Agassi Bulldozes Past Vahaly
Second seed Andre Agassi wasted no time brushing aside fellow American Brian Vahaly 7-5 6-3, 6-3 at the Australian Open. The three-times champion took just over two hours to advance to the second round where he will meet South Korea's Lee Hyung-taik, who won his first ATP title in Sydney...
Second seed Andre Agassi wasted no time brushing aside fellow American Brian Vahaly 7-5 6-3, 6-3 at the Australian Open.
The three-times champion took just over two hours to advance to the second round where he will meet South Korea's Lee Hyung-taik, who won his first ATP title in Sydney at the weekend.
Agassi was unable to defend his title here last year because of a wrist injury and looked thrilled to be back on court, blasting 36 clean winners past Vahaly.
"To be back here... there is a lot of nerves," Agassi said courtside afterwards. "It's been a while."
Looking forward to Wednesday's match, Agassi added: "He's been playing some great tennis and is a great ambassador for tennis in that part of the world - I look forward to the challenge.
"Every match needs to get better so let's get started now."
The 32-year-old, bidding to become the first overseas male player to win four Australian Open titles, said that his priority in 2003 would be grand slam success rather than ranking points.
"It's fair to say that my focus is not on being number one. My focus is being No1 at the end of a two-week tournament in one of the slams," Agassi told reporters.
Agassi was in the running to become the oldest player to end the year in the top spot right until the season-ending Master Cup in Shanghai last November.
But his failure to win the event ensured that Australian Lleyton Hewitt finished the year as world No1 for the second year running.
"To be No1, what Lleyton has managed to do, (takes) all year and I'm not convinced I have that in me anymore. The fact that I had a shot at it last year came as a pleasant surprise to me."
On the eve of the first grand slam of the season, Agassi's coach, Darren Cahill, predicted another tight race with Hewitt for the year-ending No1 spot.
Meanwhile Yevgeny Kafelnikov safely booked his place in the second round of the Australian Open with a 7-6, 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 win over Jeff Morrison. Australian Open champion in 1999 and runner-up in 2000, Kafelnikov recovered from a lapse in concentration in the third set to post a comfortable win over his American opponent.
Kafelnikov, 28, had considered retiring at the end of last year after helping Russia win the Davis Cup for the first time but decided to keep playing.
A former French Open champion and world No1, he plays Jarkko Nieminen in the second round after the Finn beat Russia's Australian hardcourt champion Nikolay Davydenko 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2, 7-5.
Men's singles:
2-Andre Agassi (U.S.) beat Brian Vahaly (U.S.) 7-5, 6-3, 6-3
5-Carlos Moya (Spain) beat Dick Norman (Belgium) 7-5, 6-3, 6-4
Jean-Rene Lisnard (France) beat Andrea Gaudenzi (Italy) 6-4, 2-6, 6-1, 4-6, 6-1
14-Guillermo Canas (Argentina) beat Vladimir Voltchkov (Belarus) 6-3, 7-5, 6-3
Lee Hyung-taik (South Korea) beat David Ferrer (Spain) 5-7, 6-2, 6-2, 6-3
29-Nicolas Escude (France) beat Gouichi Motomura (Japan) 6-1, 2-6, 6-3, 6-2
Mardy Fish (U.S.) beat Joachim Johansson (Sweden) 6-3, 7-5, 6-2
Renzo Furlan (Italy) beat 21-Andrei Pavel (Romania) 4-1 ret.
28-Fabrice Santoro (France) beat Bjorn Phau (Germany) 6-4, 6-3, 6-4
Jan-Michael Gambil (U.S.) beat Michael Llodra (France) 6-2, 7-5, 6-7 (3-7), 6-4, 6-2
Peter Luczak (Australia) beat Attila Savolt (Hungary) 7-5, 6-2, 6-4
8-Albert Costa (Spain) beat David Prinosil (Germany) 6-4, 6-1, 3-6, 7-6 (7-5)
11-Paradorn Srichaphan (Thailand) beat Jurgen Melzer (Austria) 7-5, 6-4, 1-6, 6-0
12-Sebastien Grosjean (France) beat Fernando Meligeni (Brazil) 6-4, 6-2, 6-3
Scott Draper (Australia) beat Alex Kim (U.S.) 7-5, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3
Sargis Sargsian (Armenia) beat Agustin Calleri (Argentina) 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (7-4), 6-0
David Sanchez (Spain) beat Kristian Pless (Denmark) 5-7 6-3, 1-6, 6-4, 10-8
16-Sjeng Schalken (Netherlands) beat Jack Brasington (U.S.) 6-4, 6-2, 7-6 (7-5)
Michel Kratochvil (Switzerland) beat Davide Sanguinetti (Italy) 6-3, 6-0, 6-3
Mario Ancic (Croatia) beat Alexander Waske (Germany) 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (7-4)
Christophe Rochus (Belgium) beat Irakli Labadze (Georgia) 6-2, 6-3, 6-4
17-Gaston Gaudio (Argentina) beat Thomas Enqvist (Sweden) 7-5, 7-5, 6-2
Wayne Ferreira (South Africa) beat 26-Tommy Robredo (Spain) 5-7, 6-0, 6-3, 6-4
24-Nicolas Lapentti (Ecuador) beat Julien Benneteau (France) 6-0, 6-4, 6-0
Karol Kucera (Slovakia) beat Jan Vacek (Czech Republic) 6-2, 6-1, 6-4
The three-times champion took just over two hours to advance to the second round where he will meet South Korea's Lee Hyung-taik, who won his first ATP title in Sydney at the weekend.
