The Defender Can Find No Defense for Agassi : French Open: Chang goes out in four sets in battle of remaining Americans, but he says he feels relieved. Agassi will face Svensson in semifinals.

The French Open bade au revoir Tuesday to Michael Chang, its defending men’s champion, who left Roland Garros Stadium beaten in the quarterfinals.

But at least he will always have Paris.

Once again, the French Open is down to its usual token American, this time Andre Agassi. But wasn’t it just a year ago that Chang was in the same situation and won the whole thing?

Beneath a sky the color of bathtub ring, the last two Americans slugged it out on the red clay of center court. There, Agassi, the 20-year-old from Las Vegas, put on a tennis performance as slick as a Vegas headliner’s.

Agassi ended Chang’s reign swiftly and explosively, 6-2, 6-1, 4-6, 6-2, and moved into his second French Open semifinal.

The highest seeded player for a week, since Stefan Edberg and Boris Becker lost in the first round, Agassi will meet Jonas B. Svensson of Sweden in the semifinals. Svensson defeated Henri Leconte of France, 3-6, 7-5, 6-3, 6-4.

Agassi is keeping his mind on winning his first Grand Slam title.

“Two guys stand in my way,” Agassi said.

Chang’s departure from that group was hastened by a surprisingly mature performance by Agassi, who has apparently learned how to play on clay. Agassi won the first set in 29 minutes and broke Chang’s serve three times in the second set.

“He didn’t miss,” said Chang, who often found himself pinned at the baseline, hoping he wouldn’t give Agassi a short ball.

Agassi’s patience on a surface that requires nothing but patience was remarkable, Chang said.

“I think he’s picking his shots a lot better,” the dethroned champion said. “What he’s learned on clay is when to hit the ball hard and when to hit the ball soft.

“On clay, you have to think. On hard courts, he can really blow people off the court. On clay, you can’t do that.”

Ahead by two sets, Agassi gave one back when Chang’s stinging forehand crosscourt winner broke him in the key game of the third set. Chang, leading 4-3 at that point, went on to finish the set with an ace followed by a backhand winner down the line.

It was Chang’s only moment, but at least he had one after losing the first two sets.

“I wasn’t just going to fold,” Chang said. “I was defending champ. I wasn’t going to just give up, even though he played just about flawless tennis.”

Chang began changing his game plan in the third set and it worked for a while. Instead of staying back, he ventured into the net on occasion. He hit high looping shots, giving himself time to recover and Agassi a different look.

“Otherwise it would have been 6-2, 6-1, 6-0,” Chang said.

Nothing fazed Agassi in the fourth set, though. He broke Chang for a 2-0 lead, then saved a 0-40 game to hold for 4-1. Down 2-5, Chang served one last time. He saved two match points before losing.

When Agassi’s backhand volley bounced away on the clay, he pumped his fist, bowed, dug a shirt out of his bag and tossed it into the stands. Agassi waved as he walked off the court. Chang simply picked up his rackets and left.

He seemed at ease as he recounted the match, even when he compared this ending to the much different one of a year ago when he was 17 and the youngest Grand Slam champion.

“Now that I’m out, I feel like a little weight has been taken off,” Chang said. “You win a Grand Slam at such a young age and you feel there’s a backpack full of bricks you’re carrying.

“I’ve had my best results of the year here. This year has been kind of a rugged year for me, so this is one of its most positive points.

“I peaked at just the right time last year. I was in as good a physical condition as I could have been. I played the best tennis of my life.”

Agassi may be playing his best tennis right now. He reached the French Open semifinals in 1988 but lost in five sets to Mats Wilander. For the last two years, Agassi has also been a semifinalist at the U.S. Open, losing both times to Ivan Lendl in four sets.

This time may be different, Agassi said.

“Physically, I’m much more capable,” he said. “It’s the only time I’ve been in a semifinal of a (Grand Slam) tournament and wanted more. I want it more and I’m physically capable, so that should make a big difference this time.”