Roddick, Clijsters Cruise; Agassi Wins in World Team Tennis

ATP REVIEW/PREVIEW
Can anyone stop Nicolas Massu in Kitzbuhel? Has anyone heard of Nicolas Massu in Kitzbuhel? The unseeded Chilean with the horribly average but scrappy game, who last week won at Amersfoort, notched another seeded scalp in beating (14)Sargsian to advance to the quarterfinals on the dirt at the Generali Open. "I think I played a very solid match although I was a bit tired," Massu said. "I knew I had to play like this with no mistakes. I also knew that Sargsian can play very good but also that he can make a lot of mistakes. I managed to stay very focused and was lucky to close the match in two sets." In another upset, Ecuador's Nicolas Lapentti seems to have remembered he used to be proficient on clay (finalist at Bastad a couple weeks ago), upsetting (11)Davydenko for a QF berth. Now the unseeded Massu plays the unseeded Lapentti. "We know each other very well," Massu said. "It will be a very tough match. Nico plays very well here in Kitzbühel because of the altitude he is used to since he plays in Quito. He also won this tournament before and knows how to win. Still I have a lot of confidence in my game nowadays and I feel I can win the tournament." Seeds advancing were (7)Gaudio (d. Eschauer in three), (9)Zabaleta (d. (5)El Aynaoui in a walkover with the flu), and (13)F.Lopez (d. Mathieu, who retired in the third set with a sprained ankle). All other matches were washed out due to rain.
In Umag, the four seeds in action cruised into the quarterfinals in (1)Moya (d. Browne), (2)Gonzalez (d. Vliegen, who retired with a groin injury), (7)Volandri (d. (WC)Wawrinka), and (8)Ferrer (d. Lisnard in three). "I'm definitely really happy with my result this week, my third straight quarterfinal," said Italy's Volandri, who is just happy to be here. "I'm hoping it will move me into the Top 50 next week for the first time in my career -- which would be a great achievement. I'm really glad I played here in Umag, it's the first time and I am really enjoying the tournament."
Three upsets in Indy Thursday, with (9)Malisse crushing the hapless (5)Jan-Mike Gambill in straight sets, the on-the-mend (14)Kiefer beating (4)Kafelnikov, and unseeded Aussie Scott Draper serving past (6)Fish in three sets. Other seeds advancing were (1)Roddick (d. Carraz), (2)Srichaphan (d. Bogomolov), (3)Schalken (d. (13)Burgsmuller), and (7)Ginepri (d. Heuberger).

Seeds in action today at Kitzbuhel where they're making up for the rain are Mutis vs. (2)Coria, (7)Gaudio vs. (13)F.Lopez, (1)Ferrero vs. (15)Saretta, (8)Chela vs. (10)Mirnyi, (8)Chela or (10)Mirnyi vs. Mutis or (2)Coria, and (1)Ferrero or (15)Saretta vs. (9)Zabaleta. In the quarterfinals at Umag are Norman vs. (6)Rafael "The Prodigy" Nadal, (1)Moya vs. (8)Ferrer in an all-Spanish match-up, (7)Volandri vs. (2)Gonzalez, and Hrbaty vs. A.Martin. The quarters in Indy line up as Thomann vs. (14)Kiefer, (3)Schalken vs. (7)Ginepri, (1)Roddick vs. (9)Malisse (A-Rod leads 5-0), and Draper vs. (2)Srichaphan.

WTA REVIEW/PREVIEW
Two seeds went tumbling Thursday in Stanford, with the Italian Schiavone ousting (7)Daniilidou, and the Swiss Mikaelian outlasting (6)Shaughnessy in three. No. 9 seed Lisa Raymond ended the run of trash-talking qualifier Angela Haynes, and (2)Clijsters showed NCAA champ Amber Liu what pro tennis is about with a 6-1, 6-1 pummeling. "She was just too strong for me," Liu said. "She overpowered me. I've never played anyone as highly ranked as her, and it was a bit nerve-wracking. There were some shots I thought for sure were winners, but she got to them and returned even better shots." The quarters today in Stanford line up as Dokic vs. Vento-Kabchi, Mikaelian vs. Clijsters, Schiavone vs. Frazier, and an all-American match-up in Capriati vs. Raymond.

TENNIS-X MEN'S BOTTOM 10 RANKINGS
A deadlock at the top for the worst on tour, with Krajan and Waske staying neck-and-neck with losses, while former Top 10 Thomas Enqvist is tied with Andre Sa.
Moving out: Scott Draper, Albert Montanes.
Moving in: Former No. 2 Magnus Norman, Romania's Adrian Voinea.
(Minimum 13 matches, through Sunday, July 20, 2003):
1T. Krajan, Zeljko (CRO) 2-13 .108
1T. Waske, Alexander (GER) 2-13 .108
3T. Sa, Andre (BRA) 4-18 .182
3T. Enqvist, Thomas (SWE) 4-18 .182
5. Mathieu, Paul-Henri (FRA) 3-12 .200
6. Mamiit, Cecil (USA) 3-11 .214
7. Labadze, Irakli (GEO) 5-15 .250
8. Beck, Karol (SVK) 5-14 .263
9. Norman, Magnus (SWE) 6-14 .300
10. Voinea, Adrian (ROM) 8-18 .308

NEWS, NOTES, QUOTES, AND BARBS
Has anyone else noticed that the self-aggrandizing column at the beginning of Tennis magazine by Chris Evert is lame, lame, lame each month? Try and use "I" more often (nice Sampras vs. Agassi cover story effort in the latest issue though)...Daniela "Get That Girl a Burger" Hantuchova was again hammered about her weight and frail appearance by the media after losing earlier in the week to yet another unseeded player: "I think I have proved that I'm physically fine with all the long matches that I've played. It's just that last year when I was playing so well I was new and was the hunter." And you ate food...Former British player Jeremy "Master" Bates has been appointed head of performance for the Brit Lawn Tennis Association, reporting directly to Performance Director David Felgate, with day-to-day duties including improving national tennis training programs for men and women, and overseeing all head coaches at the LTA's "centers of excellence." How much "excellence" has come out of that program to-date? The ITF should force them to rename them "centers of mediocrity"? Says Felgate, "This is not a revolution in British tennis, but it is a way I believe that we can see more British players at Wimbledon." We think one word describes the only way you're going to see more Brits at Wimbledon -- "wildcard."...Pete Sampras will become the first US Open men's singles champion not to defend his title since 1970 (Ken Rosewall got sick or something), and told NBC-TV last weekend that "there's a good chance" he will officially retire soon. We won't hold our breath Pete, you just can't pull the trigger...We'd like to file a missing persons report on a scrawny kid with a bad attitude, former No. 1 player, likes to tell people to "piss off" and sue organizations that make him do press interviews, last seen as his girlfriend's "box bitch" at Fed Cup...No men's player is close to being in contention for both the singles and doubles year-end championships, as opposed to a handful of players on the women's tour...Guillermo Coria is on track to become the first Argentine to finish in the Top 10 since Alberto Mancini in 1989, and the first Argentine to participate in the year-end championship since Jose-Luis Clerc in 1983...Mary Pierce has been given a wildcard to next month's Roger's AT&T Cup in Toronto, a tournament she would have otherwise had to play the qualifying to get into because her ranking is so low due to recent injuries...In front 4,300 Sacremento Capitals fans, Andre Agassi made his World Team Tennis debut Thursday night defeating David Wheaton 5-2. Agassi wasn't as successful in doubles, team with Mark Knowles in a losing effort. But the Capitals won the match 20-16 over the Hartford FoxForce.