Greg Rusedski, who has been on back-watch all week, is poised to make his entry into the ATP World Championship this afternoon against Chile's Marcelo Rios. Andre Agassi pulled out in the second set of his match with Spain's Alex Corretja yesterday and immediately signalled his retreat from the £2.2 million end-of-season event.
"You have to respect the tournament and I don't want to go out there and stink it up," said Agassi. In truth this has rarely seemed to bother him before; his career has been littered with abject performances and spurious excuses. At least on this occasion the injury appears genuine.
He will leave it until this morning before making the final decision - "I guess I should give it every shot possible" - but the odds appear heavily in favour of Rusedski taking his place.
Agassi's injury happened when he was practising with Corretja on Monday, the 28-year-old American falling and jolting his back. "It was like you step into a hole without seeing it and then I fell which made things worse."
Rios, who also complained of back problems after his opening 75, 6-1 defeat by Henman, pronounced himself "pretty fit" yesterday and, as if to prove it, disappeared up the staircase to the players' lounge two steps at a time.
Small wonder that Pete Sampras, who clinched his place in the semi-finals with a 6-3, 6-3 victory over Spain's Carlos Moya, said afterwards that of all the leading players on the tour he has the least rapport with Rios. The polite description for the little ponytailed Chilean is "enigmatic"; many, to take Agassi's word, are more inclined to think Rios is apt to "stink it up".
Like Sampras, Henman will reach the last four today if he defeats Corretja in straight sets. The two have met only once before indoors, which was in last year's Paris Open, the Spaniard winning in straight sets.
Corretja, this year's beaten French Open finalist, won his first indoor tournament last month in Lyon and might well have troubled even an injury-free Agassi. Nevertheless he looked more than a little startled when, with the score 5-7, 6-3, 2-1 in the Spaniard's favour, Agassi rose from his seat, spoke to the umpire Rudi Berger and went over to shake Corretja's hand.
"I didn't realise he had a problem. The match was really tough and he was playing good tennis," said Corretja. Agassi, cowled in his sponsor's brown hooded jacket but fooling nobody that he was about to become a Trappist monk, spoke eloquently of anti-inflammatories, muscle relaxants and pain. Would he be surprised if he did not play today? "I'd be more surprised if I did."
