Agassi, Safin, Sampras advance at French Open

Andre Agassi and Marat Safin steered a safe course to the French Open second round on Tuesday as eighth and ninth seeds Pat Rafter and Magnus Norman floundered in five sets.

Fifth seed Pete Sampras almost ran aground against French qualifier Cedric Kauffmann, but the American saved three match points on the way to a 6-3 4-6 6-2 3-6 8-6 victory.

On the women's side, top seed Martina Hingis was in imperious form as she swept aside Spain's Gala Leon Garcia 6-1 6-0, fourth seed Jennifer Capriati eased past France's Emilie Loit 6-2 7-5 and sixth seed Serena Williams overcame a feisty Sarah Pitkowski 6-2 6-7 6-1.

Norman, runner-up at Roland Garros last year, threw away a two-set lead to slump out 4-6 4-6 7-6 6-1 6-2 to little-known Spaniard David Sanchez.

"It is hard out there when you lose your confidence," he said. "I hesitated and was made to pay."

Australian Rafter also threw away a two-set lead as he was beaten 4-6 2-6 6-3 7-6 6-1 by 30-year-old compatriot Wayne Arthurs.

NEED CONFIDENCE

A semifinalist here in 1997, Rafter visibly tired and Arthurs started to pick his serve off on the return.

Arthurs had lost in the first round in his only other appearance at Roland Garros last year.

Second seed Safin beat Austrian Markus Hipfl 6-3 6-3 6-7 6-1 to boost his fragile confidence.

"I think some people may have forgotten that I am still playing tennis," he said. "It would be great to get some good results here, I need to get some confidence back."

Australian Open champion Agassi shrugged off his indifferent claycourt form to ease past Sweden's Thomas Johansson 6-2 6-3 7-6.

The third seed arrived in Paris with just one win on clay this season, but looked as comfortable on the Roland Garros Centre Court as he did when he lifted the 1999 French title to complete his Grand Slam collection.

"I feel good and ready but there are a lot of good claycourt players out there who are feeling the same way," he said.

U.S. Open champion Safin was never at his best on Court Suzanne Lenglen against his 81st-ranked opponent, but did enough to advance.

STRANGE SITUATION

The Russian has never been beyond the quarter-finals at Roland Garros, and faces Spain's Alex Calatrava in the second round.

"I am in a strange situation," said Safin, who has yet to win a tournament this year. "I have been injured, couldn't play for a month-and-a-half with a back injury.

"I am in a perfect situation. Nobody is expecting much from me so I am an outsider even though I am seeded two."

Sampras's bid to win the only Grand Slam title to elude him got off to a shaky start. The American, who has not advanced further than the third round at Roland Garros since 1996 and lost at the first hurdle last year, made a string of unforced errors against an opponent playing only his second match in a Grand Slam event.

Kauffmann, the world number 250, shocked his illustrious opponent with the performance of his life and served for the match at 5-4 in the fifth set in front of his home crowd.

But Sampras did just enough to clinch a second-round match against Spain's Galo Blanco on his third match point.

"I've got to give him credit," said Sampras, the winner of a record 13 Grand Slam titles. "He was in incredible shape and ran like a tiger out there."

BATTERED LEON

Hingis battered Leon as she began her bid for a first French Open title.

Runner-up in 1997 and 1999, the Swiss world number one tore through the match with the minimum of fuss and sealed her second-round place after 58 minutes.

Australian Open champion Capriati thumped winners all over the Centre Court on the way to victory over Loit.

"I've got a lot of confidence and I'm playing well," she said afterwards.

"I just played one point at a time, didn't get nervous and just really concentrated.

"The victory at the Australian Open has given me so much confidence. I've put the work in, now I have to go out there and play."

Men's 10th seed Sebastien Grosjean gave himself a 23rd birthday present, beating Michal Tabara 6-3 3-6 6-3 7-6, while Britain's Greg Rusedski upset Spanish claycourt specialist Albert Portas 6-4 7-5 6-1.

Men's 1998 champion Carlos Moya beat fellow Spaniard Feliciano Lopez 6-1 6-4 6-0 and Spanish 13th seed Alex Corretja defeated Argentine Mariano Zabaleta 2-6 7-6 6-3 4-6 6-1.

France's Sandrine Testud, the number 17 seed, beat American Dawn Buth 6-1 6-1, 11th seed Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario defeated Germany's Greta Arn 4-6 6-2 6-1 and her fellow Spaniard Conchita Martinez, seeded eighth, crushed France's Anne-Gaelle Sidot 6-1 6-1.