Hewitt Stunned by Gambill

The clouded future of American men’s tennis looked slightly more promising after Day 2 at the All England Club.

Whether it’s more than a fleeting moment, of course, will be determined later this fortnight. Still, the biggest upset so far at Wimbledon came Tuesday from 23-year-old Jan-Michael Gambill of Spokane, Wash. Gambill, ranked 56th, took out seventh-seeded Lleyton Hewitt of Australia, 6-3, 6-2, 7-5, using a blend of power and poise.

Hewitt, viewed by local oddsmakers as the second favorite behind six-time champion Pete Sampras, was unusually flat. His forehand deserted him the first two sets, and by the third, his backhand was slamming into the middle of the net.

“The next step is to make it through to the Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, the second week in the slams,” said Hewitt, who has won four titles in 2000, including a Queen’s Club championship recently against Sampras in the final.

Said Gambill: “It’s about time I really come out and continue to play well. I need to come out and play a lot more matches like this.”

Another promising youngster, 19-year-old Taylor Dent of Newport Beach, pressed second-seeded Andre Agassi for a set and a half before retiring in the fourth set because of an injured right knee.

Dent, a qualifier ranked 256th and making his Wimbledon debut, received treatment for the knee when he was trailing, 5-0, in the third set. Agassi was leading, 2-6, 6-3, 6-0, 4-0, when Dent defaulted. Tournament officials said he may have a torn patella tendon.

Dent impressed Agassi.

“I made him play to hold serve every game,” he said. “He was hitting some good, deep volleys and not even letting me get a good look at a pass. I felt very good about the way I started. I just had to stay with it, keep making him play and eventually he would start breaking down on his volleys.”

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Carlos Moya is ahead of some of his Spanish comrades--he has actually won three matches at Wimbledon. Win No. 4 will have to wait, as he lost to Rainer Schuttler of Germany, 6-3, 6-7 (5), 6-3, 6-2.

The struggling Moya said he supported Alex Corretja and Albert Costa in their boycott of Wimbledon and then took a shot at Sampras, who called the move “childish.”

Said Moya: “Maybe they should do it the same as the French Open. Some of the players who are seeded here, they should play [qualifying] there. Maybe in Santander [at Davis Cup], they can shut their mouth.”

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Wimbledon at a Glance

Tuesday, the second day of the Wimbledon Championships:

* Weather: Sunny. High temperature of 72.

* Attendance: 38,884. Last year on the second day it was 39,254.

* Stat of the Day: Gustavo Kuerten hit 29 aces.

* Quote of the Day: “I love the tournament. I love the surroundings. I love the court. There’s an aura about it that you feel from the moment you walk into the grounds. It just unfortunately doesn’t suit my game.” --Monica Seles

TODAY’S FEATURED MATCHES

MEN

* Pete Sampras (1), United States, vs. Karol Kucera, Slovakia

* Magnus Norman (3), Sweden, vs. Olivier Rochus, Belgium

* Vladimir Voltchkov, Belarus, vs. Cedric Pioline (6), France

* Thomas Enqvist (9), Sweden, vs. Francisco Clavet, Spain

WOMEN

* Martina Hingis (1), Switzerland, vs. Yi Jing-Qian, China

* Conchita Martinez (4), Spain, vs. Sonya Jeyaseelan, Canada

* Ai Sugiyama, Japan, vs. Venus Williams (5), United States

* Yvette Basting, Netherlands, vs. Serena Williams (8), United States