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Ugly, but effective Defending champ is first player into semifinals
NEW YORK (AP) -- Marat Safin didn't look much like the defending champion, but still beat Mariano Zabaleta 6-4, 6-4, 6-2 Wednesday to reach the semifinals of the U.S. Open. The third-seeded Russian couldn't find his rhythm for most of the match and even slammed his racket in rage at one point in the second set after a series of errors. But Zabaleta, playing in her first Grand Slam quarterfinal, didn't put up much resistance, losing his serve six times and failing to answer Safin's effective net play. "I wasn't very happy because he didn't let me play, I did a lot of mistakes and I didn't play like I did in my match," said Zabaleta, the first Argentine quarterfinalist here since Guillermo Vilas. Safin has reached just one final this season after grabbing a tour-best seven in 2000. He's fought problems with his back, which held up nicely when tested Wednesday. With Zabaleta serving at 1-1, 30-all in the third set, Safin raced to the baseline to track down a shot and, with his back to the net, swung the racket through his legs and managed to rifle a return. Zabaleta, though, calmly volleyed the ball into the open side of the court for a winner. In the next game, Safin dived -- well, flopped -- to his right to reach for a volley. The knee-scraping effort, alas, resulted in the ball hitting the net. Safin will next face the winner of Wednesday night's match between Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras. "I'm only just beginning to find my game. It's September and I'm trying to win my first big matches this year," said Safin. "I would never think after playing like I did in Montreal or Cincinnati I can make the semifinals of the U.S. open, because I was playing so bad, struggling." Safin lost in the first round at both tournaments.
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