Top seed Chang makes hard work of Joyce
Top seed and defending champion Michael Chang has had another tough battle at the US$675,000 (HK$5.26 million) Legg Mason Tennis Classic.
He was taken to three sets in the third round by Michael Joyce, ranked 163rd in the world.
Chang, who is ranked second in the world, ultimately prevailed 4-6 6-1 6-2.
He had come back from two service breaks in the third set on Tuesday to get past Mexican qualifier Luis Herrera.
All along, Chang has been saying there is 'great depth in tennis these days and no one can be taken lightly'.
Chang, who now has won 25 of 28 matches on hard courts in 1997, said there was no particular aspect of his game which bothered him, despite his making hard work of lowly opposition.
'Everything can be better and solidified. My complete game is not there yet, but I am competing well,' he said.
The key to his victory over Joyce was his serve. He cracked 15 aces.
'It helped me out quite a bit, getting some free points, particularly against a player who returns well like Joyce does,' said Chang.
