Martin Defeats Sampras In Queen's Club Final

LONDON -- Todd Martin said his victory over Pete Sampras in the Queen's Club final did not change a thing. When Wimbledon begins Monday, his fellow Floridian and occasional golf partner will still be the player he most wants to avoid in the draw. "He's still the man to beat at Wimbledon," Martin said after his 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (7-4) victory Sunday. "Just because he's lost one or two matches, it doesn't mean he's no longer the best player." In fact, Sampras' grass-court preparations have gone better than last year, when he lost his first match at Queen's before going on to win his first Wimbledon crown."This was a good week in general, and I got the match practice I wanted," the world's top-ranked player said, "but there's still room for improvement. I'm a bit disappointed," over losing the final, "but I'll get over it." The fans who packed the prestigious West End venue for the match will no doubt get over it even quicker. The final was a dull affair, typical of the recent grass-court trend of two big servers banging out aces and service winners on the way to the inevitable tiebreaker. Sampras held only one break point in the match, Martin just two. Martin hit 15 aces to Sampras' 14. It all came down to a couple of points in each tiebreaker. In Eastbourne, England, former world No. 1 Tracy Austin, returning to the scene of her 1983 injury, was ousted in Monday's first round of the Eastbourne grass-court tournament. Austin, attempting a comeback at the age of 31, was eliminated 6-3, 6-4 by 73rd-ranked Kristine Radford of Australia. Austin was not the only big name to lose on the first day of the Wimbledon warmup event. Grass-court specialist Brenda Schultz, the 12th seed, was upset 6-2, 6-0 by Gigi Fernandez, and ninth-seeded Amy Frazier of the United States was beaten 6-3, 6-3 by Australian qualifier Danielle Jones.