FRENCH OPEN Agassi spilled by Haehnel, who pondered retirement

The winner of eight titles lost to a qualifier playing his first tour-level match.
PARIS (AP) -- Now that he has beaten Andre Agassi, Jerome Haehnel figures he'll keep playing tennis. Might as well, because he's into the second round of the French Open.
At 23, Haehnel has contemplated retirement, but that was before he pulled off one of the biggest upsets in Grand Slam history Monday. A qualifier playing his first tour-level match beat the winner of eight major titles, 6-4, 7-6 (4), 6-3.
With no coach, a distaste for flying and a ranking of 271st, Haehnel came to Roland Garros on the verge of calling it a career.
"I've thought about it," the Frenchman said. With a smile he added, "Now maybe I will go on."
The question is how long the 34-year-old Agassi will go on, and whether he'll return for a 17th appearance at the French Open next year.
"Hard to say," the 1999 champion said. "I don't know. It's a year away, and that's a long time for me right now. The chances get less every year, that's for sure."
The oldest man in the tournament, Agassi looked it. He was lethargic and tentative, especially on the biggest points.
"I probably got what I deserved," he said.
Agassi's defeat was by far the biggest upset on the opening day, but there was other drama.
Other duels
Fellow American Vince Spadea overcame a 5-1 deficit in the fifth set and nine match points to beat Florent Serra. Ninth-seeded Tim Henman rallied from two sets down to defeat Cyril Saulnier. And Vladimir Voltchkov edged Radek Stepanek 11-9 in the fifth set.
On the women's side, Justine Henin-Hardenne returned from a six-week layoff and began her bid for a second successive French Open title by beating Sandrine Testud 6-4, 6-4.
The imposing Russian contingent started 6-0, including victories by No. 8 Nadia Petrova and No. 10 Vera Zvonareva. Also advancing were No. 3-seeded Amelie Mauresmo, France's best hope, and No. 5 Lindsay Davenport.
There were two seeded losers: No. 24 Jelena Dokic and No. 27 Elena Daniilidou.
Second-seeded Andy Roddick overcame an upset stomach to eliminate fellow American Todd Martin 7-6 (5), 6-4, 7-5. Roddick had lost in the opening round the past two years.
Other winners on the men's side included No. 3 Guillermo Coria and No. 5 Carlos Moya, the 1998 champion. Three seeded men were eliminated: No. 6 Agassi, No. 16 Fernando Gonzalez and No. 18 Mark Philippoussis.
Was seeking 800th
Agassi was bidding for his 800th match victory, but instead Haehnel improved to 1-0 lifetime. The Frenchman closed out his victory with his third ace, then walked impassively to the net to shake hands with Agassi, showing the same poise he displayed throughout the match.
Naehnel finally cracked a smile after Agassi left the court to a big ovation.
"He's my favorite player," Haehnel said. "I was trying not to be over-impressed."
With aging legs, Agassi sought to help his chances at Roland Garros by preserving his energy with limited preparation. So he arrived after playing just one clay-court match, a loss last week in Austria to Nenad Zimonjic, a qualifier ranked 339th.
That result gave Haehnel hope.
"I spoke with many friends, and they told me I can win against him," Haehnel said. "He lost one week ago against a guy like me, a simpleton. A bad guy, a bad player."
Haehnel turned pro in 1998. His success has been modest in part because he prefers tournaments near his home in eastern France.
"It's true. I hate traveling," he said. "When you have to go to the other end of the world, it's difficult."
So he sent Agassi packing instead.