INDY'S WEEKLY ALTERNATIVE NEWSPAPER HIGHLIGHTING ARTS, ENTERTAINMENT AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

So what if Agassi is gone?

The RCA Tennis Championships are well underway and there’s lots of quality action to be found in the days leading up to the finals this Sunday. So what if Andre Agassi had to pull out due to a hip injury? There is superstar quality tennis happening every day.

Just who will battle it out for the semifinals still remains to be seen, but at press time, our guess is that we’ll see Sebastien Grosjean (France) and defending RCA champion Andy Roddick (third in the ATP race) play for a finals spot on the left-hand side of the draw.

Grosjean, currently ranked 10th in the ATP race, made it to the semifinals at Wimbledon this year with his armory of tricky shots and there’s no doubt he’ll pull them out here. On the way to the top, it’s likely that in the round of 16 Roddick could meet Greg Rusedski (Great Britain) and his 145 mph serve, too.

Another likely round of 16 pairing would be Americans Taylor Dent vs. Mardy Fish. But look out for Max Mirnyi (Belarus), a.k.a. “The Beast.” At 6-foot-5 you can’t ignore him or the big roar he expels during his serve.

Ivo Karlovic (Croatia) is another player to watch who will most likely crawl his way up to the top, too. He’s a whopping 6-foot-10 and has a huge serve that managed to send him into the semifinals of his first Wimbledon years ago.

Karlovic attained tennis fame by his victory over the Wimbledon defending champ Leyton Hewitt. Roger Federer (Switerland) barely beat Karlovic at Wimbledon this year in round 16. The score was 3-7, 6-7, 6-7. Of course Federer went on to win Wimbledon and is the No. 1 ATP player.

An Indianapolis crowd favorite and last year’s RCA finalist, Paradorn Srichaphan (Thailand) is sure to move his way up as well.

Visit www.rcatennis.com to get daily draws and to get the latest results. Call 632-4100 for ticket information.