Japanese debutante shines in first day of tennis open
Japanese debutante shines in first day of tennis open
JAKARTA (JP): Big names gained mixed results in the opening
round of the Danamon Indonesia Women's Open tennis championships
yesterday.
While top seed Sabine Appelmans of Belgium safely cleared her
first hurdle with a 7-6 (7-3), 6-1 win over Beate Reinstadler of
Austria, Taiwan's second-seed Wang Shi-ting became the first
major causality of the US$164,000 tournament.
World number 42 Wang marked her worst record in her third
appearance here, walking away with a surprising 1-6, 4-6 loss to
Kyoko Nagatsuka of Japan.
Wang reached the semifinals in 1994, but crashed out in the
quarterfinals last year.
Confident debutante Nagatsuka got off to a dazzling start, but
then could not maintain her composure in the second set, falling
behind 1-4.
The 22-year-old Japanese woman changed tactics at a critical
point, slowing down the pace for a number of exhausting rallies.
Pay off came as the run-out Wang sprayed her strokes off the
court.
"I had a good chance in the second set, but Kyoko started to
play well," Wang said after the match. "I did not sleep well
after attending the welcome party last night, and I felt a little
fever this morning. But it was not the reason for my loss."
Nagatsuka looked secure with her upset victory, her first in
four career meetings with Wang.
"My big worry was the heat just before the match. That's why I
put some ice on my neck during changeovers," Nagatsuka said.
The Japanese world number 81, who notched up her best Grand
Slam record last year by reaching the fourth round in the
Australian Open and the French Open, will now meet American Erika
de Lone.
De Lone was troubled by the overhead lobs drilled by
Indonesia's wild card recipient Enny Sulistyowati. The American
went on to win 7-5, 6-3.
Playing on the center court of the Senayan tennis complex,
Belgian Appelmans was also forced to survive a thrilling first-
set, which saw her broken twice to trail four games to love.
Maturity
Maturity allowed her to fight back with brilliant winners from
the baseline. Appelmans, who is bracing for a Federation Cup duel
here in two weeks, came close to another break at 6-6, but
Reinstadler defended strongly to save her serve.
The lefthanded Belgian played a more consistent game to take
total control of the second set. She hit the ball to every
corner, leaving her Austrian opponent sprawling.
Reinstadler broke the duck at 1-3, but Appelmans upped gears
to win the next three games. The top seed will take on Jana
Nejedly of Canada in the second round tomorrow. Nejedly defeated
Nathalie Dechy of France 7-5, 6-3 yesterday.
In the earliest match, fourth seed Marianne Werdel-Witmeyer of
the United States clawed back from a set down to beat Tang Min of
Hong Kong 2-6, 6-4, 6-3. In the second round, Werdel-Witmeyer
will meet Rika Hiraki of Japan, a 7-5, 7-6 (7-2) winner over
Nanne Dahlman of Finland.
Home favorite Yayuk Basuki wrapped up yesterday's program with
a win in doubles. Teaming up with American Linda Wild, Yayuk
downed the Australian duo of Rachel McQuillan and Anabel Ellwood
6-0, 4-6, 6-1.
Yayuk will begin her singles campaign today, playing American
qualifier Janet Lee, who upset Claudia Porwik of Germany early in
the afternoon. (05/amd)