ANDRE AGASSI recovered from a second set reversal to beat France's Jean Philippe Fleurian 6-2, 4-6, 6-2 in Florida yesterday and advance to the fourth round of the Lipton Championships.
Agassi, ranked third in the world, won in 94 minutes, converting five of six service break opportunities to keep his title defence alive at the $4.1 million event, which features ATP and WTA fields.
In the women's event, Jennifer Capriati's comeback run was halted by fourth seed Gabriela Sabatini. The Argentine star ousted the American 6-1, 6-4.
Agassi curled the final point across the net with an underhand chop shot, causing his fiancee, model Brooke Shields, to say, "That's beautiful."
Fleurian broke Agassi in the final game of the second set, with Agassi sending a volley into the net on set point. But Agassi proved too strong, overwhelming the Frenchman in the final set.
"One of the things that has been the most difficult for me since I took some time off at the end of last year is getting back to where I used to be," Agassi said. "I'm trying to focus on that, and covering the real estate a little bit faster."
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