February 22, 2001

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) - Mark Philippoussis isn't the type of person who wants to ease back into tennis.

The Australian had surgery to repair a torn ligament in his left knee Dec. 28 and sat out nearly two months to heal and strengthen his leg. Now back on tour, he has his sights set high in his first stop at the Kroger St. Jude tennis tournament.

``To be quite honest, I've come here to start off with a win,'' said Philippoussis, who won this tournament in 1998. ``That would be the best thing for my confidence and to let everyone know - I have been out a couple months, but I'm back and playing some good tennis.''

Philippoussis wasn't tested much Thursday night as he needed only 75 minutes to beat No. 16 seed Magnus Gustafsson 6-3, 7-5 for his second victory this week. On Friday in the quarterfinals, Philippoussis plays 18-year-old Russian Dmitry Tursunov, who is playing his first tournament on the ATP Tour.

Tursunov came to Memphis without a guaranteed spot in the tournament, but has won three matches with an upset of No. 7 seed Greg Rusedski and a 6-3, 7-6 (4) victory over George Bastl moving him into the quarterfinals.

Philippoussis said he plans to just play his own game against someone he has never heard of.

``Obviously, he's playing some good tennis,'' Philippoussis said.

In the other quarterfinals, Tennessee native Chris Woodruff will play ninth-seeded David Sanguinetti on Friday night. The Italian advanced by spoiling the 29th birthday of No. 6 seed Michael Chang, 6-2, 6-3.

Sebastien Lareau downed qualifier Scott Draper 6-2, 3-6, 6-4 and will play No. 12 seed Jason Stoltenberg, a 6-4, 6-7 (6), 7-6 (3) winner over eighth-seeded Harel Levy. No. 5 Jan-Michael Gambill beat No. 11 Juan Balcells 6-0, 7-5 and will meet third-seeded Tommy Haas, who defeated No. 14 Paul Goldstein 6-3, 6-4.

Philippoussis used his overpowering serve to his advantage against Gustafsson. He quickly broke Gustafsson for a 3-1 lead in the first set.

Philippoussis didn't allow a point in three of his service games in the second set, and Gustafsson's only points in a fourth game came off errors by Philippoussis.

Philippoussis tied the set at 5-5 when he finished off the game with a 124 mph ace off his second serve.

The 24-year-old Philippoussis credited his early performance to his rehabilitation the past few weeks. He hired a personal trainer in Miami Beach recently and has been working three days a week on strengthening the muscles around his knees and his upper body.

He credited Andre Agassi, who won the Australian Open last month, with providing inspiration to work harder on his conditioning.

``It definitely gives me a boost and makes me realize what I have to do if I want to win a Grand Slam,'' Philippoussis said. ``And if I want to get as good as I can get, I have to work for it.''

The Commercial Appeal

By Phil Stukenborg

23 February 2001

One day after the Kroger St. Jude tennis tournament lost top seed Pete Sampras, the $800,000 ATP event settled into some semblance of order Thursday.

Two former champions - No. 2 seed Mark Philippoussis and No. 3 Tommy Haas - advanced to the quarterfinals at The Racquet Club in straight sets, but another former Memphis winner, No. 6 Michael Chang, was unable to join them.

Italian Davide Sanguinetti, the No. 9 seed, spoiled Michael Chang's 29th birthday with a 6-2, 6-3 win in slightly more than an hour. Chang, a perennial top 10 player in the mid-1990s, said he basically self-destructed against Sanguinetti, who has not won a title in eight years on the tour.

"I think he played pretty good tennis overall,'' Chang said. "But I don't think I got things going tonight. I made quite a few more errors. I hit some good shots and some winners, but they were few and far between. It was just one of those tough days.''

Although he reached the quarterfinals of Wimbledon in 1998 and beat top 10 player Yevgeny Kafelnikov last year, Sanguinetti called the win one of the biggest of his career.

"Chang is still a champion to me,'' Sanguinetti said. "His ranking has dropped a bit (No. 32 last year), but he is still a great fighter. I just played great tennis and didn't make many mistakes. And I made him run a lot.''

Philippoussis, playing in his first event since December knee surgery, ran pain-free in his win. He relied on his powerful groundstrokes and lethal serve to oust No. 16 Magnus Gustafsson, 6-3, 7-5. Philippoussis served 19 aces, including a second-serve 124-mph offering.

