Australian Patrick Rafter fought off 10 break points in the third set Friday and upset top-ranked Pete Sampras 7-6 (8-6), 6-7 (7-3), 7-6 (7-5) to reach the semifinals of the U.S. Hardcourts.
Rafter, ranked 139th in the world, took just under three hours to oust the two-time defending champion.Rafter, 20, saved eight break points in the seventh game of the final set after losing the first three points of the game. He saved two more break points in the ninth game en route to forcing the third tiebreaker of the match.
The stunning upset by Rafter, who brought a match record of only 3-6 into his 11th tour event, is likely to cost Sampras the No. 1 ranking and the top-seeding in next month's U.S. Open. Second-seeded Jim Courier, who lost the top ranking to Sampras on April 12, could reclaim the No. 1 position by winning a late match against No. 7 Cedrick Pioline of France.
Rafter will face the winner of a match between third-seeded Boris Becker and No. 11 Richey Reneberg in one of Saturday's semifinals at the Indianapolis Tennis Center.
In New Haven, Conn., Petr Korda beat the rain and Stefano Pescosolido 6-3, 6-3 Friday to advance to the Volvo International semifinals.
Rain forced suspension of the Ivan Lendl-Andre Agassi match until Saturday.