France's Arnaud Clement stunned defending US Open champion Andre Agassi 6-3 6-2 6-4, ousting the top-seeded American in a second-round shocker yesterday at the $15 million Grand Slam event.
"It's the best victory of my career," Clement said. "To win this match, it's unbelievable. Maybe 15,000 people watching. Everybody is for him. It's great."
The 102-minute defeat marked Agassi's earliest exit from Flushing Meadows since 1993, when he was nagged by a wrist injury and made a first-round departure.
"I just got outplayed," Agassi said. "Every time I stepped up I kept missing and he stepped up and got offensive - just a brutal day."
Agassi joined second seed Gustavo Kuerten of Brazil and two-time US Open champion Pat Rafter of Australia on the scrap heap halfway into round two.
Six-time Grand Slam champion Agassi, who in January won the Australian Open title, struggled with back spasms after a July car accident and was hurt for a crucial month of preparation for the Open.
Clement (22) was the only ATP player to reach the semi-finals in three US Open hardcourt warmups - Los Angeles, Cincinnati and last week's Hamlet Cup.
"I was very confident. I won a lot of matches before this tournament," said Clement, who is one victory away from matching his best Grand Slam showing.
Agassi led 3-1 before Clement won seven games in a row to seize control, breaking in the sixth and eighth games and again in five points to open the second set.
The champion fought back on Clement's first service game of the second set, battling from 0-40 down to force seven deuces but failing on his only break point chance of the game.
Clement broke Agassi again in the seventh game and swatted a 99m.p.h. ace to hold serve and capture the second set.
Agassi surrendered the only third-set break in the penultimate game, sending a backhand over the baseline before Clement hit a backhand winner to take the break.
Agassi saved four match points, denying Clement and raising hopes of a miracle rally.
But Agassi netted a forehand and Clement went through to a third-round date against Morocco's 41st-ranked Hicham Arazi, who ousted South African Wayne Ferreira 6-3 6-3 6-7 (5-7) 6-3.
Agassi's quarter of the draw opens well for ninth-seed Lleyton Hewitt. The 19-year-old Australian beat 101st-ranked Julien Boutter of France 7-6 (8-6) 6-4 6-4 in two hours and 20 minutes.
Hewitt will next play for a berth in the round of 16 next against 39th-rated Czech veteran Jiri Novak, who ousted 29th-ranked Byron Black of Zimbabwe 2-6 6-3 7-5 7-6 (7-4).
Fifth seed Yevgeny Kafelnikov of Russia also struggled to get by 83rd-ranked Alexander Popp of Germany 6-7 (3-7) 6-4 6-4 6-4 in two hours and 44 minutes.
On the women's side, Australian Open champion Lindsay Davenport rallied to beat 17-year-old Belgian prodigy Kim Clijsters and French Open champion Mary Pierce outlasted Bulgaria's Magdalena Maleeva.
Jelena Dokic advanced past Dutch foe Miriam Oremans 6-1 6-4 despite the banishment of her father Damir for repeated abusive incidents at events. Anna Kournikova downed Czech Sandra Kleinova 6-4 6-1.
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