Pete Sampras got a perfect start Tuesday at the ATP World Championship and, unfortunately for Marcelo Rios, so did Tim Henman.<\/p>\n
Sampras and Rios, the top players in the world, are battling for the No. 1 ranking at the end of the year.<\/p>\n
While Sampras beat Yevgeny Kafelnikov 6-2, 6-4 in his opening match, Rios was upset 7-5, 6-1 by the big-serving Tim Henman.<\/p>\n
Sampras leads Rios by only 33 points in the computer rankings and he is seeking to become the first man to finish at No. 1 for six years in a row. He shares the record of five with Jimmy Connors.<\/p>\n
Rios needs to win at least two matches in the round-robin portion of the elite event to have a shot at dethroning Sampras in the final rankings for the year.<\/p>\n
Sampras showed how badly he wants the record by thrashing Kafelnikov.<\/p>\n
Rios, meanwhile, faded after falling behind a break in the second set against Henman and never rallied.<\/p>\n
“I don’t want to say it was a statement, but I was very focused,” Sampras said.”This is an important week and it showed.”<\/p>\n
“I hope I can maintain this level throughout the week, which is not going to be easy. But today was a good start.”<\/p>\n
Sampras was impressive in the first set with his crisp serve-and-volley game. Kafelnikov gave him a better battle in the second set, but Sampras still dominated the player he beat in last year’s final, when he won the title for the fourth time.<\/p>\n
“I had a lot of work to do in the second set,” Sampras said. “I didn’t want to do what I did last year when I lost my first match and played a little flat. I didn’t want to dig myself into a hole, having to win my next two matches.” Sampras had problems closing the match, needing six match points. He won it when Kafelnikov made two straight backhand errors.<\/p>\n
Kafelnikov was the last player to earn a place in the $3.5 million tournament that brings together the eight players with the best results of the year. The round-robin portion consists of two four-man groups, with two players from each advancing to the semifinals.<\/p>\n
Rios, who leads the tour with seven titles this year, dropped his serve in losing the first set.<\/p>\n
He wasted a break point in the third game of the second and lost his serve again in the fourth, beginning a series of errors that drew boos from the spectators. The match ended when Rios hit a careless backhand long.<\/p>\n
In another match, Carlos Moya rallied to beat Karol Kucera 6-7 (5-7), 7-5, 6-3.<\/p>\n
Moya, the French Open champion, won for the first time indoors this year in six matches.<\/p>\n
The Spaniard turned the match in the second set, when Kucera first double-faulted, giving Moya a set point, then hit a simple forehand into the net. Moya broke serve for a decisive break in the third set.<\/p>\n
The next opponent for Sampras on Wednesday is Moya, who beat the No. 1 player in the opening match last year. In other matches Wednesday, Kucera plays Kafelnikov and Andre Agassi faces Alex Corretja.<\/p>\n
Associated Press<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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