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Hewitt goes down to El Aynaoui in Oz

Younes El Aynaoui shouts after winning a point against Lleyton Hewitt in their fourth round men's singles match at the Australian Open in Melbourne, yesterday. El Aynaoui upset Hewitt 6-7 (4/7), 7-6 (7/4), 7-6 (7/5), 6-4. PHOTO: AFP

Younes El Aynaoui overpowered Lleyton Hewitt with his serve and big forehand yesterday, knocking the top-ranked player out in the fourth round of the Australian Open.

The Moroccan, seeded 18th, beat Hewitt 6-7 (4), 7-6 (4), 7-6 (5), 6-4, derailing his hopes of becoming the first Australian winner of the home Grand Slam tournament since 1976.

Hewitt, known as an outstanding returner, had only three break chances in the match as El Aynaoui served at speeds up to 211kph and slammed in 33 aces.

El Aynaoui ran around to hit forehands from all corners of the court, and at all angles. In the final game, he reached match point with a leaping overhead smash and then won the three-and-a-half-hour match with a forehand into Hewitt's backhand corner.

``I hope I didn't give away all the power I have -- there are still more matches left,'' said the 31-year-old El Aynaoui, who became the second over-30 player in the quarterfinals. Three-time champion Andre Agassi is 32.

``It's great to still get all this support, even playing against Lleyton in Australia,'' said the Moroccan, who received a standing ovation at the end.

Lleyton Hewitt slams his racquet to the ground in frustration. PHOTO: REUTERS

This will be his third Grand Slam tournament quarterfinal. His second was in the US Open last year, where he lost to Hewitt in four sets.

El Aynaoui had the first service break in the fourth set's seventh game. At 30-all, Hewitt hit a passing shot attempt wide and then double faulted.

``I gave it everything I had and he was too good,'' said Hewitt, the 2001 US Open and 2002 champion.

Younes El Aynaoui is congratulated by Lleyton Hewitt after winning their match at the Australian Open tennis tournament. PHOTO: AP

Serena Williams, the top-ranked women's player, avoided an upset, starting slow again but finishing strong to move within three victories of completing the ``Serena Slam.''

Williams, who already holds the most recent titles from the French Open, Wimbledon and US Open, beat Eleni Daniilidou 6-4, 6-1.

Her quarterfinal opponent will be fellow American Meghann Shaughnessy, who saved five break points in the final game to beat Elena Bovina 5-7, 6-2, 6-4.

El Aynaoui factfile * Country: Morocco * Birth date: Sept. 12, 1971 * Birthplace: Rabat, Morocco * Height: 1.93m * Year turned pro: 1990 * Career titles for singles: 5 * Career matches won: 204 * Career matches lost: 172 Source: Taipei Times

``That's a great win for her,'' Williams said of Shaughnessy. ``OK, that's two Americans in the quarterfinals, so one of us is guaranteed to get to the semis.''

Also in the quarterfinals is Williams' sister Venus, who lost to Serena in the final three Grand Slam events last year.

No. 8 Anastasia Myskina advanced on a 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 win over No. 10 Chanda Rubin.

Meanwhile, Andy Roddick rebounded from two sets down to beat Mikhail Youzhny 6-7 (4), 3-6, 7-5, 6-3, 6-2.

Counting two previous losses to Youzhny, the American had lost six consecutive sets against the Russian Davis Cup hero before staging his comeback.

He pulled out a tight third set with a heavy serve return that Youzhny hit wide, gained an early break in the fourth set and broke twice in the fifth, ending with a low shot that Youzhny volleyed into the net and three unreturnable serves.

Three-time champion Andre Agassi already had reached the quarterfinals, where he will meet France's Sebastien Grosjean.

Roddick, also a quarterfinalist twice at the US Open, will face El Aynaoui.

Another US hope, James Blake, lost 6-3, 6-4, 1-6, 6-3 to Germany's Rainer Schuettler, who gained the fourth round when 2002 runner-up Marat Safin withdrew with a wrist injury from a fall in an earlier match.

Williams played the last match on center court before organizers temporarily suspended play on the outside courts, citing temperatures of 35?C and high humidity. They had the option of closing the roof over center court, but did not do so.

``It's hard to breathe,'' said Williams, who sat gulping air during the changeovers. ``But it's OK, I like the heat.''

Williams, who missed the Australian Open with an injury last year before winning the other three majors, has struggled early in three of her four matches here so far. In yesterday's first set, she gestured in exasperation over some of her misses.

Her serve was broken twice in the set, but she broke three times. The 20-year-old Daniilidou, who's from Greece and was seeded 18th, helped by double-faulting eight times.

Williams then settled down, reducing her errors from 21 in the first set to six in the second.

``I always say, `OK, keep trying,' Williams said. ``I got out to a slow start, which is something I don't want to happen'' as the matches get tougher.

Shaughnessy, a 23-year-old American who's seeded 25th, reached the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam event for the first time by winning her 11th straight match to start the year.

Shaughnessy's previous best showing in a major came at the 2001 French Open and Wimbledon, where she reached the fourth round.

``To beat Serena, you've got to attack her,'' Shaughnessy said.
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