"I think tonight was a better match than (Tuesday),'' said Philippoussis, referring to his second-round win over Juan Albert Viloca. "Magnus didn't play too bad, but I stepped it up at 5-all in the second set when I had to and broke him at love and managed to play some good points.''

Philippoussis broke the 34-year-old Gustafsson, a former top 10 player, with a combination of power, deception and Gustafsson errors. After an unforced error by Gustafsson, Philippoussis hit a drop shot that set up a volley winner and then followed with a blistering forehand down the line. He got the break, to go up 6-5, when a Gustafsson forehand sailed beyond the baseline. He then served out for a spot in the quarterfinals.

Philippoussis said he has been encouraged by his ability to move freely on the court through his first two matches. "I've been training really hard since the surgery,'' he said. "I've been trying to make my leg strong.''

Haas eliminated No. 14 Paul Goldstein, 6-3, 6-4. Like Philippoussis, Haas used a mix of power, touch and speed to advance. "I felt good out there,'' said Haas, a winner last month at Adelaide. "It was really tough. Paul Goldstein is a great competitor and fights for every point. But I have proven in the past that I can play good tennis here. I won two years ago and reached the semifinals last year.''

Russian teenager Dmitry Tursunov, the surprise story of the tournament, reached the quarterfinals, too, as did two other unseeded players: Tennessee native Chris Woodruff and Canadian Sebastien Lareau. Woodruff, who upset Sampras Wednesday night, eliminated former world No. 2 Goran Ivanisevic, 6-3, 7-6 (7-3), and Lareau beat qualifier Scott Draper, 6-2, 3-6, 6-4.

Also advancing were 5th seed Jan-Michael Gambill with a 6-0, 7-5 win over No. 11 Juan Balcells and 12th seed Jason Stoltenberg, who defeated No. 8 Harel Levy, 6-4, 6-7 (6-8), 7-6 (7-3).

Tursunov continued his memorable ATP tour debut. Tursunov, 18, took a 6-3, 7-6 (7-4) victory over Switzerland's George Bastl. It was the 18^th straight win for Tursunov, who qualified for the tournament after winning back-to-back lower level tour events in Boca Raton, Fla., and Dallas.

"My confidence is pretty high,'' Tursunov said. "It's obvious that somewhere (this streak) is going to end. But now I have the confidence of knowing I can win.'' Woodruff, 28, said he was "a little mentally drained'' after gaining his first career win over Sampras. But he outlasted Ivanisevic, a three-time Wimbledon runnerup, by "serving smart.''

Ivanisevic staged a battle from the baseline with Woodruff, but didn't have enough answers for a player who owns two ATP titles. "I played good tennis, but he played better and that's why he won,'' Ivanisevic said. "When I stepped one level up, he went higher. If I served better, he returned better. I didn't play bad, he just played better. He can beat anybody when he's playing like this.'

Tennis.net

22 February 2001

Memphis, Tennessee, February 22 - Philippoussis through to St Jude quarters Australia's Mark Philippoussis cruised into the quarter-finals of the ATP St. Jude Classic but Michael Chang's 29th birthday was spoiled but a straight-set defeat.

Second seed Philippoussis, in his first event of the year after left knee surgery last year, defeated Sweden's Magnus Gustafsson 6-3, 7-5 to set a round of eight date with 18-year-old Russian surprise Dmitry Turnusov. Turnusov, in his first ATP event, dispatched Swiss foe George Bastl 6-3, 7-6 (7-4). Turnusov has won 18 matches in a row, 15 on developmental tours, three in qualifying and three in the main draw, including an upset of seventh seed Greg Rusedski of Britain.

But sixth seed Chang, who won here in 1997 and has 34 career titles, fell victim to Italy's Davide Sanguinetti 6-2, 6-3.

And eighth seed Harel Levy of Israel fell to Australia's Jason Stoltenberg 6-4, 6-7 (6-8), 7-6 (7-3). The aussie has a quarter-final date with Canada's Sebastien Larue, who beat Aussie Scott Draper 6-2, 3-6, 6-4.

Third-seeded defending champion Tommy Haas of Germany advanced by beating American Paul Goldstein 6-3, 6-4 while American fifth seed Jan-Michael Gambill beat Spain's Juan Balcells 6-0, 7-5.

American Chris Woodruff, who dumped top seed Pete Sampras in the second round, ousted three-time Wimbledon finalist Goran Ivanisevic 6-3, 7-6 (7-3), to book a quarter-final date with Sanguinetti.

Gustafsson, the oldest player in the draw at 34, failed to reach his first US quarter-final.