Angie is high about Loit game: Coach

Musthofid, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Angelique Widjaja of Indonesia feels confident about besting Emilie Loit in the second round of the Canberra Classic women's tennis tournament, coach Deddy Tedjamukti said on Tuesday.

Unrated Angie, who defeated fourth seed Daja Bedanova in the opening round, will face Loit of France on Wednesday on the same day the two players will also be up against each other in the doubles.

Angie will be teamed with Argentinean Clarisa Fernandez against Emilie Loit and partner Tathiana Garbin in the second stage of the doubles competition.

Speaking in regards Angie's singles contention, Deddy said her protege, who is ranked 72nd in the world, got the upper hand over Loit, the world's number 58.

"I once saw Loit play, but it was only a brief look, so I can't make an account of her technical regime. However, I dare to say Angie should stand a good chance to beat her," Deddy told The Jakarta Post from Canberra.

"This is about mental shape. Angie is, at the moment, very confident about the next game," Deddy said, adding that Angie was carrying out a daily stretching regime to keep her in tip-top condition.

Despite being ranked lower than Loit in the world, Angie has been tipped to beat her opponent, an assessment trend about which she is aware.

"Quite a few have placed their bets on me to beat Loit. Well, I will try hard and do my best," she said on her website, angeliquewidjaja.com.

Angie looks to be still reveling in her 6-3, 6-3 victory over Bedanova, the result of which has made their head-to-head score even at 1-1.

"I'm very happy at having defeated Bedanova. In doing so, I avenged my 6-2, 6-3 loss three years ago," she said.

Should she overcome Loit, Angie will face Adriana Serra- Zanetti of Italy in the next stage. Serra-Zanetti trounced Japanese Saori Obata 6-4, 6-1 on Tuesday.

Deddy was confident of Angie's endurance in the tournament, saying that Angie should be able to carry on and reach the semifinals.

"After receiving the players' draw, I can say that a semifinal place will be a realistic expectation for Angie," he said.

Angie's next stop will be Melbourne at the Australian Open where, unlike the 2002 season, she will play straight into the main draw. The draw will be made on Friday and play is scheduled to start next Monday.