CHAMPIONSHIP FORM REFRESHED AGASSI CAPTURES TITLE.

Byline: Matthew Kredell Staff Writer

Andre Agassi bowed and blew kisses to each side of the court, paying tribute to the fans in Los Angeles perhaps for the last time.

If he keeps playing - and feeling - like he did the past week at UCLA, the old man could have a few more outings left in him.

Maybe even a few more years.

Agassi jumped out to an early lead and came away with a 6-4, 7-5 victory Sunday over Gilles Muller of Luxembourg to win his fourth Mercedes-Benz Cup title. He joins Jimmy Connors, Roy Emerson and Frank Parker as four-time winners in Los Angeles.

``This is why you work so hard,'' said Agassi, who called it a dream week for him. ``These wins don't happen very often anymore.''

It is Agassi's 60th singles title, seventh on the all-time list, and his first since winning in Cincinnati last August.

Agassi wasted no time taking control of the match, breaking Muller in the first game. He lost just two service points in the first set, finishing it off with a backhand winner.

The second set was more difficult. As the set wore on, Muller started going for bigger shots and connecting on many of them. The 6-foot-5 left-hander had a set point on Agassi's serve in the 10th game, but Muller went for a forehand winner and hit it into the net. He hit another forehand service return into the net to give Agassi the game.

``When I had the chance for a set point, I got too anxious,'' Muller said. ``I started pushing the ball, and you can't do that against Agassi.''

In the next game, Muller led 40-0 on his serve, but Agassi came back to deuce and won the game when Muller hit a forehand wide. Agassi finished the match with a big serve down the middle, followed by a cross-court forehand smash.

``When he was serving at 5-all, 40-0, I hear some guy yell from the audience, 'Come on, you can still break!' '' Agassi said. ``I thought to myself, 'No, I doubt it.' But then I actually hit a decent return, and I went 'Da da da, you never know.' ... It's not quite the way you script it, but I was pretty happy to run off five straight points.''

Muller beat Agassi in their only previous meeting, last August in Washington. He says Agassi is one of his idols, claiming he almost cried when he was 9 and Agassi won his first Grand Slam at Wimbledon.

``Every time I play him,'' Muller said, ``it's a real pleasure for me, because I used to watch him on TV.''

Agassi has won only two events more often than he has the Mercedes-Benz Cup. Although it had been a while since his last tournament victory, he seemed to remember exactly how it goes.

When USTA president Franklin Johnson held out a white envelope during the awards ceremony, presumably with his $52,000 in winnings, Agassi quipped: ``Don't give me an empty envelope, please. Want to bet? I'll bet you it's empty.''

In the doubles final, former USC standouts Rick Leach and Brian MacPhie beat Jonathan Erlich and Andy Ram of Israel 6-3, 6-4.

Agassi, at 35, is ancient for a tennis player. Although his retirement has been discussed since he turned 30, the possibility took on more substance this year as a chronic sciatic- nerve condition left him limping in a first-round loss at the French Open and forced him to miss Wimbledon.

With three seeds - Andy Roddick, Nicolas Kiefer and Taylor Dent - dropping out of the event with injuries, Agassi didn't have to face a top-40 player in winning the Mercedes-Benz Cup. The highest-ranked player he faced was No. 44 Paradorn Srichaphan in the quarterfinals.

``Playing against the best players in the world will be the next step,'' Agassi said. ``With the way things went this week, if my body stays healthy, I only like the prospect of playing three to five sets at the U.S. Open, because I really felt like, as the matches went on, I was getting stronger. That's a good feeling I've had in stages certainly in my career, but not as of late.''

Matthew Kredell, [phone]

matthew.kredell(at)dailynews.com

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2 photos

Photo:

(1 -- cover -- color) ANDRE'S BACK

Showing no signs of a chronic sciatic-nerve problem that sidelined him for two months, Agassi wins his fourth Mercedes-Benz Cup

(2) Andre Agassi blows a kiss to the crowd after beating Gilles Muller in straight sets in the Mercedes-Benz Cup final at UCLA.

Hans Gutknecht/Staff Photographer