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| May 10, 2003 | Saturday | Rabi-ul-Awwal 7, 1424 |
Clijsters, Capriati set up French Open re-match
BERLIN, May 9: Kim Clijsters and Jennifer Capriati cruised through to the German Open semifinals on Friday and will face each other in a repeat of their memorable 2001 French Open final.
Top seed Clijsters of Belgium was the more impressive of the two on a miserable day with occasional drizzle, brushing aside seventh seed Daniela Hantuchova of Slovakia 6-0 6-3.
Former world number one Capriati, seeded fourth, also looked comfortable, ending the run of unseeded Russian Elena Likhovtseva with a 6-3 6-3 win.
The 27-year-old American was staging a remarkable comeback from a personal crisis and a lean spell when she beat Clijsters 1-6 6-4 12-10 in the French Open final two years ago.
Capriati, playing her first tournament of the year on the red clay of Europe, will face Clijsters again on Saturday in a welcome highlight for a tournament which has suffered from the absence of both Williams sisters.
Clijsters, 19, lost her world number two spot to Venus Williams by taking a break last week. She will recapture it if she wins the tournament and might do by just reaching the final, depending on who she plays.
Results
Quarterfinals: Kim Clijsters (Belgium) bt Daniela Hantuchova (Slovakia) 6-0, 6-3; Jennifer Capriati (United States) bt Elena Likhovtseva (Russia) 6-3, 6-3.
ROME: Swiss number four seed Roger Federer was pushed all the way by plucky Filippo Volandri before joining Yevgeny Kafelnikov in the semi-finals of the Rome Masters here on Friday.
Federer dropped a set for the first time at the Foro Italico clay court event on his way to a hard-fought 6-3, 5-7, 6-2 victory against the 21-year-old Italian number one.
Vollandri played way above his ranking of 100 and enjoyed plenty of support from a partisan home crowd, but a string of unforced errors in the final set undid all his good work and allowed a relieved Federer to advance.
Winner of his third ATP title of the season last week in Munich, Federer will now face the winner of the match between Spanish number two seed Juan Carlos Ferrero and Australian Open runner-up Rainer Schuttler of Germany.
Unseeded Kafelnikov defeated giant Dutchman Martin Verkerk 6-3, 7-5 to clinch his semi-final place.
Kafelnikov, who beat Spanish number three seed Carlos Moya on Thursday to reach the quarter-finals, said he hoped his many years on the ATP tour would serve him well as he seeks to win his first Masters singles title.
“I’ve been around a long time, I have a great deal of experience and I am very motivated,” he said.
“I’m happy to be in the semis and if I can continue to play like this I may be around for the weekend.”
Asked if he was playing like the Kafelnikov of old, who won the French Open in 1996 and the Australian Open three years later, he replied: “It feels like that, for one week anyway. Hopefully it will continue.”
Kafelnikov however played down his chances of winning the French Open which starts on May 26.
“I don’t want to put myself in a position where I even think I can go and win it or even perhaps be one of the guys who are favourite. It’s not in my mind at the moment,” he added.
“And to be honest, it’s the best position for me because I can come out and win one or two matches, get my confidence back and who knows.”
Kafelnikov struggled on clay last year with a 4-12 record, but the 29-year-old Russian is now 10-5 on the surface this season and 20-13 on the year.
Forced to retire from last week’s Munich semi-final against Jarkko Nieminen because of a neck injury, Kafelnikov will now face the winner of the match between Croatian Ivan Ljubicic and Felix Mantilla of Spain.
Results
Quarterfinals: Roger Federer (SWI) bt Filippo Volandri (ITA) 6-3, 5-7, 6-2; Yevgeny Kafelnikov (RUS) bt Martin Verkerk (NED) 6-3, 7-5; Juan Carlos Ferrero (SPA) bt Rainer Schuettler (GER) 6-4, 6-4.
BERLIN: World number one Andre Agassi has pulled out of the Hamburg Masters Series ATP tournament starting on Monday, infuriating event organisers.
“I am extremely disappointed,” tournament director Walter Knapper said after learning on Friday that Agassi would not play.
Knapper said he had not been informed of Agassi’s withdrawal and did not know the reason for it. He found out that the American was not playing after seeing his name crossed out on an internal start list.
“We will say what we think about this at the end of the tournament,” Knapper said after receiving confirmation from the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) that Agassi had pulled out.
Agassi, who has made an early exit from this week’s Rome Masters, was expected to come to Hamburg to complete his preparations for the French Open starting on May 26.
His withdrawal came as a further blow to the organisers after local hope and former world top-three player Tommy Haas pulled out, saying he needed more time to recover from shoulder surgery.
Three-times Wimbledon champion Boris Becker and his marketing agency BCI have stepped in this year to save the Hamburg event from financial collapse.
Becker has set up exhibition matches between himself, Michael Stich and the McEnroe brothers, John and Patrick, to promote the tournament.
Becker delighted a 12,000 crowd by beating John McEnroe in three sets on Thursday. Stich had earlier beaten Patrick McEnroe in straight sets.—Reuters
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