Lleyton Hewitt chums up to Australian boxing champ, and Marat Safin voted the most beautiful man. Hewitt takes Heart from Boxing Champ As the battle for No.1 supremacy escalated on Wednesday night at the Tennis Masters Cup, Australian boxer Kostya Tszyu helped inspire countryman LLEYTON HEWITT to a straight sets KO over ANDRE AGASSI. Tszyu, who unified the junior welterweight boxing belts on Nov. 3 with his second round knockout of Zab Judah, watched his third consecutive night of action at the Sydney SuperDome, and then met up with Hewitt afterwards. "It's always a thrill to meet elite athletes of other sports," Hewitt said. "To see an underdog like Kostya pull off a big upset helps give me motivation. I don't think I'd want a shot at his title though." Hewitt is well known for his love of Rocky movies and his ritual of listening to the soundtrack prior to matches.

Safin the Beautiful MARAT SAFIN may have missed out on Tennis Masters Cup qualification this year, but at least the mighty Russian can console himself with the fact that he is considered the world's most beautiful man, at least for this month. Hot on the heels of Andy Roddick's award in September, Safin received 3,715 votes from fans of the web-site www.mostbeautifulman.com to become 'Mr November'. One of the voters, Sybil, wrote: "He has a great blend of athletic talent, good looks, and charisma. Whenever you see him play, you just can't take your eyes off him." Rave Reviews Just as the new Tennis Masters Series computer game - the Battleground of Champions - hits stores in the United States today (Thursday 15 November), critics have given it rave reviews. Game experts www.ign.com wrote: "Many of the game's subtle animations will almost convince you that you're watching a real tennis match on TV. Players stretch, dive, reach for the ball, pump their fist in celebration following a good play, and shake their heads in disappointment after a bad shot." The game is on sale now in France (299FF), the United Kingdom (£30), and the United States ($49.99).

Tournament Tales IN SYDNEY LLEYTON HEWITT'S victory over ANDRE AGASSI in the round-robin stages of the Tennis Masters Cup on Wednesday attracted the highest number of people at a tennis match in Sydney since the Davis Cup final in 1954. More than 11,500 people watched the Australian defeat the American at the Sydney SuperDome. WEDDING BELLS Slovak KAROL KUCERA, who reached a career high No.8 in the world at the end of 1998, will marry his fiancée Katarina Jurcovicova at a wedding in Bratislava on Saturday 17 November.

Giving Back A few tennis players would probably pay to get out of the way of ANDY RODDICK'S huge first serves, but recently, Roddick's been handing money of his own over for people with the guts to face it. Richard Pagliaro of Tennis Week reports that the 19-year-old Boca Raton resident donated $3,000 to Montgomery County Family YMCA's Carder Indoor Tennis Center in Red Oak, Iowa after he challenged the crowd at a dedication ceremony, to return his serve. Three members of the local high school tennis team took up the challenge, and Roddick was good to his word. He helped raise over 7,000 dollars in total for the center, which is located an hour southeast of Omaha, Nebraska where Roddick was born. Roddick will offer a few more of his deliveries for auction when he hosts his first charity event weekend beginning Friday, December 21st at the Palm-Aire Country Club in Pompano Beach, Florida. All proceeds will benefit the SEK Boca Preparatory Athletic Scholarship Fund as well as the Back To Basics Angel Fund in Palm Beach County.

Questions Please Got a question about the ATP? Let us know and we'll try to get an answer. Q: Can Gustavo Kuerten still finish number one now that he's lost his first two round-robin matches at the Tennis masters Cup? A: Yes. He still holds an eight-point lead over Lleyton Hewitt in the ATP Champions Race, and there are still 20 points available to Kuerten if he can beat Yevgeny Kafelnikov on Friday. If Kuerten loses to Kafelnikov, Hewitt just needs to beat Patrick Rafter to guarantee the number one spot. If Guga defeats the Russian, Hewitt will need to reach the final to pass the Brazilian.

Say What... "I've got a feeling one of them's still up in the garage." - Lleyton Hewitt's response to being asked when he took down the posters of Andre Agassi that he'd had on his wall as a kid. Hewitt had just beaten the American 6-3, 6-4 at the Tennis Masters Cup in Sydney. "Rankings don't lie. It is a long year. (If) You finish number one, you've earned it." - Andre Agassi explains why the ATP Champions Race winner is the rightful No.1 player in the world. "I busted my arse to get here all yearÖI'm not going to make it easy for Lleyton." - Patrick Rafter explains why, even though he's out of the running for the Tennis Masters Cup semifinals after losing his first two matches, he will give everything against Hewitt in his last match on Friday.

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