Choptang ousts Sumantri

Wilawan Choptang of Thailand watched top seed Dea Sumantri succumb to exhaustion to score a 2-6, 6-4, 2-1 (ret.) victory yesterday and gain a semifinal berth in the 11th Mitsubishi Lancer International Juniors Tennis Championship at the Rizal Memorial Tennis Courts.

Choptang looked headed for an early exit when she lost the first set and trailed by two games in the second but the Thai bet recovered from a 2-4 deficit to win the set and eventually the match as the cramps-stricken Sumantri failed to finish the contest that lasted two hours and 10 minutes.

Sumantri's loss thus left fifth seed Nicole Kriz of Australia as the highest-ranked player left in the girls' side following a 6-2, 6-2 victory over Alex McGoodwin of the United States.

That arranged a Choptang-Kriz clash in the semis with another Thai, Prariyawan Ratanakrong, and Indonesia's Angelique Widjaja clashing in the other match.

Ratanakrong bundled out Jane O'Donoghue of Great Britain, 6-3, 6-4; while the 15-year-old Widjaja beat Asha Burns of Australia, 6-3, 6-4.

In the men's side, favorites Wang Yeu Tzuo of Chinese Taipei and Matthew Emery of the US pulled off contrasting victories to barge into the semifinals. Wang, who won the Orange Ball 14-under event in Miami, Florida last December, disposed of German Sebastian Linda, 7-5, 6-0, while Emery thumped German Aleksandar Djuranovich, 6-2, 6-4.