TENNIS / AUSTRALIAN OPEN : Edberg Needs Four Sets, Graf Needs Only One

Stefan Edberg teetered on the edge of an upset today at the Australian Open, coming back from a third-set drubbing and seven break points in the fourth against Israel’s Amos Mansdorf to reach the round of 16.

The second-seeded Edberg, boosted by the constant chanting of Swedish fans, had to dig himself out of trouble repeatedly in the fourth set before winning, 6-3, 6-1, 1-6, 7-6 (7-5).

A two-time Australian winner and runner-up two of the last three years, Edberg succumbed to Mansdorf’s passing shots in the third set and had problems on his serves. He was called for more than half a dozen foot-faults, three in the final set.

In the third and ninth games of the fourth set, Edberg fell behind, 0-40, but each time clawed back to hold service. Mansdorf also held throughout the set, but fell behind, 2-1, on his serve in the tiebreaker on an overhead by Edberg.

Edberg grimaced after the shot, as if he had irritated the abdominal muscle that has bothered him in the past and forced the Swede to quit in the fourth set of the 1990 final here against Ivan Lendl.

Playing in 108-degree heat this time, Edberg wasted his advantage while serving at 5-3 in the tiebreaker. He was called for a foot-fault on his first serve, then hit a backhand in the net. But a backhand barely wide by Mansdorf on his serve gave Edberg match-point at 6-5. He didn’t blow this chance, serving deep to Mansdorf’s backhand and watching the return float long.

In an odd twist, Claudia Porwik retired with a sprained ankle in mid-match against women’s No. 2 Steffi Graf, just as Gabriela Sabatini did against Porwik in the same round on the same court three years ago.

Graf raced through the first set, 6-1, in 18 minutes against her fellow German. Then, with Porwik serving at 15-15 in the first game of the second set, Graf drove a backhand cross-court wide. As Porwik chased the ball, she turned her right ankle and limped to the sideline.

A trainer iced Porwik’s ankle, wrapped it in a bandage, and Porwik tried to play again. Three points later, when she watched helplessly as a forehand cross-court winner by Graf sped by to make it 40-40, Porwik shook her head, went to the net and told Graf she had to quit.

“Because I did it a couple of times before, I knew I couldn’t go on,” Porwik said. “I couldn’t stand on it. I couldn’t serve right, run on it or step on it.”

“I definitely feel bad for her,” Graf said. “That’s why it’s not very satisfying. I would have liked to play a long match, not just keep practicing.”

In other women’s third-round matches, fourth-seeded Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario defeated Radka Zrubakova, 6-1, 6-3; No. 7 Jennifer Capriati defeated Natalia Zvereva, 7-5, 7-5; No. 9 Manuela Maleeva-Fragniere beat Ginger Helgeson, 6-2, 3-6, 6-4; No. 11 Anke Huber defeated Ines Gorrochategui, 6-2, 7-5; and No. 15 Magdalena Maleeva beat Meike Babel, 6-3, 6-2. On the men’s side, Arnaud Boetsch defeated No. 16 Alexander Volkov, 6-4, 6-4, 6-2.