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Mighty have fallen Top-seeded Hewitt bounced from French OpenPosted: Saturday May 31, 2003 9:33 AMUpdated: Saturday May 31, 2003 9:43 PM
PARIS (AP) -- Top-ranked Lleyton Hewitt was eliminated by Tommy Robredo, who came from behind not once but twice Saturday at the French Open. Robredo, seeded 28th, swept the final six games to win 4-6, 1-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-3. Robredo won for the first time after losing the first two sets, outlasting Hewitt in 3:24. "I just took the foot off the pedal a little bit," Hewitt said. "In the fifth I had a lot of chances, and I didn't play the big points well enough." Hewitt double-faulted twice on break point in the final set. "I felt like I was good enough to win today," said the Australian, who considers the French Open his most difficult Grand Slam event. "I think I'll look back and I won't be that disappointed. I'll get over it pretty soon. I'm sure I'll bounce back." Robredo reached the fourth round at Roland Garros for the second time. "To beat the world No. 1 like this, it's the best you can imagine," he said. Elsewhere in the men's bracket, defending champion Albert Costa won his third consecutive five-set match, staging another stirring rally in the third round to outlast Nicolas Lapentti 4-6, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-4. In the opening round, Costa won for the first time in his long career after losing the first two sets. He did it once more against Lapentti, who limped through much of the final set with cramps. "It's a very special match, because it was fighting all the time and trying and trying and trying," Costa said. "I'm feeling so proud of myself. I'm not playing my best tennis, but I'm still fighting all the time." Costa, seeded ninth, advanced in 4 hours, 39 minutes. His first two victories took more than 3 1/2 hours, and he has played 148 games. No. 3 Juan Carlos Ferrero and No. 20 Felix Mantilla also won, giving Spain five men in the fourth round. Ferrero beat No. 25 Tim Henman 4-6, 6-2, 6-4, 6-2, and Mantilla defeated compatriot Fernando Vicente 7-6 (3), 6-3, 6-3. A sore toe on Lindsay Davenport's left foot was the biggest problem for the top women. Davenport required treatment from a trainer for an inflamed toe nerve that has bothered her for several weeks, but she still advanced to the fourth round by beating Nathalie Dechy of France 6-3, 7-5. Venus Williams, Jennifer Capriati and Kim Clijsters had an even easier day, losing just three games apiece. Williams, seeded third, hit six aces and beat No. 26 Silvia Farina Elia 6-1, 6-2. Capriati, the 2001 champion, took advantage of a shaky showing by qualifier Julia Vakulenko to win 6-1, 6-2. Clijsters, seeded second, defeated No. 30 Paola Suarez 6-2, 6-1. Davenport, seeded sixth, sought treatment midway through her second set. "It's a problem I've had for like the last month," Davenport said. "I just have this nerve in my foot that's very irritated. It's day to day. I never know when it comes up. Hopefully it'll be better tomorrow." The tall Californian is bidding for her fourth Grand Slam championship and her first since 2000, She said her title chances are slim compared with those of the Williams sisters and Amelie Mauresmo. "I consider myself for sure an outsider," Davenport said. "Those girls are much better than me on clay and move better and hit the ball better. It's not my favorite surface. I just come out here and do the best I can, and I'm happy to be in the round of 16." Davenport next will play No. 24 Conchita Martinez, who swept Tina Pisnik 6-3, 6-3. That put the Spaniard in the fourth round at Roland Garros for the 14th time, but the first time since 2000. "I am 31. It's reality," said Martinez, the oldest player remaining in the women's draw. "But that doesn't mean I feel old or that I cannot run for balls. I feel that I can still play good tennis and move out there and sometimes enjoy it. So it's a good deal." Clijsters' next opponent will be No. 15 Magdalena Maleeva, who edged Rita Grande 6-3, 2-6, 6-3. In men's play, No. 32 Arnaud Clement won an all-French showdown on center court, beating qualifier Nicolas Coutelot 6-4, 6-3, 6-2. "It wasn't a great match, a tight match that the fans would have liked to have seen," Coutelot said. On another humid day, with temperatures in the mid-80s, No. 12 Sjeng Schalken quit trailing No. 19 Fernando Gonzalez 7-6 (4), 6-3, 3-1. Schalken said he has been bothered by a virus. "Every time I had to run to one side, my heartbeat was 200, and that's not good," he said. Capriati lost her first game and then won eight in a row. Vakulenko double faulted nine times, committed 40 unforced errors and lost in 57 minutes. "It didn't seem like I hit a ball the whole match," said Capriati, seeded seventh. "Sometimes that easy is difficult, because you have to work so hard on your concentration." Williams advanced in 52 minutes. She's playing her first tournament since an abdominal strain forced her to stop playing during the Polish final May 4. "I'm doing OK," Williams said. "I'm really icing a lot to prevent any huge flare-ups. Each day I'm able to serve more in practice and hit more overheads and be more ambitious, so it's nice." Williams next plays No. 22 Vera Zvonareva, who eliminated Maria Sanchez Lorenzo 6-3, 6-4. Those advancing Saturday hope to end the reign of defending champion Serena Williams, who beat Barbara Schett 6-0, 6-0 Friday. Capriati said she wasn't fazed by that lopsided score. "I don't think anyone cares about those results," she said. "I just think people care about who's the winner of the tournament." Capriati improved to 15-1 at Roland Garros since 2001. She said she was unaware that Vakulenko, 19, was playing in her first major event.
"I don't know how young she is," Capriati said. "She looks
kind of old."
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