KEY BISCAYNE, Fla. -- Michael Chang has covered more court than any player of his generation, relentlessly racing from corner to corner chasing down shots, frustrating foes and grinding out victories.

At 30 he keeps running but has quit winning. Tennis fans wonder when he'll quit, period.

Not yet. Not even after an 0-7 start this year and eight consecutive defeats dating to October.

The latest loss came Thursday night in the first round of the Nasdaq-100 Open, when Chang was eliminated by Paradorn Srichaphan 7-6 (4), 2-6, 7-6 (5).

Chang said the defeat left him disappointed and angry.

"I had opportunities to win the match at the end, and I wasn't quite able to pull it off," he said. "I've got a lot of emotions churning inside, and I can tell you that they're pretty strong."

The most recent of Chang's 34 tournament titles came in July 2000, and his ranking has slipped to 92nd. He needed a wild card to play Key Biscayne and might require a similar favor to enter the French Open, which he won in 1989.

He has made $19 million and squeezed every ounce of ability from his 5-foot-9 frame. Now, he said, two things keep him going.

"One is faith. One is hope," he said. "If those two weren't as strong as they are, I would sit right here and I would tell you, let's just call it a day. Let's just call it a career. But those two things are still strong."

Chang's two-hour, 38-minute defeat delayed the start of Anna Kournikova's evening match. She then made a hasty exit, losing to Eleni Daniilidou 7-5, 6-3. The defeat cost Kournikova a chance to face top-seeded Jennifer Capriati in the second round.

Ashley Harkleroad, a 16-year-old American who has been compared to Kournikova, was defeated by Martina Muller 6-4, 6-4.

Three other American women also lost. Amy Frazier was beaten by Greta Arn 6-4, 6-2, Jennifer Hopkins was eliminated by Conchita Martinez 7-5, 6-2, and Cory Ann Avants lost to Kveta Hrdlickova 6-1, 6-1.

American Brie Rippner beat Petra Mandula 7-6 (0), 6-3, and Samantha Reeves rallied to defeat Silvija Talaja 3-6, 6-2, 6-2.

On the men's side, Americans James Blake and Jeff Morrison won. Blake beat Galo Blanco 7-6 (0), 7-5, and Morrison edged Martin Verkerk 6-7 (5), 6-1, 6-4.

Seeded players take the court for the first time Friday, with defending champions Venus Williams and Andre Agassi among those in action.

Chang, who won the Key Biscayne title 10 years ago, almost made it to the second round this time. He overcame three match points in the 10th game of the final set, then took a 3-1 lead in the tiebreaker. But he dumped an easy volley into the net to fall behind 6-5, then pulled a forehand wide on the final point.

"If I didn't choke on that last volley, I think I would have won the match," he said. "I make that volley nine out of 10 times."

Srichaphan also beat Chang at Indian Wells last week.

After 15 years on the ATP Tour, Chang may be a step slower and less willing to grind out points. He has tried to change his game, switching racket brands last summer and playing serve-and-volley on occasion. That's how he got to the net to blow the easy volley in the final tiebreaker.

In other words, nothing seems to be working. And at this point, Chang isn't sure how to get his game back on track.

"To be honest with you, I really don't know," he said. "I've tried a lot of different things."

For now, at least, he plans to keep trying.