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| 02 Jun 2002 | |
| Bartoli survives first round scare |
By Eleanor Preston
Marion Bartoli was the star of the show on day one of the Roland Garros Junior Championships. Bartoli had to fight hard to get past Daniela Kix (AUT), eventually beating the Austrian 4-6, 6-3, 9-7 in a marathon match. "It was really important for me psychologically to come through that because I’ve lost a lot of close matches lately and I was determined to win," she said. "I think this will help me." Bartoli comes from Lyon but spent two years training in Paris and says she enjoys playing in front of her home crowd. "It’s great to be here with people watching me and asking about me," she said. "I know every inch of Roland Garros, I know my way around and I feel really comfortable here. I think that’s an advantage."
Bartoli also revealed that this Roland Garros may well be her last ever junior event before she tries to make her way on the women’s tour. "Juniors has been great and I wanted to play here because I'm French, but I need to play more tournaments on the women’s tour."
Seventeen-year-old Elke Clijsters (BEL) had a far easier time in her first round match. Clijsters overcame a shaky start in her match against Aurelija Miseviciute (LTU) but soon found top form, romping home to a 6-4, 6-0 win. "In the beginning I was really nervous because I knew there were some Belgian people here," admitted Clijsters. "I made too many mistakes and I went 4-2 down but then I settled down and was a lot more patient. I just wanted to win the points too fast."
Ashley Harkleroad (USA), Gisela Dulko (ARG), and Australian Open girls’ champion Barbora Strycova (CZE) also earned second round berths in Paris.
In the boys’ competition the big news of the day was Briton David Brewer’s 6-4, 2-6, 6-3 upset win over fifth-seeded Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis. It was a good day for British players. Brewer was joined in the second round by his countryman, Alex Bogdanovic, who looked at home on the French red clay, beating Davor Kuseta of Croatia 6-1, 6-3.
15-year-old Richard Gasquet’s performances here in the men’s draw at Roland Garros and in the Masters Series Monte Carlo men’s event in April has made him a household name in France and there were plenty of people cheering him on as he breezed past Bas Van Der Valk (NED) 6-3, 6-2. Bogdanovic and Gasquet are seeded to meet in the third round but both have work to do before they get there. Bogdanovic takes on Jordan Kanev (BUL) in round two while Gasquet, seeded two, faces either Teimuraz Gabashvili (RUS)or Nicolas Almagro (ESP).
Photographs by Susan Mullane
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