Kijimuta upsets top seed to reach tennis semifinals
Kijimuta upsets top seed to reach tennis semifinals
JAKARTA (JP): Japanese Naoko Kijimuta produced the biggest
upset yet in the US$164,250 Danamon Indonesia Women's Open tennis
championships here yesterday when she ousted top seed Sabine
Appelmans of Belgium in a heart-stopping quarter-final match.
It was consistency that led the unseeded Kijimuta to a
surprising 2-6, 6-3, 7-6 (7-5) win over the player currently
ranked 18th in the world.
Appelmans did manage to save six match points in the process,
but could not pull off a victory.
In the semifinals, Kijimuta, making her first trip here, will
take on American sixth seed Linda Wild, who downed another
Japanese, Rika Hiraki, 7-5, 6-3.
World number 92 Kijimuta was the only Japanese to survive as
Kyoko Nagatsuka gave up 4-6, 3-6 to sixth seed Laurence Courtois
of Belgium in another quarter-final match yesterday. With the
win, Courtois set up an early Federation Cup clash against
Indonesia's Yayuk Basuki in today's semifinals.
Yayuk broke no sweat en route to her fifth semifinal
appearance here yesterday as Claudia Porwik of Germany retired
due to chronic abdominal strain. Yayuk was leading 4-0 when
Porwik, who took a full-season off in 1992 owing the same injury,
called it a day.
After a second-set defeat, Appelmans staged a brilliant
comeback at 3-5 and 0-40 down in the deciding set, saving her own
game and breaking Kijimuta to pull level. The Belgian, who never
got ahead throughout the match, saved yet another match point at
5-6 down to force a tie break.
But 24-year-old Kijimuta, who had some 1,000 people cheering
on her, kept the pressure on her frustrated rival. Kijimuta
drilled her deep ball from the baseline and rushed to the net for
a number of volley winners.
Appelmans seemed unable to maintain her composure during the
nerve-wracking tie breaker. She quickly went 1-4 down and,
despite a brief fight back that earned her an equalizer at 5-5,
was clearly on the losing end. Her netted forehand sealed the
match for Kijimuta.
"I didn't play my best tennis this week. Maybe I was trying
too much and I wanted to win too much," a dejected Appelmans said
in a post-match conference.
"She came to the net a lot and fired unbelievable volleys in
the tie break. I was getting tired at the end of the match, but
I'm glad I fought to the end."
Kijimuta played down her upset win. "I was very lucky. After
the second set, Sabine produced many unforced errors. I thought
if I tried hard enough I could win," she said.
Yayuk was guarded when asked about her first encounter with
Courtois. "It's going to be tough because we are of the same
style. Both of us will make a lot of trials," Yayuk said.
"I never expected to go this far, so I think reaching the
semifinal really serves a boost to the rest of my career," said
Yayuk, who is planning to retire from tennis next year.
Diarrhea knocked three-times winner Yayuk out of her semifinal
match against Irina Spirlea of Rumania last year.
Courtois never let Nagatsuka, who upset second seed Wang Shi-
ting of Taiwan in the first round, come close in the first
quarter-final match yesterday.
The Belgian number two strolled to a commanding 5-2 lead in
the second set. Serving for the match, she slowed her pace only
to allow a break. "I was a little bit scared to finish the match,
while Kyoko had nothing to lose," Courtois said. (05/amd)
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