MASON, Ohio (AP) Lleyton Hewitt has come a long way in a week.

The world's No. 1 player lost in the first round at the Masters Series event in Toronto, Hewitt's first hardcourt match of the summer.

But he's marching through the $2.95 million Cincinnati Masters Series like he's ready to defend his U.S. Open title right now.

Hewitt eliminated sixth-seeded Andre Agassi 7-5, 6-3 Friday night to advance to the semifinals. He will play Fernando Gonzalez, who beat 12th-seeded Andy Roddick 7-6 (4), 7-6 (6).

Eighth-seeded Juan Carlos Ferrero beat Wayne Arthurs 6-4, 7-6 (2), and No. 16 Carlos Moya beat Rainer Schuettler 7-6 (3), 6-1 to set up the other semifinal.

Hewitt and Agassi slugged it out from the baseline, providing some brilliant and some spotty tennis in a match that lasted 1 hour, 41 minutes. Both players had more unforced errors than winners.

"He made some errors early, and I knew that would change," Agassi said.

Agassi hit 16 winners, committed 30 unforced errors and failed to hold serve five times; Hewitt had 28 winners, committed 29 unforced errors and failed to hold twice, both times in the first set.

"It was a long first set, and it was a grinding one," Hewitt said. "He had the advantage at the start, then I was able to peg back the momentum.

"Second set he came out and served great the first few times. From there on, it felt like I was in each one of his service games. It was very important just for me to hang in my service games. I felt I was going to get an opportunity sooner or later to try and break his."

Agassi staved off four break points to hold serve in the fifth game of the second set, but had little left for the seventh and ninth games, when Hewitt broke him again.

"If you're going to beat the best players in the world, you have to play your best tennis," Agassi said. "He outplayed me today.

"Once I started pressing a little bit, he just kind of settled in and started using his legs. He played a smart match."

Hewitt holds a 4-2 career edge over Agassi. The last time they met, in March, they battled just three minutes shy of 3 hours in the finals of a tournament in San Jose, Calif.

Hewitt won that one by saving two match points and winning the second and third sets in tiebreakers. He wasn't pressed that hard on Friday.

"So little separates so many players," Agassi said. "There were a lot of close games that had it gone one way or the other, it could have been basically a blowout either way."

Hewitt, 21, is the reigning U.S. Open and Wimbledon champion, but Agassi, 32, is the only active player to have won all four Grand Slams.

Each has won four titles this year - Hewitt at Wimbledon, Indian Wells, Queen's Club and San Jose, and Agassi at Miami, Rome, Scottsdale and Los Angeles.

Agassi has been selective in his tournament appearances this year. He has reached at least the quarterfinals in eight of 10 tournaments, but also has been fined $40,000 for not playing in Hamburg, and $80,000 last week for pulling out of Masters Series Toronto on the eve of the tournament.

Hewitt faces a fine equal to half his winnings this week for failing to fulfill an ATP requirement for an interview with the host broadcaster, ESPN.

Moya, who has reached his seventh semifinal of the year, hasn't lost a set through four matches here.

Ferrero won the Masters Series Monte Carlo in April and was runner-up a month later in the French Open - both on clay - but he is only 9-6 on hardcourts. Four of those victories have been this week.

The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast or redistributed without prior written authority of The Associated Press.