U.S. Open Tennis : Edberg Ousted by Old Foe

Five years and one Wimbledon title ago, Sweden’s Stefan Edberg lost to a young upstart American, Aaron Krickstein, in a fifth-set tiebreaker in a first-round match at the U.S. Open.

Since then, Krickstein had floundered--troubled with injuries and a limited baseline game. Edberg, of course, went on to win two Australian Open titles before he claimed the Wimbledon crown in July and pushed for a shot at the No. 1 ranking.

Monday night, however, it was 1983 revisited, as Krickstein upset the No. 3-seeded Edberg, 5-7, 7-6, 7-6, 4-6, 7-5, in a fourth-round match at the U.S. Open.

“This probably has to be the highest point in my career,” said Krickstein, 21, who is ranked 20th. “I’ve never beaten a Wimbledon champion, so it’s a great feeling for me.”

Edberg blamed the loss in part on poor conditions--cool and windy weather--as well as having to play his second consecutive night match at the Open. Last year, Edberg also was victimized by poor scheduling. He had to play a 10 a.m. semifinal singles match against Mats Wilander after he completed a five-set doubles match late in the afternoon the day before.

“Playing at night, it was so hard to see the ball,” he said. “It was so cold, it was hard to hit the ball. It’s never easy to play at night, but he played a tough match. He fought well. At one stage of the match, I was in control. I should have won this match, this is quite clear.”

Edberg hurt his own cause by committing 41 unforced errors to Krickstein’s 16. He also never had a chance in either tiebreaker, falling behind by 3-0 in the second-set tiebreaker and 4-0 in the third-set tiebreaker.

With Edberg’s loss, the draw opens up for No. 2 Wilander, who will play unseeded Emilio Sanchez in the quarterfinals, then, if he wins, Darren Cahill or Krickstein.

By no means does Krickstein feel he will have an easy ride to the semifinals. Cahill won a tournament earlier this year and knocked off No. 5 Boris Becker in a second-round match at the Open. And he’s the last survivor of the Australian group that has been upsetting seeded players.

“I know my opponent in the quarterfinals isn’t as well-known, but I’m not going to breeze to the semis,” Krickstein said. “But coming off a big win, emotionally, I’ll have tomorrow to get ready. He (Cahill) beat my butt earlier this year in Indian Wells in straight sets, but I feel I’m playing a lot better now.”

And the U.S. Open is a particular favorite of Krickstein’s. He has won six five-set matches here. Monday was especially meaningful because Krickstein was on the sideline on crutches for the whole Open last year.

“If I had one place to do well, I’d pick the Open,” Krickstein said. “I feel my game is better now than when I was No. 7 in the world.”