Ilie downs Koubek to make semis

Ilie downs Koubek to make semis
Reuters

ATLANTA (GEORGIA), APRIL 15: Eighth-seeded Andrew Ilie upset sore-footed Stefan Koubek, the defending champion, 7-6 (7-3), 6-4 and fourth-seeded Michael Chang beat No. 5 Chris Woodruff 7-6 (7-4), 6-1 on Friday to reach the semifinals of the Atlanta Tennis Challenge.

No. 7 Jeff Tarango and Jason Stoltenberg also won quarterfinals.

Ilie, ranked 68th, will be playing in his first semifinal of the year. He saved two break points at 5-5, then wasn't broken again as Koubek struggled to get around with a ruptured blister on his left foot.

``Koubek's not the type of player that you can just rally with,'' Ilie said. ``Today, I knew that whoever takes the reigns of the match was going to win. I like taking control of the match so I can either win it or lose it.''

Koubek, seeded No. 2 and ranked No. 22, said he was playing at just 30 or 40 per cent health.

``I couldn't move today at all, and I live for my legs,'' said Koubek, who won here last year as a qualifier for his first ATP tour title. ``I tried to come up with some good shots and fight. I know against a guy like Ilie you can win because he can have not his best day, but today he was playing pretty good.''

Chang, the Atlanta champion in 1994 and '95, reached the semifinals here for the first time since 1996, when he lost to eventual champion Karim Alami. Chang is playing in his first semifinal since his season opener in Adelaide. He hasn't won a tournament since Shanghai in August of 1998.

Chang, seeded fourth, simply made far fewer errors than Woodruff.

``The biggest difference between he and I is that he gives away far fewer free points,'' Woodruff said.

Chang has cut down on his work in the weight room the past year and focused on speed drills to help his movement in hopes of regain his top-five form of 1997.

``Movement is such a vital part of my game, and I think I realised I had lost a step or two from a couple of years ago,'' Chang said. ``I got to a couple of balls that a couple of years ago I might not get.''

Stoltenberg, unseeded, beat Nicolas Massu 6-1, 6-2. Forstoltenberg, who injured his right knee in January, this is his first tournament since the Australian Open.

Tarango, the seventh seed, beat Jiri Vanek 7-6 (7-3), 6-2. It was Vanek who benefited from Andre Agassi's retirement Thursday night as Agassi pulled up lame with a hamstring injury with Vanek leading 6-4.