Agassi was unable to defend his title here last year because of a wrist injury and looked thrilled to be back on court, blasting 36 clean winners past Vahaly.
"To be back here... there is a lot of nerves," Agassi said courtside afterwards. "It's been a while."
Looking forward to Wednesday's match, Agassi added: "He's been playing some great tennis and is a great ambassador for tennis in that part of the world - I look forward to the challenge.
"Every match needs to get better so let's get started now."
The 32-year-old, bidding to become the first overseas male player to win four Australian Open titles, said that his priority in 2003 would be grand slam success rather than ranking points.
"It's fair to say that my focus is not on being number one. My focus is being No1 at the end of a two-week tournament in one of the slams," Agassi told reporters.
Agassi was in the running to become the oldest player to end the year in the top spot right until the season-ending Master Cup in Shanghai last November.
But his failure to win the event ensured that Australian Lleyton Hewitt finished the year as world No1 for the second year running.
"To be No1, what Lleyton has managed to do, (takes) all year and I'm not convinced I have that in me anymore. The fact that I had a shot at it last year came as a pleasant surprise to me."
On the eve of the first grand slam of the season, Agassi's coach, Darren Cahill, predicted another tight race with Hewitt for the year-ending No1 spot.
Meanwhile Yevgeny Kafelnikov safely booked his place in the second round of the Australian Open with a 7-6, 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 win over Jeff Morrison. Australian Open champion in 1999 and runner-up in 2000, Kafelnikov recovered from a lapse in concentration in the third set to post a comfortable win over his American opponent.
Kafelnikov, 28, had considered retiring at the end of last year after helping Russia win the Davis Cup for the first time but decided to keep playing.
A former French Open champion and world No1, he plays Jarkko Nieminen in the second round after the Finn beat Russia's Australian hardcourt champion Nikolay Davydenko 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2, 7-5.
Men's singles:
2-Andre Agassi (U.S.) beat Brian Vahaly (U.S.) 7-5, 6-3, 6-3
5-Carlos Moya (Spain) beat Dick Norman (Belgium) 7-5, 6-3, 6-4
Jean-Rene Lisnard (France) beat Andrea Gaudenzi (Italy) 6-4, 2-6, 6-1, 4-6, 6-1
14-Guillermo Canas (Argentina) beat Vladimir Voltchkov (Belarus) 6-3, 7-5, 6-3
Lee Hyung-taik (South Korea) beat David Ferrer (Spain) 5-7, 6-2, 6-2, 6-3
29-Nicolas Escude (France) beat Gouichi Motomura (Japan) 6-1, 2-6, 6-3, 6-2
Mardy Fish (U.S.) beat Joachim Johansson (Sweden) 6-3, 7-5, 6-2
Renzo Furlan (Italy) beat 21-Andrei Pavel (Romania) 4-1 ret.
28-Fabrice Santoro (France) beat Bjorn Phau (Germany) 6-4, 6-3, 6-4
Jan-Michael Gambil (U.S.) beat Michael Llodra (France) 6-2, 7-5, 6-7 (3-7), 6-4, 6-2
Peter Luczak (Australia) beat Attila Savolt (Hungary) 7-5, 6-2, 6-4
8-Albert Costa (Spain) beat David Prinosil (Germany) 6-4, 6-1, 3-6, 7-6 (7-5)
11-Paradorn Srichaphan (Thailand) beat Jurgen Melzer (Austria) 7-5, 6-4, 1-6, 6-0
12-Sebastien Grosjean (France) beat Fernando Meligeni (Brazil) 6-4, 6-2, 6-3
Scott Draper (Australia) beat Alex Kim (U.S.) 7-5, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3
Sargis Sargsian (Armenia) beat Agustin Calleri (Argentina) 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (7-4), 6-0
David Sanchez (Spain) beat Kristian Pless (Denmark) 5-7 6-3, 1-6, 6-4, 10-8
16-Sjeng Schalken (Netherlands) beat Jack Brasington (U.S.) 6-4, 6-2, 7-6 (7-5)
Michel Kratochvil (Switzerland) beat Davide Sanguinetti (Italy) 6-3, 6-0, 6-3
Mario Ancic (Croatia) beat Alexander Waske (Germany) 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (7-4)
Christophe Rochus (Belgium) beat Irakli Labadze (Georgia) 6-2, 6-3, 6-4
17-Gaston Gaudio (Argentina) beat Thomas Enqvist (Sweden) 7-5, 7-5, 6-2
Wayne Ferreira (South Africa) beat 26-Tommy Robredo (Spain) 5-7, 6-0, 6-3, 6-4
24-Nicolas Lapentti (Ecuador) beat Julien Benneteau (France) 6-0, 6-4, 6-0
Karol Kucera (Slovakia) beat Jan Vacek (Czech Republic) 6-2, 6-1, 6-4
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