Agassi set to make 800 club

Andre Agassi will become only the sixth player in tennis history to reach 800 career wins if he defeats Alex Bogomolov tonight in the first round of the Mercedes-Benz Cup in Los Angeles.

It is top-seeded Agassi's first match since withdrawing from Wimbledon with a strained hip and he said: "Any match I play is a challenge and an opportunity to take a step forward." Should he win, Agassi will join Jimmy Connors, Ivan Lendl, Guillermo Vilas, John McEnroe and Stefan Edberg as the only players to win 800 times.

The first US hard-court event of the summer began with Denmark's Kenneth Carlsen defeating Australian Wayne Arthurs 7-6, 6-3.

Greg Rusedski, who faces American Taylor Dent tomorrow, should earn a place in the US Open draw next month after his weekend win in Rhode Island took him to 98th in the world rankings.