Agassi Beats Enqvist at Australian Open

MELBOURNE, Australia - Andre Agassi upped his tempo, evened an old score and advanced to the fourth round of the Australian Open (news - web sites), beating Thomas Enqvist 6-0, 6-3, 6-3 Friday

Agassi has won 24 consecutive matches at Melbourne Park, spanning championships in 2000, 2001 and 2003, and improved to 5-5 lifetime against Enqvist.

"I was really hitting the ball well, wasn't making a lot of errors and was running down a lot of his shots," Agassi said. "I executed everything I wanted to. Everything felt real good from my side."

He wrapped up the first set in 21 minutes with a second-service ace. In the fifth game in the third, Enqvist had three break-point chances but failed to convert.

Agassi held when he got the benefit of an over-rule from chair umpire Gerry Armstrong, who judged that Enqvist's forehand was out.

Enqvist complained about the call, saying Armstrong "would never have done that" if it wasn't Agassi at the other end.

Unsettled, the Swede dropped serve to fall behind 4-2 and lost his last chance to get back into the match.

Agassi's next opponent is 13th-seeded Paradorn Srichaphan of Thailand, who hit 49 winners to beat 19th-seeded Gustavo Kuerten of Brazil 6-3, 7-5, 6-4.

Paradorn beat Agassi at Wimbledon (news - web sites) in the second round in 2002.

"That day he was too good for me," Agassi said. "My hope is to go out there the day after tomorrow and let him know I can play better than that."

In women's play, top-ranked Justine Henin-Hardenne rallied from a break down in the second set to beat Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova 6-2, 7-5.

Henin-Hardenne, the defending Wimbledon and the U.S. Open (news - web sites) champion, was broken twice in the second set and trailed 5-3 before breaking back and taking advantage of unforced errors by the 18-year-old Kuznetsova to win four consecutive games and the match.

"It's great to have this kind of match in the third round. I had to keep fighting to the end," Henin-Hardenne said.

Henin-Hardenne said the tough second set showed her she needed to be more aggressive in dictating points,

"I don't see myself as the biggest favorite of this tournament," she said.

Marat Safin used a string of powerful backhand returns in the last set to beat Todd Martin 7-5, 1-6, 4-6, 6-0, 7-5 and move into a fourth-round match against James Blake.

The 3-hour, 25-minute match ended when the 23-year-old Russian whipped a crosscourt return at Martin's feet on his first match point.

Safin was demonstrative throughout the second and third sets as he muttered to himself, slammed his racket into the court and received a code violation for smacking a ball out of the arena.

He settled down in the fourth set, however, while Martin began disputing line calls.

Safin, the 2000 U.S. Open champion and runner-up here in 2002, saw his ranking slump to No. 86 as he struggled with wrist problems last season.

"I felt really good this morning and felt really good out there — I'm reaching my goal, but really looking forward to getting better and getting through to the quarters," he said.

Blake needed just 75 minutes to beat France's Olivier Patience 6-1, 6-3, 6-2, conceding only one break point as he dropped serve when trying to close the match at 5-0 in the third set.

Otherwise, he was on his game, hitting 41 winners to Patience's 12 and winning 25 of the 30 times he went to the net. He gave Patience only one break-point opportunity.

"This is the furthest I've gone in a Slam, and I want it to continue," the 23-year-old Blake said. "I was really happy with my first-round match, and today I got even better. I feel I played pretty darned well. I like to think it had more to do with me than with him."

On the women's side, fourth-seeded Amelie Mauresmo had little trouble beating Anabel Medina Garrigues of Spain 6-1, 6-2, and fifth-seeded Lindsay Davenport, the 2000 Australian Open champion, beat fellow American Laura Granville 6-4, 6-0.

Mauresmo dropped serve once in the second set and needed treatment for her lower left leg at 3-2. Upon returning, she lost only one point before clinching a fourth-round berth with a drop volley.

Russia's Vera Zvonareva, seeded 11th, beat Nicole Pratt 7-5, 2-6, 6-1; 32nd-seeded Fabiola Zuluaga of Columbia was a 7-6 (5), 4-6, 6-2 winner over American Jill Craybas; and Australia's Alicia Molik overcame Claudine Schaul of Luxembourg 6-7 (4), 6-1, 6-2.

In a marathon match between Hungarians, Aniko Kapros overcame Petra Mandula 3-6, 6-3, 12-10.

Top-ranked Andy Roddick faced potential Davis Cup teammate Taylor Dent on center court in a late match, and American Robby Ginepri, seeded 32nd, beat France's Nicolas Escude 6-2, 6-3, 6-4.