Agassi scores easy win in warmup event

Agencies, Washington D.C.

Five-time champion Andre Agassi, the number one seed, advanced to the third round of the Legg Mason Classic with a 6-2 6-2 win over Israel's Noam Okun here on Tuesday.

"I didn't know too much about Okun, so it takes a little while to get the rhythm going," Agassi said. "I returned really well and he missed quite a few first serves which gave me a lot of opportunities on his second serve."

Agassi, who won the tournament in 1990, 1991, 1995, 1998 and 1999 and was runner-up to Spain's Alex Corretja in 2000, has used it as his traditional warm-up for the U.S. Open, which begins on Aug. 26.

"This tournament is a tournament I choose to prepare (for the U.S. Open) and there is nothing quite like winning to prepare, as I have done in the past here."

Third seed Sjeng Schalken, who lost last year's final to Andy Roddick, advanced to the third round with a 7-6 6-1 win over French veteran Cedric Pioline.

Roddick, the second seed, will see his first action on Wednesday.

In Indiana, Tommy Haas ignored the pain to emerge a 7-6 (11/9), 6-3 second-round winner over Sweden's Magnus Norman on a rain-delayed day at the 800,000-dollar ATP event here on Tuesday.

The German third seed said the right shoulder pain, which has bothered him for months, is now spreading to his elbow. He feels it after every shot.

Haas not only has to worry about his fitness but also about the recovery of his parents who were involved in a serious motorcycle crash in June in Florida.

Haas missed Wimbledon to spend time with them in the hospital. They are now being treated in Gemany.

"I thought the time off would help, I was supposed to relax for two weeks," Haas said of his time at his Florida home. "But it's tough for me to stay away from the court.

"I maybe didn't rest as much as I could. I've got to get another MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) scan on the shoulder. It will be my fourth in the last few weeks.

"I'm sick and tired of them. There's no tear, but there is some fluid in the tendon. I'm trying to work through this."

He added: "Some days are good, some are bad. This is starting to be a pain. I need a break and I also need the matches. I want to prepare as well as I can for the US Open."

It was a day of rain delays which totalled three hours, 17 minutes.

More bad weather is forecast for Wednesday, but officials are hoping to squeeze in all 14 matches on the programme, when four of the top five players in the world are on court.

In other matches on Tuesday, France's Sebastien Grosjean, the No. 6 seed, beat Sargis Sargsian, of Armenia, 3-6, 6-3, 6-3 in a second round match.

Frenchman Arnaud Clement advanced to the second round with a 6-4, 7-5 win over Sweden's Jonas Bjorkman.

Tenth seed Max 'The Beast' Mirnyi of Belarus eliminated France's Paul-Henri Mathieu 6-2, 7-5, but 331st-ranked French veteran Lionel Roux, playing only his second match of the year at the ATP level, beat Spain's Felciano Lopez 7-5, 5-7, 6-3 Chile's Nicolas Massu ousted unknown American Rajeev Ram 6-3, 6-3.

Swiss Davis Cup player Ivo Heuberger lost his luggage and then lost his match to Spain's Felix Mantilla 7-5, 6-1.