Wynne Prakusya advances to second round<\/p>\n
Pariama Hutasoit, Contributor, Nusa Dua, Bali<\/p>\n
Wynne Prakusya gracefully moved on to the second round of the
\nWismilak-Sanex Women's Tennis Tournament after defeating Spaniard
\nGala Leon Garcia 7-5, 6-3 here on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
Playing at the Grand Hyatt center court in Nusa Dua, Wynne won
\nenthusiastic support from the spectators. She confidently led the
\ntwo sets, despite many long and difficult rallies.<\/p>\n
In the first set, Garcia lodged a strong protest against one
\nof the referee's decisions, which, she claimed, was mistakenly in
\nWynne's favor. Garcia was leading by five points when she thought
\nWynne's return was out.<\/p>\n
Unaffected by the protest, Wynne calmly continued and won the
\nset 7-5.<\/p>\n
Wynne was unstoppable in the second set, winning it 6-3.<\/p>\n
At a media conference after the match, Wynne said she felt
\nhappy to beat Garcia. Commenting on Garcia's protest, Wynne only
\nresponded that the Spanish player might have lost her
\nconcentration.<\/p>\n
\"It's usual when one plays abroad. I've often experienced
\nthat,\" she said.<\/p>\n
On Wednesday, Wynne, ranked 102nd in the world, will meet
\nConchita Martinez from Spain, now ranked 55th.<\/p>\n
\"I've never played against Martinez, but I will certainly play
\nas well as possible. She was the runner-up in 1994 at Wimbledon,\"
\nWynne added.<\/p>\n
Indonesia's rising star Angelique \"Angie\" Widjaja, however,
\nfailed to appear on Tuesday. Her scheduled match against Spaniard
\nMarta Morrero was inexplicably postponed until Wednesday.<\/p>\n
In earlier matches on Tuesday, Virginie Razzano of France
\ndefeated Argentinean Clarisa Fernandez in straight sets.<\/p>\n
Third-seed Fernandez was not on top form, losing 6-3, 6-3 to
\nRazzano. Fernandez, ranked 33rd, was unseeded in this year's
\nFrench Open and U.S. Open, but managed to reach the semifinals of
\nboth events.<\/p>\n
Russia's rising star, 15-year-old Maria Kirilenko, who won the
\nU.S. Open Junior Championship 2002 earlier this month,
\nsurrendered to 29-year-old Nicole Pratt of Australia.<\/p>\n
Pratt is a veteran tennis player who won a number of junior
\nchampionships when she was still a teenager. In l991, Pratt won
\nthe singles at the Australia Open, and doubles at the U.S. Open
\nand French Open.<\/p>\n
Her comeback this year was quite encouraging, reaching the
\nsemifinals of two world tennis tournaments in Hobart, Australia,
\nand Birmingham in England. She also reached the quarterfinals in
\nDoha, Qatar, and Scottsdale in the U.S.<\/p>\n
\"Kirilenko is a talented and powerful player. Although she is
\nvery young she has a lot of self-confidence,\" praised Pratt.<\/p>\n
After a relatively easy win in the first set, Pratt found it
\nquite difficult to beat Kirilenko in the second when she led 3-0.
\nBut Kirilenko steadily returned Pratt's strong and accurate shots
\nand aggressively chased her returns to every corner of the court
\nuntil she had won four points.<\/p>\n
But Pratt cleverly changed her strategy and closed out the
\nmatch 6-2, 6-4.<\/p>\n
\"She has impressed me so much. Kirilenko really has a good
\nfuture,\" Pratt said magnanimously of her Russian opponent.<\/p>\n
On Wednesday, Pratt will meet the winner of the Angelique-
\nMorrero match.<\/p>",
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