Curren, a native of South Africa now living in Austin, Tex., beat the world's fifth-ranked player, 7-5, 6-4, serving nine aces and numerous service winners.

He was in constant demand throughout his career as a professional partner and teammate, and at his death was the fifth-ranked American player in career master points.

Wilander, the world's fifth-ranked player, was defeated, 6-2, 6-4, in 64 minutes by the South African-born American, Kevin Curren.

But both infirmities were minor and didn't have an impact on the outcome of this first-ever meeting between the world's third- and fifth-ranked players.

The world's fifth-ranked player and this year's Australian Open champion was seeded fifth for the clay-court tournament.

He was the fifth-ranked Dutch player in 1928, third in 1930 and second in 1932.

Gomez, the French Open champion and the fifth-ranked player in the world, rallied after losing the first set to win six games in a row and even the match.

Sabatini, at 17 the world's fifth-ranked player, reached the final for the second year in a row.

A more common reaction, however, came from the current fifth-ranked player, Azinger, who asked, "Can anybody explain the Sony Rankings?"

Nonetheless, Dokic, the world's fifth-ranked player, is not ready to surrender to the Williams sisters.