Defending champ Chang skips Indonesia Open
JAKARTA (JP): World number six, American Michael Chang has opted not to defend his title at the Indonesia Men's Open tennis championships, to be held here from Jan. 9 to 15, leaving German Bernd Karbacher the top seed at the US$300,000 tournament.
"We didn't offer appearance money for Chang this year. That's why he is absent," tournament director Eddy Katimansah said on Thursday.
Karbacher, ranked 26th in the world, will lead the 32-field competition which includes Paul Haarhuis of the Netherlands, Andrei Olhovskiy of Russia and Czech David Rikl.
"We are afraid of a considerable drop in spectators due to the major absentees," Eddy said. Chang received $250,000 for his appearance in the last two of the country's most lucrative tennis events.
The men's tournament, sanctioned by the Association of Tennis Professionals, will succeed the week-long $161,000 Indonesia Women's Open.
Both tennis tournaments will be held in conjunction with Indonesia's 50th anniversary. To add to its zest, female tennis great Martina Navratilova will play Yayuk Basuki in an exhibition match next Wednesday.
Yayuk, currently rated 29th in the world, is likely to face a tougher title defense attempt as the organizers are expecting two players among the world best 20. German world number 19 Sabine Hack is the first big name to confirm her entry.
The Women Tennis Association (WTA) requires at least three players ranked among the top 20 or one of world's top 10 players in a tournament with $160,000 cash prizes on offer.
"Let's wait until Sunday (tomorrow). It's WTA's responsibility to send world-class players here," Eddy was quoted by Antara as saying.
Yayuk's runner-up last year Florencia Labat of Argentina, American Ann Grossman, Wang Shi-ting of Taiwan will also make trips here.
The organizers are selling tickets between Rp 5,000 and Rp 10,000 (between $2.29 and $4.58) for both championships. The exhibition match, which is part of Navratilova's farewell tour, will cost spectators between Rp 5,000 and Rp 20,000 (between $2.29 and $9.16). (amd)