Sarwono urges media not to play up Wynne's victory
Sarwono urges media not to play up Wynne's victory
JAKARTA (JP): The media must not give too much coverage to
Wynne Prakusya, who recently won the Asia Oceania Group I Fed Cup
Qualifying Round for Indonesia.
The Indonesia Tennis Association's chairman, Sarwono
Kusumaatmadja, said the Indonesia public can be cruel.
"The line between a compliment and condemnation here is very
thin," he said.
Sarwono, who is also the state minister of environment, said
it is acceptable for people to compliment athletes when they
reach their highest achievement, but they should not blame the
athletes when they lose.
"I'm worried about the possible media coverage on Wynne.
Please cover her in a proper way," he said.
Yayuk Basuki, world ranked 24, agreed with Sarwono.
"Wynne is a young player with potential. If she is given too
many compliments, it could influence her career," she said.
Wynne, Yayuk, Eny Sulistyowati and Mimma Chernovita were the
country's heroines in the Fed Cup tie last week in Wellington.
The 16-year-old Wynne was unbeatable in her seven matches,
five in singles and two in doubles.
Indonesia will compete in the World Group II playoffs on July
12 and July 13.
Indonesia will most likely meet either Austria, Slovakia,
South Korea or South Africa.
Coach Utaminingsih said the team will prepare for the playoffs
by taking part in other international tournaments.
Physical trainer Paulus Pasurnay said they still have two
months to train and improve their physical performance.
"They still need to increase their speed and power," he said.
Junior
The association has decided not to field Wynne in the Danamon
Indonesia Open here next month. The tier four tournament offers a
cash prize of US$100,000 and will be participated in by the world
top 20 to top 100 players.
The association has decided to instead send Wynne and Eny to
the Japan Open Junior Championship and the Asian Close Junior
Tournament, both held in Tokyo next month.
Benny Mailili, an official of the association's National Team
Board, said it would be better for Wynne and Eny to play in the
junior tournaments and reach the quarterfinals rather than lose
in a tier four satellite in the first round.
Wynne expressed disappointment as the association gave a wild
card to compatriot Liza Andriyani, who is not a member of the
national team.
"I realize that I'm still a junior but the association could
have given wild cards to other national team members instead of
to an outside player," she said. (yan)