KEY BISCAYNE, Fla. -- Pete Sampras figures he deserves to play every match on center court at the Lipton Championships. Tournament officials figure otherwise.
Sampras was scheduled for the grandstand court -- and not the high-profile stadium court -- in today's fourth-round match against Albert Costa, and he was mad about it.Sampras, bidding to reclaim the No. 1 ranking this week from Carlos Moya, beat Jonas Bjorkman 7-5, 6-3. Unseeded Vince Spadea, the only other American left in the men's draw, swept Fabrice Santoro 6-3, 6-2.
Also advancing were Moya, No. 4 Alex Corretja, No. 7 Richard Krajicek and No. 8 Marcelo Rios. But it was a dismal day for the Aussies, with Patrick Rafter, Mark Philippoussis and Jason Stoltenberg eliminated.
Stoltenberg lost to Moya 6-7 (5-7), 6-1, 7-5. Philippoussis, seeded 10th, was eliminated by Marat Safin 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (7-3). No. 5 Rafter lost to Nicolas Kiefer 7-6 (7-5), 6-4.
On the women's side, top-ranked Martina Hingis beat Amy Frazier 6-1, 6-1. Lindsay Davenport, Steffi Graf and Monica Seles also won.