Luksika stuns home player in Japan opener

The Thai qualifier, who lost their previous match 6-7 (9-7) 6-4 6-1 in March’s WTA quarter-finals in Kuala Lumpur, benefited when her Japanese rival was hit by back trouble and wrapped up the match in just 65 minutes. 

“She had a back problem which was why the score looked easy. I always give my all in every match and today I was playing well while she was not 100 per cent,” said Luksika.

Ranked 119th in the world, Luksika unleashed a backhand winner to go an early break up at 2-1 in the first set. Morita, who has had the nagging injury for weeks now, was not moving well and was broken again when a forehand cross-court winner took the score to 5-2. Luksika then fired successive aces to close out the 37-minute first set. An on-court consultation with her coach failed to improve Morita’s play and she was down a double break at 4-1, before Luksika wrapped things up on her fourth match point with a backhand cross-court winner.

Luksika has a second-round date with world No 35 Eugenie Bouchard of Canada, in a clash of up-and-coming talents. The 19-year-old fourth-seed made headlines by knocking Ana Ivanovic out of Wimbledon in the second round this year. 

“I don’t know much about her but I’ve heard she is one of the rising stars on tour. I just have to forget who she is and concentrate on my game,” said Luksika.

Elsewhere, in Tashkent, qualifier Danai Udomchoke needed three sets to beat Italian Andrea Arnaboldi 7-6 (8-6) 5-7 7-5 in the first round of the US$125,000 Tashkent Challenger yesterday. 

 

Date-Krumm schools Robson

Japanese forty-something Kimiko Date-Krumm sent young British hope Laura Robson crashing out of the Japan Women’s Open in another triumph for her evergreen career.

Date-Krumm, playing just days after her 43rd birthday, won 6-4 6-4 against the 19-year-old seventh seed, her second notable scalp of recent weeks after she beat Maria Kirilenko in Seoul. The seemingly ageless Japanese reached the third round at both the Australian Open and Wimbledon this year as she continues to defy the march of time. The result dashes British hopes after defending champion Heather Watson, whose victory last year was the first WTA title in 24 years for a British woman, went out on Monday.

China’s Zhang Shuai, who won her first WTA title last month in Guangzhou, underlined her current form when she ousted experienced Spaniard Anabel Medina Garrigues 6-0, 6-3.

Elsewhere German second seed Sabine Lisicki put out South Africa’s Chanelle Scheepers in straight sets and American Vania King upset Italian fourth seed Flavia Pennetta.

And American sixth seed Madison Keys beat Slovakian qualifier Anna Schmiedlova as she also reached the second round.