Stage Has Been Set for Sampras-Agassi Final

Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras each survived a grueling semifinal match Saturday to advance to the finals of the Sybase Open at San Jose.

Top-seeded Sampras survived a rough second set to defeat John van Lottum of the Netherlands, 6-3, 2-6, 6-2.

Agassi, meanwhile, dueled second-seeded Michael Chang for 1:37, beating the No. 7-ranked player in the world, 6-4, 7-6 (7-4).

Agassi, ranked No. 71, was facing set point in the second set twice before coming back to force a tiebreaker.

The last time Agassi reached an ATP final was in Cincinnati the summer of 1996, when he beat Chang for the title.

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Felix Mantilla overcame a leg cramp and Wayne Ferriera to earn a place in the Dubai Open final in the United Arab Emirates against fellow Spaniard Alex Corretja.

Mantilla, seeded sixth, was screaming in pain and limping halfway through the third set. Reduced to serving underarm at one stage, it appeared that Mantilla would have to quit, but, pushed on by a sympathetic crowd, he won his match, 7-6 (12-10), 4-6, 6-4, in 2 hours 20 minutes.

Corretja upset top-seeded Jonas Bjorkman, 6-3, 6-3.

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Top-seeded Richard Krajicek of the Netherlands and Marc Rosset of Switzerland advanced to the final of the St. Petersburg Open in Russia with straight-set semifinal victories.

Krajicek beat fifth-seeded Thomas Johansson of Sweden, 6-4, 6-4. Rosset beat second-seeded Cedric Pioline of France, 6-1, 6-4.

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Despite a shoulder injury and occasionally erratic serving, third-seeded Mary Pierce beat No. 1 Jana Novotna 6-4, 2-6, 6-3 in a semifinal of the Paris Open.

Pierce will face Belgium’s Dominique Van Roost, the sixth-seeded player, in today’s final. Van Roost defeated No. 4 Nathalie Tauziat 7-6 (7-4), 1-6, 6-1.

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A straight-sets doubles victory in Halifax, Nova Scotia has Canada one match away from its first Davis Cup victory over Mexico in 45 years.

Daniel Nestor and Sebastien Lareau took fewer than 90 minutes to record a 6-1, 6-2, 6-4 victory over David Roditi and Alejandro Hernandez.

Pro Football

Jim Harbaugh and Ted Marchibroda, who just missed going to the Super Bowl together, were reunited Saturday when the quarterback was dealt from the Indianapolis Colts to the Baltimore Ravens where Marchibroda is now the head coach.

In exchange for the 34-year-old Harbaugh, the Colts received Baltimore’s third-round choice in April’s draft. The two teams also exchanged their fourth-round picks.

Retired quarterback Jim Kelly has decided to spend more time with his ailing son rather than return to the NFL with the Baltimore Ravens. . . . Pittsburgh Steeler wide receiver Yancey Thigpen signed a $21-million, five-year contract with the Tennessee Oilers, becoming the highest-paid receiver in NFL history. . . . The Jacksonville Jaguars are close to signing Buffalo Bill linebacker Bryce Paup to a $22-million, five-year contract, The Florida Times-Union reported.

Allen Aldridge, who started at middle linebacker in the Super Bowl for the Denver Broncos, signed with the Detroit Lions as the replacement for Reggie Brown, who suffered a career-ending neck injury in the final game of the regular season against the New York Jets. Arizona Cardinal wide receiver/kick returner Kevin Williams signed with the Buffalo Bills and will reportedly receive a three-year contract worth $3 million. . . . Linebacker Winfred Tubbs, who set a New Orleans Saints record for tackles last season, agreed to a five-year contract with the San Francisco 49ers worth a reported $14.25 million.

Names in the News

Donovan Bailey will quit track and field after the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, he was quoted as saying in New Zealand’s Sunday Star-Times. Bailey, 30, won gold in the 100 meters at the 1996 Olympics in a world-record 9.84 seconds.

Jeremy McGrath won his third consecutive RCA Dome Supercross Series race with a triumph in the 250cc class before 52,784 at Indianapolis. McGrath also set a series record with his 64th victory.

Vala Flosadottir of Iceland broke the hours-old women’s world indoor pole vault record by a half-inch, clearing 14 feet 6 3/4 inches during an international track and field meet at Eskilstuna, Sweden.

Flosadottir bettered the record of 14-6 1/4 set by Daniela Bartova of the Czech Republic at Prague earlier Saturday.