Grosjean Ends Hewitt's Run
Agassi Back at No. 1
http://www.stellaartoistennis.com/newsstories/03friday_1.asp
Lleyton Hewitt's 17-match winning streak at the Stella Artois
Championships was brought to an end in the quarterfinals at the
hands of Sebastien Grosjean.
Hewitt, who was seeking a record fourth consecutive title, went
down 6-3, 6-4 in 1 hour, 28 minutes to Grosjean, who inflicted
Hewitt with his first loss at The Queen's Club since Pete Sampras
defeated him in the semifinals in 1999. It was also his first
loss on grass in his last 17 matches, a run that started with
his win over Grosjean in the Davis Cup final in 2001 and included
his victory at Wimbledon last year.
"I knew no one had won four in a row before," said Hewitt. "It
would have been great if I could have done it. It's tough to go
out there and win any tournament once never mind four in a row."
No. 1 Spot
Hewitt's loss opened the door for Andre Agassi to regain the
No. 1 spot in the ATP Entry Ranking, and the 33-year-old American
took his opportunity with a 6-4, 7-5 victory over the No. 8
seeded Belgian Xavier Malisse.
Agassi, who became the oldest No. 1 since rankings began when he
ended Hewitt's 75-week spell at the top on April 28, held the
position for two weeks before the Australian took over once again.
"Oh I am?" asked a surprised Agassi when told he was back at
No. 1. "I wasn't aware of that. I've said all along that it's a
long year. You always try to do your best on court. It's amazing
to have accomplished that in my career, but I would prefer to be
No. 1 in my match tomorrow."
Tactical
Grosjean, the No. 6 seed who received a wild card into the
tournament, had lost six of his eight previous meetings against
Hewitt, including the final of the Tennis Masters Cup in Sydney
two years ago.
But the Frenchman, a winner on grass in Nottingham in 2000,
employed the perfect tactical game against Hewitt, mixing up
the pace with his sliced backhands before pouncing on any
opportunities to attack.
After going down an early break in the first set, Grosjean
got back on terms and opened up a 4-2 lead as Hewitt struggled
to find any consistency on his groundstrokes. After a number of
uncharacteristic errors from the Australian, Grosjean took full
advantage and carried on the momentum in the second set. Leading
4-2, Grosjean had two more break points on the Hewitt serve, but
the 22-year-old from Adelaide saved both, broke Grosjean in the
next game and was up 40-0 on his own serve for a 5-4 lead.
But Grosjean, who has struggled with groin injuries throughout
the year, forged his way back into the game and broke for the
fourth time in the match. The Frenchman sealed his berth in
the semifinals when his 67 mph second serve was returned into
the net by Hewitt.
Happy
"I'm really happy because I played Lleyton three times in 2001
and lost all three," said Grosjean. "I haven't played him since
the Davis Cup final so I was really excited to be playing against
him. He's the three-times defending champion and won Wimbledon,
so I had nothing to lose. I just tried to play my game and I
really enjoyed it.
"I sliced a lot of backhands and I tried to hit the forehand
when I had time and it worked a lot. He has one of the best
returns, so I had to serve well. Maybe he was a bit tired
because he had played two tough matches. I put him under
pressure sometimes and maybe that's why he missed a lot.
He didn't play his best tennis for sure, but I tried to take
my chances."
For Hewitt, it was a day to rue some missed opportunities.
"I had a lot of chances and I didn't take them," said the
Australian. "It's unusual for me to lose a couple of service
games from 40-0 up. I got off to the start I wanted but he
mixed it up well and got confident. He served well and the
court was playing quicker than it has in the past. My serve
wasn't really working and I don't think I returned that well
today, and they're two of the things you need to well on grass."
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french sensation...
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