Putting it briefly
Putting it briefly
Yayuk to set
a hat-trick
JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia's top tennis player Yayuk Basuki is
eying a hat-trick at the April US$100,000 Indonesia Open women's
tennis championships.
Yayuk, currently world number 31, is likely to lead the seeds
at the third edition of the tennis tournament. Her stiffest
challenge is likely to come in the form of Wang Shi-ting of
Chinese Taipei. Yayuk avoided a meeting with Wang at last
January's China Open as the Taiwanese player fell in the early
rounds.
The 32 player field will include seven other players ranked in
the top 100, including fast improving teenager Romana
Tedjakusuma.
Seeded sixth at the $1.21 million Japan Open, Yayuk failed to
overcome a nagging ankle injury and made an early exit after a 6-
7 (5-7), 3-6 first round defeat to Linda Niemantsverdriet of the
Netherlands yesterday. The Indonesian was bundled out of the
second round of the tournament last year. (amd)
Saive, Svensson
European champs
BIRMINGHAM, England (Reuter): World number one Jean-Michel
Saive of Belgium and Marie Svensson of Sweden blasted their way
to the titles at the European table tennis championships
yesterday.
The attacking, all-action Belgian put previous big tournament
disappointments behind him when he beat Olympic champion Jan-Ove
Waldner of Sweden 23-25, 21-10, 21-17, 21-16 in a classy final.
Saive, runner-up two years ago in the Europeans and also a silver
medalist at the world championships, was determined to justify
his leading ranking after his 55-minute success.
Big-hitting Svensson overwhelmed unseeded Dutchwoman Gerdie
Keen 21-12, 21-14, 21-18 on her way to the women's title.
Svensson, 26, ranked 11th in Europe, never allowed Keen a look-
in, and although the Dutch number three bravely saved three match
points from 15-20 in the third, the destination of the title was
by then abundantly clear.
Crucial FIFA
summit meeting
ZURICH (Reuter): Five continental soccer chiefs converged on
Zurich yesterday for a crucial FIFA presidency summit with the
world game's head Joao Havelange.
Havelange, the 78-year-old Brazilian who has been president of
the International Football Federation since 1974, is seeking a
final four-year term in the election at the FIFA Congress in
Chicago on the eve of the World Cup finals.
But speculation has been rife that the European governing body
UEFA, wary of losing its strong powerbase in the world game and
World Cup places to the emerging soccer continents, might name a
rival candidate.
Parks worries
about Arkansas
CHARLOTTE, North Carolina (Reuter): Duke, already facing an
uphill battle against top-ranked Arkansas in Monday's showdown
for the NCAA men's basketball championship, had more worries on
Sunday after center Cherokee Parks' knee swelled up.
Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said he was sure Parks would play.
He said it was not known on what play in Saturday's 70-65
semifinal win over Florida the injury had occurred.
Krzyzewski said Parks, a key man against the powerful inside
game of an Arkansas team that already had a big depth advantage,
would skip practice to rest and ice the knee.
Arkansas coach Nolan Richardson for his part said he also had
an ailing player -- point guard Corey Beck.
Bugno triumphs
in Tour
MEERBEKE, Belgium (Reuter): Gianni Bugno shaded last year's
winner Johan Musseeuw by a matter of millimeters to take the 268-
km Tour of Flanders World Cup race in a thrilling four-man finish
on Sunday.
It put Bugno level with fellow Italian Giorgio Furlan on top
of the World Cup standings on 50 points, 10 more than third-
placed Musseeuw of Belgium with eight races remaining.
The race came to life on the top of the cobbled Oude Kwaremont
hill 110 kms from the finish, when a fall shattered the pack.
Zambia wins as
Ghana beaten
SOUSSE, Tunisia (Reuter): Zambia's dream of a semifinal place
at the African Nations Cup became reality on Sunday, but the
hopes of Ghana captain Abedi Pele were left in tatters.
Zambia, who said before the tournament their best hopes lay in
reaching the semifinals, achieved that goal with a 1-0 win over
Senegal at the Olympic stadium in Sousse.
But Ghana, one of the pre-tournament favorites, were beaten 2-
1 by the Ivory Coast in a repeat of the 1992 final.
England hopefuls
fail to shine
ST GEORGE'S, Grenada (AFP): England hopefuls Matthew Maynard,
Nasser Hussain and Devon Malcolm all flopped here on Sunday as
England crashed against the West Indies Board XI at Queen's Park.
Hussain and Maynard, hoping for selection for the fourth Test
on Friday, both failed to reach double figures on the second day
which saw the tourists lose their last six wickets for 18 runs in
62 balls.
Then Malcolm, in his first bowl since suffering a knee injury
during the first Test in February, looked rusty as he returned
figures of 12 overs for 57 -- although he did claim the wicket of
Phil Simmons.
Yamaha holds
narrow lead
SOUTHAMPTON, England (Reuter): Whitbread 60 Yamaha held a
narrow five-mile lead yesterday on the fifth leg of the
round-the-world yacht race.
Light conditions during the first 48 hours of the leg from
Uruguay to Fort Lauderdale, Florida have meant slow progress up
the South American coast. The five leading Whitbread 60s and
three Maxis are all within sight of each other.
Tokio was in second place, followed by Maxi New Zealand
Endeavour. Intrum Justitia, Merit Cup and La Poste were one mile
eastern.