Ivanisevic Aces Out Curren : Wimbledon: Yugoslav serves up 27 aces in the five-set victory. Lendl, Becker and Edberg also advance.

No matter the game, aces make a pretty nice hand. In the Wimbledon championships Wednesday, 18-year-old Goran Ivanisevic had 27 of them in a quarterfinal match with Kevin Curren.

“I never count my aces,” Ivanisevic said. “It is very hard, especially if I serve like this.”

Cold rain and Ivanisevic pelted Wimbledon on a day that would have been fine for October.

The showers caused a four-hour rain delay. Ivanisevic caused a minor sensation as he filled out the men’s semifinal field, joining Ivan Lendl, Boris Becker and Stefan Edberg.

Ivanisevic, a 6-foot-4 left-handed slugger from Split, Yugoslavia, beat Curren, 4-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-7 (10-8), 6-3, and earned the right to play defending champion Becker.

Naturally, Ivanisevic is worried, right?

“No. Is gonna be difficult for him, I am sure,” Ivanisevic said. “He going to have a lot of trouble with me.”

Becker had but one ace in a 6-4, 6-4, 6-1 victory over Brad Gilbert, a match moved from Centre Court to tiny Court 2 instead of following Lendl’s match on the main court.

Becker had to remind himself that he was playing a Wimbledon quarterfinal, despite the strange surroundings.

“I made the most of it,” Becker said. “I kept my cool and I played solid three sets.”

Just as solid was Lendl, who beat Brad Pearce, 6-4, 6-4, 5-7, 6-4, and strode toward his semifinal against Stefan Edberg, who defeated Christian Bergstrom, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4.

Pearce was difficult for Lendl.

“I think I’ve shown that Brad Pearce is someone to contend with,” said Pearce, who never before won more than two matches in a pro tournament.

Pearce planned a shopping trip to Harrods, which is at its busiest during its annual summer sale. Harrods may prove to be as tough as playing Lendl.

But Pearce enjoyed the Lendl experience. “I felt like I belonged,” he said.

Edberg usually belongs on Centre Court or Court 1, Wimbledon’s two big stages, but because of the rain problems, he was rescheduled on Court 14 to play Bergstrom.

“I had some guides who took me there,” Edberg said.

Edberg and Lendl have played 16 times and Lendl has won 10, including their only other meeting at Wimbledon. Lendl beat Edberg in four sets in the 1987 semifinals before losing to Pat Cash in the final.

At the very least, playing Lendl again will be interesting, Edberg said.

“We’re getting near crunch time here,” Edberg said. “I feel I’ve got nothing to lose. I feel I’m playing well enough to beat him and we’ll just wait and see.”

Gilbert thought he was playing well enough to upend Becker, but something happened to him on the court.

“I just was a little flat,” said Gilbert, who was still impressed by Becker’s serve even though he was aced just once.

Gilbert said Becker made a key adjustment on his serve. Instead of continuing to hit the ball flat, Becker began hitting a kick serve that did strange things in the wind.

“To his credit, he really served great,” Gilbert said. “Sometimes it’s not the aces, it’s what you do with the ball.”

To Ivanisevic, it’s how many aces he has. After five matches, they number 92: 16 against Andreas Lesch, 17 against Olivier Delaitre, 17 against Derrick Rostagno, 15 against Mark Koevermans and 27 against Curren.

Chances are aces will be flying everywhere when Ivanisevic meets Becker.

“Now I am serving pretty good,” Ivanisevic said. “Now is my chance. You never know. We will see what will happen.”

What happened the only other time they played was a victory by Ivanisevic. Becker lost in the first round of the French Open when Ivanisevic aced him 19 times.

“He is the one defending the title,” Ivanisevic said. “He has the pressure. He is the defending champion, not me.”

If Ivanisevic wins, it may even boost his popularity in Yugoslavia, where Monica Seles is more highly regarded.

“I don’t know after this who is gonna be more popular,” he said.