Sept 8th 1997

NEW YORK -- Patrick Rafter has a smile that won't go away. "I never thought I would win a Slam," he said Monday. ``I always dreamed of it, but I never thought I would actually win one." But Rafter's unlikely run ended with a four-set victory over Rusedski. (AP) the 24-year-old Australian did just that, capturing the U.S. Open on Sunday by defeating Britain's big-serving Greg Rusedski 6-3, 6-2, 4-6, 7-5 with a clinical demonstration of serve-and-volley tennis.

Then, in the company of several Austrailian champions, including Tony Roche, John Newcombe and Ken Rosewall, Rafter celebrated until the wee hours. Among them, the Aussie contingent has 19 Grand Slam tournament titles. Other former Aussie players at the party included Wally Masur, Brad Drewett, Darren Cahill and Paul McNamee. "It ended with a great cake fight about 2 o'clock in the morning," Rafter said. Until this year, Rafter had been in the pack of early-round losers, traversing the world in search of a victory and computer ranking points. He finished the past two years ranked No. 68 and No. 62 while battling injuries. His only other title came at Manchester, England, in 1994.

"I'VE WON TWO TOURNAMENTS IN MY LIFE, and one was the U.S. Open," he said, still awed by his accomplishment. He had reached five finals this year before the U.S. Open. But with Sunday's victory, he shot up to No. 3 in the world behind Pete Sampras and his semifinal victim, Michael Chang. Rafter is the first Australian in the top 10 since Pat Cash reached No. 10 in 1988. He's also the first men's singles winner from Australia since Newcombe in 1973. "I started making changes at the beginning of the year," Rafter said. "Less off-court work, a change in the gym program, more on-court work. It was a lot of hard work. I felt so good within myself. I felt so much stronger this year."

He cites an interview after he reached the final at St. Polten, Austria, as the key to his changed outlook. "They asked me if I felt I could win the French Open and I said no," Rafter said. "All of a sudden, I'm in the semifinals. I said to myself, the next time they ask me that question, I won't say no. I have a 1 in 128 chance, which is more positive than no." Roche has been coaching Rafter, with Newcombe helping out occasionally. "These guys have so much to offer," Rafter said. ``Before Sunday's match, I asked Rochey how should I be feeling, playing a Grand Slam final. And he said, `I'm not the right person to ask. I only won one of them. I've lost a dozen of them. Ask Newk."' Newcombe's words? "Knuckle down and just be yourself."

That he did, controlling the net and thus the points with acrobatic volleys and phenomenal anticipation. "I felt pretty good the first two sets," Rafter said. ``As soon as I got a break in the fourth set, I felt I was real close." Rafter will spend some time at his house in Bermuda before leading the Australian team against the United States in Davis Cup play in Washington next week. Newcombe, the Australian Davis Cup coach, already has given Rafter some advice.

"Newk said, `just because you're No. 3 in the world and you've won the U.S. Open, you don't have to win every tournament. Don't put that kind of pressure on yourself,"' Rafter said. Rafter admits the Australians will have a tough time beating the Americans, who counter with the world's top two players, Sampras and Chang. Then he chided the American players for not always playing Davis Cup. "We have a proud tradition," he said of Australian players. "Whenever I get a call to represent my country, I'm there. It's a shame the other guys don't feel the same way. There's nothing better than winning for your country." After a brief pause, Rafter added: "To win the U.S. Open is pretty bloody good, though."

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