
January 18, 2002	Friday	Ziqa'ad 3, 1422

Roddick hobbles out

MELBOURNE, Jan 17: Andy Roddick hobbled out of the Australian Open on Thursday as the seeds’ disease at the first Grand Slam of the year grew to epidemic proportions.

The American 13th seed withdrew after twisting his ankle in his second round match against Croatian Ivan Ljubicic when trailing 7-6 3-2.

The top five seeds all failed to make the third round for the first time in the Australian Open’s 97-year history, with only 13 of the original 32 seeds reaching round three.

Thursday’s losers included last year’s runner-up Arnaud Clement and former world number one Carlos Moya, who was beaten in the 1997 Melbourne final.

Top-seeded Lleyton Hewitt and second seed Gustavo Kuerten lost in the first round, while last year’s winner Andre Agassi withdrew injured hours before his opening match.

They were followed out in round two by fourth seed and former champion Yevgeny Kafelnikov and fifth seed Sebastien Grosjean, a semifinalist 12 months ago.

Wimbledon champion Goran Ivanisevic, seeded 10th, also fell at the second round stage, while female fans’ favourite Jan-Michael Gambill, the 19th seed, could not get past the first hurdle.

While tournament organisers say the fate of the big names simply reflects the depth of talent in the men’s game, the loss of crowd-pleasing youngster Roddick was yet another blow.

Chasing a ball in the first set tiebreak, Roddick turned his ankle heavily and fell to the ground grimacing in pain. He had twisted the same right ankle in his first match against Argentine Mariano Zabaleta on Tuesday, prompting fears he could withdraw then.

Wincing when he put weight on the ankle, Roddick’s movement was severely hampered and he lost the tiebreak 13-11.

Roddick continued but after holding his serve for 3-2 he approached the net and shook Ljubicic’s hand before leaving the court to sympathetic applause.

Roddick’s exit further opened up the draw, with Russian ninth seed Marat Safin among players hoping to capitalise.

He moved smoothly into round three, hammering Christophe Rochus 6-2 7-6 6-1.

Safin and Pete Sampras are the only players left in the men’s draw who have won a grand slam title, but they are projected to meet in the fourth round.

Moya, seeded 17th, was the latest grand slam winner to exit, the 1998 French Open champion blowing a two-set lead to lose 3-6 6-7 6-1 7-6 6-2 to German Rainer Schuettler.

Sampras overcame a third-set lapse in concentration to beat Juan Ignacio Chela 6-3 7-5 3-6 6-4.

In a shock-free women’s draw, defending champion and world number one Jennifer Capriati posted a comfortable 6-1 6-3 win over fellow American Meilen Tu.

Sixth seed Justine Henin overcame a second-set slip to move into the third round with a 6-3 3-6 6-1 win over Marta Marrero as fellow Belgian and fourth seed Kim Clijsters crushed Austria’s Barbara Schwartz 6-1 6-1.

Russian 12th seed Elena Dementieva comfortably beat fellow Russian Anastasia Myskina 6-4 6-2, while seventh seed and former runner-up Amelie Mauresmo of France defeated Slovenia’s Katarina Srebotnik 7-5 6-3.

RESULTS:

MEN (prefix number denotes seeding)

Second round:

11-Roger Federer (Switzerland) beat Attila Savolt (Hungary) 6-2 7-5 6-4; Rainer Schuettler (Germany) beat 17-Carlos Moya (Spain) 3-6 6-7 (4-7) 6-1 7-6 (7-5) 6-2; 8-Pete Sampras (U.S.) beat Juan Ignacio Chela (Argentina) 6-3 7-5 3-6 6-4; Ivan Ljubicic (Croatia) beat 13-Andy Roddick (U.S.) 7-6 (13-11) 3-2 (Roddick retired hurt); Albert Costa (Spain) beat Byron Black (Zimbabwe) 6-1 6-4 6-4; Alberto Martin (Spain) beat Michel Kratochvil (Switzerland) 3-6 6-3 6-3 6-3; Mikhail Youzhny (Russia) beat Mardy Fish (U.S.) 6-4 6-3 6-2; Todd Martin (U.S.) beat 29-Xavier Malisse (Belgium) 6-3 6-2 6-2; 30-Nicolas Escude (France) beat Alex Calatrava (Spain) 2-6 2-6 6-4 7-5 6-4; Gaston Gaudio (Argentina) beat 15-Arnaud Clement (France) 6-4 4-6 6-2 7-6 (7-3); 9-Marat Safin (Russia) beat Christophe Rochus (Belgium) 6-2 7-6 (8-6) 6-1; Marcelo Rios (Chile) beat Karol Kucera (Slovakia) 7-6 (7-5) 7-5 6-2; Wayne Ferreira (South Africa) beat David Nalbandian (Argentina) 6-7 (5-7) 7-6 (7-2) 7-5 6-3; 7-Tommy Haas (Germany) beat Jean-Francois Bachelot (France) 6-1 6-2 6-3; 23-Nicolas Lapentti (Ecuador) beat Jose Acasuso (Argentia) 7-6 (7-5) 6-2 6-3; 25-Andrei Pavel (Romania) beat Alexandre Simoni (Brazil) 6-1 4-0 (Simoni retired hurt)

WOMEN

1-Jennifer Capriati (U.S.) beat Meilen Tu (U.S.) 6-1 6-3; 4-Kim Clijsters (Belgium) beat Barbara Schwartz (Austria) 6-1 6-1; 6-Justine Henin (Belgium) beat Marta Marrero (Spain) 6-3 3-6 6-1; 10-Meghann Shaughnessy (U.S.) beat Bryanne Stewart (Australia) 6-2 6-0; Marlene Weingartner (Germany) beat Antonella Serra Zanetti (Italy) 6-4 6-2; Nicole Pratt (Australia) beat Martina Muller (Germany) 6-1 6-2; 25-Tamarine Tanasugarn (Thailand) beat Petra Mandula (Hungary) 2-6 6-2 6-2; Janette Husarova (Slovakia) beat Iva Majoli (Croatia) 6-4 6-3; 7-Amelie Mauresmo (France) beat Katarina Srebotnik (Slovenia) 7-5 6-3; 16-Iroda Tulyaganova (Uzbekistan) beat Svetlana Kuznetsova (Russia) 6-4 6-1; 24-Ai Sugiyama (Japan) beat Tina Pisnik (Slovenia) 7-6 (7-2) 6-0; 23-Magui Serna (Spain) beat Maria Elena Camerin (Italy) 6-3 6-3; Cindy Watson (Australia) beat Emmanuelle Gagliardi (Switzerland) 3-6 7-5 6-2; 12-Elena Dementieva (Russia) beat Anastasia Myskina (Russia) 6-4 6-2; 20-Rita Grande (Italy) beat Kristie Boogert (Netherlands) 7-6 (7-4) 7-5; Eleni Daniilidou (Greece) beat 29-Tatiana Panova (Russia) 6-2 4-6 6-0—Reuters