PARIS, Nov 5: Top seed Andy Roddick his mind perhaps on next week's Masters Cup, bowed out of the Paris Masters in the third round on Thursday. Second seed Lleyton Hewitt was luckier as the Australian's opponent
, Chile's Nicolas Massu was forced out of their match after seven games with a hip injury.
Russia's Marat Safin, winner in 2000 and 2002, eased past Austrian Juergen Melzer 6-2 7-5 and will meet Hewitt in the last eight. Former world number one Roddick was out served and outpaced by qualifier Max Mirnyi of Belarus 7-6 6-2 in just 65 minutes.
The American, who had been out of action for a month after the U.S. Open, looked out of steam against an opponent who beat him at his own game. The tiebreak, which the towering Mirnyi, dubbed the Beast, won 7-2, set the tone for a one-sided second set.
Hitting aces and service winners, the Belarussian never let the hapless Roddick back into the match. In the last eight, former world number one Hewitt will meet Safin in what looks set to be the highlight match of the tournament.
Safin has now won 18 of his last 20 matches in the tournament while Hewitt, quarter-finalist in 2002 and semi-finalist last year, hopes to go one better this time.
Results
Marat Safin (Russia) bt Juergen Melzer (Austria) 6-2 7-5; Robin Soderling (Sweden) bt Cyril Saulnier (France) 7-6 (7-4) 6-2; Max Mirnyi (Belarus) bt Andy Roddick (U.S.) 7-6 (7-2) 6-2; Feliciano Lopez (Spain) bt Andrei Pavel (Romania) 5-7 6-4 6-4; Lleyton Hewitt (Australia) bt Nicolas Massu (Chile) 4-3, retired (Massu withdrew injured); Radek Stepanek (Czech Republic) bt Vincent Spadea (U.S.) 6-2 6-3; Guillermo Canas (Argentina) bt Tommy Haas (Germany) 7-6 (7-4) 6-2. -Reuters
