April 2, 2002	Tuesday	Muharram 18,1423

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MIAMI, April 1: Defending champion Andre Agassi outduelled Switzerland’s Roger Federer 6-3, 6-3, 3-6, 6-4 Sunday to win a record fifth Nasdaq-100 Open Masters title and reach another milestone in his remarkable career.

With Steffi Graf looking on from the stands Agassi needed two hours and 20 minutes under a sweltering south Florida sun to equal his wife’s mark of five Miami Masters titles and collect his 700th career singles win.

The American, who will turn 32 next month, becomes just the ninth player to reach the plateau joining some of the game’s greats including Ivan Lendl, Boris Becker and Jimmy Connors, who tops the rankings with 1,155.

The win was worth $456,000 to Agassi but equally important it allowed him to cling to a top 10 spot in the world rankings.

After losing his opening match at Indian Wells two weeks ago, where he was also defending champion, Agassi had to retain his Miami crown to avoid being replaced at number 10 by Federer, whose path to his first career Masters final included a semifinal win over world number one Lleyton Hewitt.

“I got a little flat in the third set and if you fall off even a little bit against these guys it’s tough,” said Agassi, who has reached the Miami final seven times in 16 years.

“Roger is very talented, every year these guys get tougher and tougher.”

In a typically sublime performance, Agassi patiently waited for his opportunities and then imposed himself on the 20-year-old Swiss.

Federer arrived in the final having played the entire tournament without losing his serve, but was broken three-times in the opening set by a relentless Agassi.

The second set produced just one break and that again went to Agassi at 4-2 when Federer’s mishit return sailed long.

But just when the American seemed to have stamped his authority on the match, Federer fought back to claim a break at 3-1 in the third and went on to win the set.

It was the first set Federer had taken from Agassi in three meetings after having been swept aside in their two previous clashes, including the fourth round of the U.S. Open.

By the time the young Swiss broke early in the fourth to go up 2-1 it became clear to most of the sell-out crowd that Agassi had to win the match rather than have Federer give it to him.

But the ageless Agassi was up to the challenge, breaking back at 4-4 and two games later to close out the match. He raised his hands in the air in triumph as Federer’s forehand return crashed into the net.—Reuters