By Joshua Mason
Daily Bruin Staff
If only everyone could cruise to the third round of the
Mercedes-Benz Cup with so much ease.
As Taylor Dent and Max Mirnyi played nail-biting tennis on the
grandstand court, Jan-Michael Gambill speedily made lunch of fellow
American andformer Stanford star Paul Goldstein, 6-1, 6-4.
“I came out there today, and I was on fire,” Gambill
said. “I started out playing great. It doesn’t happen
very often on the tour that you can come out and just take it to
the guy.”
Gambill opened by taking the first 10 points of the first set
and creating momentum that would last the rest of the match.
Goldstein only managed to take one game in the first set, as
Gambill won 6-1 in only 24 minutes.
Though Goldstein managed to hold his serve to win the first game
of the second set, Gambill marched on to win the set, 6-4.
The victory came only two days after Gambill defeated another
American, Michael Joyce of Santa Monica, 6-1, 6-3, in the
tournament’s first round. Gambill struggled earlier this
season in the clay court tournaments, so the change to the hard
court at UCLA was a welcome move for the 24-year-old American.
“I love this court,” Gambill said. “I’m
playing better again because I’m on my surface, and I know
that my focus is coming together. It’s definitely a boost of
confidence to win here before the U.S. Open.”
With his victory Thursday, Gambill may face familiar opponent
Andre Agassi in the tournament’s third round.
“It’s still just as exciting to play Andre as it
ever has been,” Gambill said. “He’s a great guy
off the court. On the court, he’s not so great because of the
way he plays you, but we always have great matches and I’d
love to play him again.”
In other Thursday second-round singles
action:
- Top seed Gustavo Kuerten of Brazil beat American teen-ager
Robby Ginepri, the last of the four qualifiers, 7-6(4), 6-2. Though
Ginepri managed to make the first set a close one, Kuerten won five
games in a row in the second to win the match. Kuerten out-served
Ginepri, recording nine aces to Ginepri’s two. Kuerten has
now won 14 matches in a row.
- No. 8 seed Tommy Haas (Germany) made quick work of American Bob
Bryan, beating him 6-2, 6-3 in less than an hour. Haas broke Bryan
twice in the first set. Bryan showed some flashes in the second set
(in one game alone he had five aces to take the lead 3-2), but Haas
opened the next game with three aces, eventually tying the set.
Haas then took the nextthree games for the win.
- Haas will next play Kuerten in the Mercedes-Benz Cup
quarterfinals.