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Agassi comes back to take out Ferrero

David Nalbandian of Argentina serves to Roger Federer of Switzerland during the Tennis Masters Cup at the Westside Tennis Club in Houston, Texas, Wednesday. Federer beat Nalbandian 6-3, 6-0. PHOTO: AFP

Andre Agassi righted himself quickly enough to beat Juan Carlos Ferrero and give Andy Roddick the year-end No. 1 ranking.

After a miserable 1 1/2 sets, Agassi suddenly began finding his strokes and came back to stun Ferrero 2-6, 6-3, 6-4 Wednesday night at the Tennis Masters Cup.

"It was like two different matches out there," Agassi said. "If you're second-guessing anything against Ferrero, he makes you pay the price for it. I never quite got settled until late in the second set."

Ferrero fell to 0-2 in the round-robin portion of the US$3.65 million tournament and can't possibly qualify for the semifinals, which means he won't accumulate enough points in the last event of 2003 to pass Roddick.

Agassi (1-1) can reach the semifinals by beating No. 8 David Nalbandian next.

Roddick, meanwhile, didn't have to set foot on court Wednesday. He replaced Ferrero -- the man he beat in the US Open final -- at No. 1 in the ATP Tour computer rankings last week and, at 21, will be the second-youngest player to close a season there.

"I'm incredibly honored to finish the year as No. 1, but I'm probably more proud to be the sixth American ever," said Roddick, who plays No. 6 Rainer Schuettler on Thursday. "It's hard to reflect on what a year this has been, but I'm incredibly fortunate to be playing at home in the United States. To be able to share all of this with my friends and family is better than I could have ever imagined."

He finished last year at No. 10, and he's been dominant since hiring Brad Gilbert -- Agassi's former coach -- in June. With Gilbert, Roddick is 46-6 (.885 winning percentage), including a season-high 19-match winning streak.

And now he'll have the same number of No. 1 finishes as Agassi, who did it in 1999.

"It's an incredible accomplishment, especially the way he's done it, coming on late in the year. He has a lot to feel proud about," Agassi said.

"Glad I could help. I aim to please."

He nearly didn't. Through 15 games, Agassi had 24 unforced errors to Ferrero's nine.

The turning point probably came with Ferrero serving in the fourth game of the second set, after Agassi slapped a weak forehand into the net to make it 30-love. Disgusted, he cracked his racket frame violently against his foot, drawing a warning from the chair umpire.

"I got frustrated," said Agassi, whose win allowed Wimbledon champion Roger Federer to claim a semifinal berth. "I figured, worst-case scenario, I might pull out another racket, and it would feel better."

While Agassi lost the next four points, he soon showed the skills that helped him win eight Grand Slam singles titles.

Both players held serve through the second set's seventh game, and then Agassi pounced. He hit a forehand winner down the line to get a break point, and a sizzling return led to Ferrero's errant backhand.

With a 5-3 edge in hand, Agassi pumped his fist, while most of the crowd (which included former President George Bush) gave him a standing ovation.

When Agassi laced a backhand winner down the line to win the second set, he clearly was in control. Ferrero, meanwhile, was reeling.

Agassi got the only break of the third set for 2-1, ending it with another brilliant backhand down the line. From there it was just a matter of holding serve the rest of the way, and Agassi managed that, closing his comeback with a forehand winner.

It was a result that hardly seemed possible at the start.

Ferrero broke twice in the first set. When he struck a forehand winner off Agassi's short return just 23 minutes into the match, Ferrero owned the set -- and had surrendered all of three points on his own serve.
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