| | Results
MELBOURNE, Australia -- The party is over for Morocco's Hicham Arazi.
|  | | Andre Agassi is one win from his fourth straight Grand Slam final. |
After making a stunning run at the Australian Open, Arazi was humbled on Tuesday in the quarterfinals, losing 6-4, 6-4, 6-2 to No. 1-seeded Andre Agassi.
Agassi is one win from his fourth straight Grand Slam final.
Standing in Agassi's way is Pete Sampras, who was broken once, but otherwise looked sharp in beating
American Chris Woodruff 7-5, 6-3, 6-3.
"It took a week and a half, but it came together tonight,"
said Sampras, who is one Grand Slam title away from beating Roy
Emerson's record of 12.
Sampras beat Agassi in their Wimbledon final last year in a match that
Agassi said showed Sampras at his best. In each match they play,
Agassi said, the tension rises higher than it does against other
opponents.
"With Pete, there's a certain respect that makes you focus even
more, respect for all he's accomplished," Agassi said. "With
respect, comes a level of anticipation and energy."
Against Sampras, Woodruff broke serve in the third game of the first set but lost
his serve in the fifth game. The two players remained on serve
until Sampras secured the vital break in the 11th game.
Sampras broke Woodruff once in the second set and twice in the third, closing out
the win in one hour, 50 minutes. Both players won more
than 75 percent of their first-service points and had more
winners than unforced errors.
"I just felt like I could take a pretty good cut
at it and the conditions were cooler," said Sampras, who received treatment on court of an
upset stomach.
Sampras bombed 14 aces with only one double fault, hit 43
winners and 20 double faults.
"Andre and I have played so many times and it's so close,"
Sampras said. "He is playing great. He has pretty much breezed
through this tournament so far. I feel like my form is getting
better but he's won big matches against me."
Playing in his first Grand Slam quarterfinal, Woodruff had 12
aces, 30 winners, and 17 unforced errors. However, he won only
38 percent of his second-service points.
Agassi
was always in control of his match, faltering only in the second
set when Arazi -- one of two Moroccans to reach the
quarterfinals -- gained a service break. But the American broke
right back and eventually closed out the victory in 93 minutes.
"I think he's a bit flashier of a player than I am and he's more
of a shot maker in certain respects," Agassi said. "My game was
pretty straight forward out there today. I was just getting a
good look at the ball and I was taking a big cut at it."
Agassi won 84 percent of his first serves, hit six aces with just one double fault, and broke serve five
times. He is seeking his second title in Melbourne and sixth
Grand Slam title. Last year, Agassi won last year's French and
U.S. Opens and was runner-up at Wimbledon, where he lost to
Sampras.
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