WIMBLEDON, England -- The end was near for Patrick Rafter, stretching for Andre Agassi's blasts from the baseline and sprinting to the net only to watch the ball whiz past him.

His best and, very possibly, last chance at winning Wimbledon was flying by.

The end of his career might not be far off, but his ferocious fight Friday means a picture of him hoisting the championship trophy could grace the final page of his scrapbook.

"I was aggressive and I stayed aggressive," he said. "And it went my way."

Improbable as it was, Rafter's 2-6, 6-3, 3-6, 6-2, 8-6 victory sent him into his second straight Wimbledon final Sunday. He plans to take six months off after this year and probably won't return to Wimbledon next summer.

Rafter, meanwhile, didn't know his next opponent since the Tim Henman-Goran Ivanisevic semifinal was delayed again the second straight day Saturday with Ivanisevic leading three games to two in the fifth set and Henman ahead 30-15 in the sixth game.

The women's final between Venus Williams and Justine Henin has been rescheduled until 9 a.m. ET Sunday.

With former President Clinton due to sit in the Royal Box, rain began about a half hour before the scheduled restart. On Friday, the match was suspended by darkness after a two-hour rain delay. Henman led 2-1 in sets and 2-1 in games with Ivanisevic serving.

Most fans could have guessed the identity of one of last year's finalists even before that tournament began. Pete Sampras had won six of the previous seven titles and did it again in 2000.

His victim was Rafter, who had beaten Agassi in another five-set semifinal that year.

Rafter squandered a commanding lead against Sampras, just as Agassi did Friday, winning the first set but letting a 4-1 lead in the second-set tiebreaker slip away. He lost in four sets and said he was nervous.

"I hope I get in that situation again" with a lead in the final, Rafter said Friday. "I was saying, `Relax' last time. `Relax, relax.' It didn't work. Maybe I might say, `Choke, choke.' See what happens."

Agassi didn't choke Friday, but was rattled by a warning in the next-to-last game for an obscenity.

With the fifth set tied 6-6 and the score at deuce on Rafter's serve, Agassi hit a ball that landed near the sideline, but out. That's when he blurted out the bad word close enough for a lineswoman to hear.

She scurried to Mike Morrissey in the umpire's chair and reported the epithet. The code violation, for which Agassi was fined $2,000, seemed to unnerve him.

"That's quite upsetting and a little classless for Centre Court, to go running up there," Agassi said. "I got upset at a shot I missed, and I didn't think anybody could hear it."

Rafter won the next four points to go up 7-6 and 0-40. Agassi got two points back, but lost the next. The match was then over.

Rafter thrust his first in the air and smiled in relief. Agassi smacked a ball in the direction of the lineswoman who was standing at the other end of the court.

"I meant to hit that in the net," he said unconvincingly.

It was another of his shots that landed in the wrong spot and gave two-time U.S. Open winner Rafter a crack at his third Grand Slam championship.

There's little chance he'll return to Wimbledon next June.

"He's a pretty stubborn bloke," his coach, Tony Roche, said. "He'll definitely have a break. When he's away four or five months, he'll say, `this wasn't a bad idea,' or he'll miss it. He's set on having this break."

His biggest breaks Friday came in the 10th and 14th games of the fifth set. Trailing 5-4 and 30-15 with Agassi serving, Rafter was two points from defeat. But he won the game to break service.

Then he broke again in the final game with a backhand shot that flew over Agassi's head and landed in the corner -- Agassi's final chance floating by as he reached the end of his tournament run.

"You've got to just shake it off, try to move forward," he said. "What else can you do?"

If you're Rafter, you still can reach the end as a champion.