Heineken Open
Second-seeded Jiri Novak of the Czech Republic and third-seeded Gustavo Kuerten of Brazil stayed in line to become repeat Heineken Open champions by winning quarterfinal matches yesterday.
Novak, the 1996 champion, started slowly and went down a set before beating unseeded Dutchman Raemon Sluiter 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 in a match stretched over two hours.
Defending champion Kuerten beat fifth-seeded American Vincent Spadea 6-2, 7-6 (4) in a rain-delayed match.
Slovakian Dominik Hrbaty, who won the Auckland event in 2001, led German qualifier Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-1, 3-6, 1-0 when rain halted their match.
The match will resume before semifinals Friday. Hrbaty is unbeaten in seven tournament matches in 2004.
The exception to former champions in the semifinals was 17-year-old Spaniard Rafael Nadal, whose rapid rise in world ranking continued when he gained a walkover win over Gregory Carraz of France.
Nadal led 2-1 on serve in the first set when the unseeded Frenchman called a trainer to treat strained thigh and groin muscles.
His injured leg was strapped and Carraz, who was making only his second quarterfinal appearance in ATP matches, returned to the court to serve the fourth game of the set.
He immediately indicated to the chair umpire he could not continue and he quit the match after only 18 minutes.
The withdrawal allowed Nadal, who leaped almost 200 ranking places in 2003, to reach his second tour semifinal.
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