd Perry (Aus) 7-6 (8/6), 6-4, 6-3; Agustin Calleri (Arg) bt Jason Stoltenberg 7-6 (7/3), 6-4, 7-6(7/1); Juan Ignacio Chela (Arg) bt Takao Suzuki (Jpn) 6-3, 6-1, 6-7 (0/7), 7-6 (7/4); Guillermo Canas (Arg) bt George Bastl (Swi) 6-4, 6-4, 6-3; Mariano Zabaleta (Arg) bt Todd Woodbridge (Aus) 6-4, 6-2, 5-7, 2-6, 6-4; Andrei Pavel (Rom) bt Michael Russell (USA) 7-6 (7/5), 6-7 (5/7), 7-5, 6-4; Marat Safin (Rus, Seed No 2) bt Galo Blanco (Spa) 6-4, 1-6, 6-4, 7-6(7/5); Michal Tabara (Cze) bt Andrea Gaudenzi (Ita) 3-6, 6-4, 6-4, 5-7, 6-4; Michel Kratochvil (Swi) bt Raemon Sluiter (Ned) 6-2, 6-2, 7-6 (7/2); Tim Henman (Gbr, Seed No 8) bt Hicham Arazi (Mar) 7-6 (7/5), 6-4, 6-4; Juan Carlos Ferrero (Spa, Seed No 9) bt Alun Jones (Aus) 6-3, 7-6 (7/3), 6-2. Harel Levy (Isr) bt Fernando Vicente (Spa) 4-6, 6-3, 6-3, 6-1; Todd Martin (USA) bt Byron Black (Zim) 7-5, 6-4, 6-3; Bohdan Ulihrach (Cze) bt Vladimir Voltchkov(Blr) 4-6, 7-5, 6-3, 6-2; Andre Agassi (USA, Seed No 6) bt Jiri Vanek (Cze) 6-0, 7-5, 6-3; Andrew Ilie (Aus) bt Peter Wessels (Ned) 6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 6-4; Cedric Pioline (Fra, Seed No 13) bt Davide Sanguinetti (Ita) 7-6 (7/3), 6-4, 6-2; Andre Sa (Bra) bt Richard Fromberg (Aus) 6-2, 6-4, 6-4; Nikolay Davydenko (Rus) bt Ota Fukarek (Cze) 7-6 (8/6), 7-5, 6-3; Slava Dosedel (Cze) bt Albert Portas (Spa) 7-6 (7/2), 6-2, 4-6, 3-6, 6-3; Francisco Clavet (Spa) bt Markus Hantschk (Ger) 6-2, 6-0, 6-2; David Prinosil (Ger) bt Sergi Bruguera (Spa) 7-5, 6-1, 1-6, 2-6, 6-1; Ivo Heuberger (Swi) bt Younes El Aynaoui (Mar) 6-2, 5-4 (rtd); Patrick Rafter (Aus Seed No 12) bt Scott Draper (Aus) 6-3, 6-2, 7-5; Dominik Hrbaty (Svk Seed No 14) bt Jean-Rene Lisnard (Fra) 3-6, 3-6, 6-4, 6-1, 6-1.

Women's Singles (Round I): Monica Seles (USA Seed No 4) bt Brie Rippner (USA) 1-0 (rtd.); Magui Serna (Spa) bt Marissa Irvin (USA) 6-1, 6-3; Alexandra Stevenson (USA) bt Lubomira Bacheva (Bul) 7-5, 6-1; Anna Kournikova (Rus, Seed No 8) bt Daniela Hantuchova (Svk) 6-2, 7-5; Emilie Loit (Fra) bt Giulia Casoni (Ita) 6-3, 2-6, 6-3; Meilen Tu (USA) bt Nadejda Ostrovskaya (Blr) 7-5, 6-0; Yi Jing-Qian (Chn) bt Yvette Basting (Ned) 6-2, 6-3; Rita Kuti Kis (Hun) bt Francesca Schiavone (Ita) 7-6 (10/8), 1-6, 6-4; Sandra Nacuk (Yug) bt Tathiana Garbin (Ita) 0-6, 6-2, 6-2; Sandrine Testud (Fra Seed No 14) bt Maria Antonia Sanchez Lorenzo (Spa) 6-1, 6-0; Barbara Rittner (Ger) bt Erika De Lone (USA) 2-6, 6-3, 6-3; Kim Clijsters (Bel, Seed No 15) bt Anca Barna (Ger) 6-3, 6-2; Alina Jidkova (Rus) bt Lina Krasnoroutskaya (Rus) 7-5 6-3; Nuria Llagostera (Spa) bt Joannette Kruger (Rsa) 6-2, 6-3; Miroslava Vavrinec (Swi) bt Anne-Gaelle Sidot (Fra) 3-6, 7-6 (7/5), 6-4; Miriam Oremans (Ned) bt Amanda Grahame (Aus) 6-3, 6-4;Virginia Ruano Pascual (Spa) bt Jill Craybus (USA) 6-2, 7-6 (7/5); Marta Marrero (Spa) bt Corina Morariu (USA) 2-6, 6-4, 6-4; Jennifer Capriati (USA, Seed No 12) bt Henrieta Nagyova (Svk) 4-6, 6-2, 7-5; Conchita Martinez (Spa) bt Christina Wheeler (Aus) 6-1, 6-1; Emmanuelle Gagliardi (Swi) bt Annabel Ellwood (Aus) 6-3, 4-6, 8-6; Janette Husarova (Svk) bt Chanda Rubin (USA Seed No 11) 6-3, 6-0; Cara Black (Zim) bt Shinobu Asagoe (Jpn) 6-4, 6-1; Ruxandra Dragomir (Rom) bt Cristina Torrens Valero (Spa) 7-5, 6-1; Barbara Schett (Aut) bt Elena Likhovtseva (Rus) 4-6, 7-6 (7/2), 6-4.