Ivanisevic loses, calls it quits

WIMBLEDON, England -- Goran Ivanisevic ended his tennis career Friday, leaving Centre Court to a rousing standing ovation after losing in straight sets to the man who succeeded him as Wimbledon champion two years ago.

The 32-year-old Croat couldn't recreate the magic which carried him to the title as an unseeded wild card in 2001, and he fell 6-2, 6- 3, 6-4 to Lleyton Hewitt in 86 minutes.

"Bad luck today -- I played against a guy that's playing too good," Ivanisevic said. "To finish my career in Wimbledon, best place, best court, I couldn't ask for better."

A day after sister Venus was the victim of an umpire's mistake during a second-round defeat, top-seeded Serena Williams swept into the third round with a 6-0, 6-4 win over French qualifier Stephanie Foretz.

The All England Club said Friday that Ted Watts, the chair umpire who gave Karolina Sprem a point she didn't earn in the final tiebreaker of her win over Venus Williams, won't officiate another match at the tournament.

Andy Roddick advanced in straight sets Friday, beating 128th- ranked Alexander Peya of Austria, 6-3, 7-6 (2), 6-4, but he wasn't entirely happy with his game.

"It was OK, I did enough to win," the second-seeded American said. "I still don't feel like I'm playing my best tennis. I have to pick up my game in the next round."

There were two big upsets, with women's French Open champion Anastasia Myskina and men's French Open runner-up Guillermo Coria both going out.

No. 2-seeded Myskina was eliminated 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 in the third round by Amy Frazier, a 31-year-old American making her 16th appearance at Wimbledon. Frazier, ranked No. 36, hadn't advanced past the third round since 1996.

Three of the top six women's seeds have been knocked out before the first weekend -- Myskina, No. 3 Venus Williams and No. 6 Elena Dementieva, the losing finalist at the French Open.

In the biggest upset in the men's draw so far, third-seeded Coria lost in the second round to Germany's Florian Mayer, 4-6, 6-3, 6-3, 6- 4. Coria, an Argentine clay-courter who had never won a match at Wimbledon before this year, had needed four days to compete a rain- delayed first-round match over Wesley Moodie on Thursday.

In another surprise, Robby Ginepri beat No. 6 Juan Carlos Ferrero 6-3, 6-4, 6-1 to reach the fourth round.

Ivanisevic, who was unable to defend his title and missed the last two Wimbledons because of injuries, said before these championships that this would be final tournament.

"It was a victory for me to come here, play two matches and lose to a guy who is a Wimbledon champion and who is a great player," Ivanisevic said. "Everything was perfect -- the weather, the crowd, the court. I just enjoyed myself."

Despite passionate support from the fans, including shouts of "We love you, Goran!" he never managed to mount a challenge in the third- round match against the No. 7-seeded Hewitt.

After the Australian ripped a forehand winner to end the match, the two players chatted at length at the net.

"I think he said something like, 'You killed me out there today,"' Hewitt said. "I said, 'You're a great champion' and it's been an honor playing against him out here on Centre Court."

Ivanisevic soaked up a two-minute standing ovation from the 13,000- capacity crowd. He put on a No. 10 Croatian soccer shirt, drawing good-natured boos from the English fans. But the cheers returned as he left the court for the last time.

"I'm proud of myself, everything that I did in my career," Ivanisevic said. "I played with all generations -- McEnroe, Connors ... Pete (Sampras), Andre (Agassi), so it's great that when I lost, I lost to the Wimbledon champion and a guy who can win Wimbledon any time he plays like this."

Among those reaching the third round Friday was fifth-seeded Tim Henman, who beat Swiss qualifier Ivo Heuberger, 7-5, 6-3, 6-2, to continue his bid to become the first British player to win the men's title since 1936.

In women's second-round matches, fourth-seeded Amelie Mauresmo beat American qualifier Jennifer Hopkins, 6-3, 6-3, and No. 7 Jennifer Capriati downed British wild card Elena Baltacha, 6-4, 6-4, in second

No. 5-seeded Lindsay Davenport, the 1999 champion, moved into the round of 16 with a 6-2, 6-1 win over Tatiana Panova.

Serena Williams, the two-time defending champion, had an uneven performance on Court 1 against a 125th-ranked player who had never won a Wimbledon match until the first round.

Williams sailed through the first set in 22 minutes, ripping a backhand down-the-line winner on set point. Then, after going 4-2 down in the second set, Williams won four straight games to close the match in 64 minutes.

Roddick had some tough moments against Peya, who lost in the final qualifying round but got a place in the main draw when another player pulled out with an injury.

The match took place on Court 2, where many former winners and big names have lost matches over the years. Roddick said he could hear the din coming from the outdoor restaurant and VIP area overlooking the court.

Roddick will next face Taylor Dent, another American big server, who defeated Stefano Pescosolido 6-3, 6-3, 7-6 (3).

Wimbledon glance

A brief look at Day 5 of Wimbledon on Friday:

Weather: Sunny with a high temperature of 73.

Attendance: 39,659. Last year's Day 5: 39,833.

Men's Seeded Winners: No. 2 Andy Roddick, No. 5 Tim Henman, No. 7 Lleyton Hewitt, No. 8 Rainer Schuettler, No. 9 Carlos Moya, No. 10 Sebastien Grosjean, No. 11 Mark Philippoussis, No. 12 Sjeng Schalken, No. 24 Fernando Gonzalez, No. 25 Dominik Hrbaty, No. 26 Taylor Dent, No. 27 Robby Ginepri, No. 30 Vincent Spadea, No. 32 Hicham Arazi.

Women's Seeded Winners: No. 1 Serena Williams, No. 4 Amelie Mauresmo, No. 5 Lindsay Davenport, No. 7 Jennifer Capriati, No. 9 Paola Suarez, No. 10 Nadia Petrova, No. 11 Ai Sugiyama, No. 12 Vera Zvonareva, No. 13 Maria Sharapova, No. 14 Silvia Farina Elia, No. 25 Nathalie Dechy, No. 31 Amy Frazier, No. 32 Meghann Shaughnessy.

Men's Seeded Losers: No. 3 Guillermo Coria to Florian Mayer, No. 6 Juan Carlos Ferrero to Ginepri, No. 20 Tommy Robredo to Karol Beck, No. 21 Juan Ignacio Chela to Thomas Enqvist, No. 22 Andrei Pavel to Kenneth Carlsen.

Women's Seeded Losers: No. 2 Anastasia Myskina to Frazier, No. 15 Patty Schnyder to Emmanuelle Gagliardi, No. 18 Francesca Schiavone to Tatiana Golovin, No. 26 Lisa Raymond to Ludmila Cervanova, No. 27 Alicia Molik to Tamarine Tanasugarn.

Stat of the Day: 0. Number of rain delays Friday, the first day of the 2004 tournament without any interruptions.

Quote of the Day: "Every generation has its own Goran. So I was the Goran of this generation." -- Goran Ivanisevic after playing his final professional match.

Saturday's TV: ESPN2, 6-10 a.m.; ESPN, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.; NBC, 1- 4 p.m. (same-day tape)

Copyright C 2004 Deseret News Publishing Co.
Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights Reserved.