Rosset hogs court as he wins against Karbacher

EXCITED spectators began queuing for Cedric Pioline in mid afternoon, and were rather disappointed to find that a couple of foreigners were still hogging the Centre Court. Yesterday was supposed to belong to a Frenchman.

Watching Switzerland's Olympic champion, Marc Rosset, retrieve a two set deficit to defeat Germany's Bernd Karbacher, 4-6, 4-6, 6-3, 7-5, 6-0, held only limited appeal. For one thing, the match tacked the drama and emotion of Pete Sampras's comeback against Jim Courier the day before. For another thing, it dragged on for three and a half hours. Still, it was opportunity to scout Cedric's semi final opponent.

The wishful thinking ceased when Michael Stich imposed his will on the proceedings, beating Pioline, 6-4, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2. The only time the German number 15 seed showed signs of wavering was during the second set, when his concentration was disturbed by spectators reacting noisily to his questioning of line calls, and in the opening game of the third set, when Pioline forced him to save three break points.

Stich, who underwent surgery three months ago after aggravating an ankle injury while dressing in a locker room in Milan, only decided to come to the French Open at the last moment. Short of clay court matches, he thought it might be better to prepare for Wimbledon early.

History suggests that Stich made the right decision. On the previous occasion he advanced to the French Open semi finals, losing to Jim Courier in 1991 he went on to win the Wimbledon title.

Rosset, the number 14 seed, has also recovered from a bizarre injury. He became so frustrated at the points being missed when playing mixed doubles with 15 year old Martina Hingis at the Hopman Cup in Perth in January, that he belted an advertising board with his racket, damaging, his hand.

Rosset, in common with Stich and Sampras, has a penchant for attacking play, and sunny conditions have contributed to making the courts slightly faster than usual. One can imagine the frustration experienced by Boris Becker as he sits out the championships, nursing a strained thigh.

Sampras, who tomorrow plays the Russian number 6 seed, Yevgeny Kafelnikov, this week paid tribute to his late coach, Tim Gullikson. "The last two months have been very emotional for me," he said, "but he's with me in my head, in my brain. He was talking to me today. I miss him and wish he was here to share these matches with me. A lot of my results this year have been for my friend, who is no longer with us.

Earlier, when asked where the needle was on his gas tank after playing three five set matches, Sampras said. "It's not on empty. These two days off are going to be good for me to get some energy back."

Referring to Kafelnikov, Sampras said. "He's pretty much breezed through this tournament without any problems. He's playing with a lot of confidence. I've beaten him before, so there's no reason why I can't do it again. It's going to be a good fight."

Which has become par for the course for Sampras as he attempts to become only the fifth player in history to win all four Grand Slam titles in his career.