Young Americans point toward future

FLUSHING MEADOWS, N.Y. - The hand-wringing over the present and future of American tennis began well before Andy Roddick tumbled from the top 10 for a brief spell following his third-round ouster at Washington's Legg Mason Tennis Classic last month.

Although the United States is far from reclaiming the perch it enjoyed atop the sport in the 1970s, '80s and '90s, Wednesday's proceedings at the U.S. Open offered a ray of hope.

It was found on the sun-baked concrete of relatively obscure Court 11, where 15th-seeded Ivan Ljubicic of Croatia, who reached No. 3 in the world just a few years ago, was felled by an 18-year-old qualifier from Shreveport, La., named Ryan Harrison.

With the 6-3, 6-7 (7-4), 6-3, 6-4 victory, Harrison became the first American teenage male to beat a top-20 player at a Grand Slam event since Roddick did so at 19 during the 2001 U.S. Open.

Harrison did it with a smart variety of shot-making - including a clutch reflex volley off his shoe-top for a winner - and impressive poise under difficult conditions, refusing to come unglued after dropping the second-set tiebreak.

While Ljubicic fingered the sweltering heat as his biggest enemy, he didn't hesitate to acknowledge the superior play of the young American. "He's definitely a good, good player," Ljubicic said.

American Sam Querrey, 22, who has practiced with Harrison a good bit over the past three years, said the teenager's strongest asset is his sheer desire to be better. The 20th-seeded Querrey also advanced Wednesday, defeating NCAA champion Bradley Klahn, a Stanford undergraduate who also showed impressive potential, by a 6-3, 4-6, 7-5, 6-4 score.

That sort of hunger is exactly the quality that many believe has been lacking in young American hopefuls yet is so prevalent among many of the Eastern Europeans and South Americans who have surged in the rankings over the past decade.

Asked how he felt about potentially being the next American tennis star, Harrison pounced on the question as if it were a weak second serve.

"Absolutely!" said Harrison, ranked 220th in the world. "I want to be that guy. I have a ways to go. . . . but I'm definitely working as hard as I can. I'm really putting all the work in. I'm trying to stay open-minded with everyone who is giving me their opinion and really trying to listen as much as possible and take in as much advice as I can."

Roddick, he said, has given him the best advice over the past three years - sharing his own experiences as a junior player, sharing insights about upcoming opponents and making specific suggestions about adjustments to his strokes.

"Andy has always been great about making sure that I keep working hard," said Harrison, who was home-schooled since sixth grade so he could devote more time to his dream of becoming a tennis pro.

l AU TO HOST BENEFIT: American University's Bender Arena will host some of the sport's all-time greats on Nov. 15, when Billie Jean King and pop star Elton John bring their annual WTT Smash Hits charity event to Washington.

The exhibition will feature Andre Agassi, Steffi Graf, Anna Kournikova and James Blake, who will square off in a World TeamTennis-style match coached by King and John.

The event will benefit the Elton John AIDS Foundation and the Washington AIDS Partnership. Tickets start at $40 and go on sale Tuesday, available through the American University online box office at www.aueagles.com/tickets or www.WTT.com/SmashHits.