WASHINGTON Top seed and two-time defending champion Andre Agassi defeated fellow-American Paul Goldstein in straight sets on Thursday to advance to the quarterfinals of the men's tennis classic.
The no. 5 player in the world, Agassi appeared poised to cruise to capture his third straight Legg Mason championship, firing seven aces past Goldstein and needing 75 minutes to win 6-3 6-2 in the $800,000 tournament, a warm up to the U.S. Open in New York next month.
Goldstein, a native of a nearby Washington suburb, held Agassi at bay at the start of the first set. Then, Agassi broke his serve twice, wiping away any hopes with the hometown fans of an upset.
"There were a couple of times when I had an opportunity to put a dent in his armor," the Rockville, Maryland, native said after playing his first match against Agassi. "And when you play Andre Agassi, you can't let opportunities go by." After taking the steam out of Goldstein, who looked strong and in control in the first set, Agassi seized the opportunity by taking the first three games and breaking Goldstein once more to close out the second set.
Agassi told reporters after the match that an injury his back sustained from a car accident last month did not hamper him during the match, which was played in an unseasonably cool evening for Washington.
"It felt good tonight," he said. "I really didn't feel any problems with it." (Reuter)