Wukirasih not confident about her future in tennis

JAKARTA (JP): National tennis player Wukirasih Sawondari failed to show up at a postmatch conference after losing on Saturday to junior Angelique Widjaja in the women's singles final of the 2001 Cigna Open Colors of Life tournament.

She would not meet journalists or take part in the media coverage, not because of her defeat but apparently because she has nothing to boast about her future career.

Consider her past: 20-year-old Wukirasih (born in Purwokerto, Central Java, Nov. 20, 1980) won two gold medals in the 1997 and 1999 Southeast Asian (SEA) Games. In 1997 she triumphed in the women's doubles and women's team event; two years later she won the women's team event.

She is also nominated for this year's SEA Games team. The Games will be held in Kuala Lumpur in September.

But she feels she is not as lucky as her compatriots Wynne Prakusya or Liza Andriyani as they have their own sponsors.

Wukir, as she is known, said that she had toned down her ambition to be a world-class tennis player.

"I was not well prepared for the Cigna Open. I have no specific goal to achieve anymore. I play just for fun. Practicing needs a lot of money but I don't have any earnings. Moreover, I will not attend any tournaments because I have no sponsors.

"So it's better for me to be a practice partner for well-to-do businesspeople," she said.

Wukir, however, avoided an attitude of self-pity and said that she would give way for others to leap at any opportunity to go global.

"I accept the risk because I see that many Indonesian young players are more prospective and more focused. My playing style might not satisfy tennis fans. They all want to see speed and power play.

"Also, I don't think it will be easy to find sponsors because company prefers supporting young players," said the youngest of six siblings.

She said that she could practice and achieve better results if she was financially secured.

"I will practice continually if I have sponsors. If not, who will finance my living? I do not come from a wealthy family, so I have a responsibility for my own life."

She said she expected the Indonesian Tennis Association (Pelti) to seek out sponsorships for its players.

"It's Pelti's job to find sponsors, not the players. A player should only concentrate on his or her training and competition. But Pelti is not yet established as a dependable institution. There are still conflicts between its officials. How can I rest my hopes in this kind of organization? I have no high expectation of Pelti," she said.

Wukir began playing tennis when she was eight. She played tennis at a court next to her parents', mother Harmini and late father Soeharto, home in Purwokerto. Later, she was taught by tennis coach Darmanto.

Besides playing tennis, she said she was now intensifying her church service. She also said was looking forward to better achievements.

"I'm not satisfied enough with my achievements. I'm now in the world top 380s. I think I can still move up. But I realize there are many obstacles. I still want to pursue my best in tennis and I'm waiting for God's time," she said. (ivy)