Sept. 1 (Bloomberg) -- Marcos Baghdatis, 15 years younger than Andre Agassi, didn't have the legs to send the eight-time Grand Slam tennis champion into retirement.

The 21-year-old eighth seed from the Mediterranean island of Cyprus pushed Agassi to five sets before losing in the second round of the U.S. Open in New York last night.

Baghdatis rallied from two sets down then suffered leg cramps late in his 4-6, 4-6, 6-3, 7-5, 5-7 loss. He said they were brought on by the pressure of facing Agassi, a player he admired growing up and watched win Wimbledon 14 years ago.

``It's the first time it happened to me,'' Baghdatis said in a news conference at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. ``It wasn't physical, it was about stress. You have to control yourself and Andre has more experience than me.''

Baghdatis said beforehand he expected to play the villain's role. Agassi had won 78 matches at the U.S. Open and two titles during his record 21 straight appearances. A fan favorite already, his decision to end his career at the U.S. Open had the sellout crowd of 23,712 screaming for him from the start.

A cheer went up when Baghdatis netted the opening serve and applause greeted Agassi's every point and successful replay challenge. Jeers accompanied any Baghdatis celebration.

``It was tough, really tough,'' Baghdatis said. ``But that's life. That's the way it is. He deserves what he has and having this crowd with him.''

Walking Away

While Agassi moves on -- next up is Germany's Benjamin Becker in the third round -- he said the duel with Baghdatis made him more confident than ever in his decision to retire.

``It's a guy like that who makes it easier to walk away from the game because you see what kind of hands it's in,'' Agassi said. ``He's a true professional with a lot of style, a lot of charisma and a lot of talent.''

Baghdatis is among a crop of emerging men's talent aged 21 or younger that includes Spain's Rafael Nadal, Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic and Britain's Andy Murray -- all ranked in the top 20.

Baghdatis this year climbed to eighth in the rankings from No. 55 by reaching the Australian Open final, where he lost to Roger Federer, and the Wimbledon semifinals, where Nadal beat him. He even had success before in New York, finishing as the runner-up in the U.S. Open boys' championship in 2002 and 2003.

Cramps

Last night, Baghdatis fought back from two sets down and overcame a 4-0 deficit in the fourth set, aided by 83 winners to 34 for Agassi. Any advantage in mobility was erased at 4-4 in the decisive fifth set as the cramps left him sprawled on the court in pain. Because he had received medical treatment earlier in the set, he was unable to call for assistance.

Baghdatis was forced to get back to his feet or lose the game after receiving a match-delay warning from the chair umpire. The game went to eight deuces before Agassi won. Three games later, Agassi broke Baghdatis's serve to end the match after three hours and 48 minutes.

``Playing Andre Agassi on center court in Arthur Ashe, I wanted to die on the court,'' Baghdatis said. ``I'm really disappointed, but you have to accept it. You have to look forward.''

To contact the reporter on this story: Erik Matuszewski at the National Tennis Center in New York at matuszewski@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: September 1, 2006 03:34 EDT