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| 11 Dec 2001 | |
| No. 2-ranked Tipsarevic Upset in Second Round of BURGER KING Orange Bowl |
No. 2 seed Janko Tipsarevic was not only eliminated from the 55th Annual BURGER KING Orange Bowl International Junior Tennis Championships on Monday, he most likely also failed in his bid for ITF World Champion honors.
After struggling to a three-set win in his first round match on Sunday, Tipsarevic fell to American Todd Widom, 6-1, 2-6, 6-3, at the Tennis Center at Crandon Park, home of the Ericsson Open, on Key Biscayne, Fla.
Tipsarevic, the reigning Australian Open boys’ singles champion, entered the Orange Bowl ranked No. 2 behind Gilles Muller, the current US Open boys’ champion. Muller, a semifinalist here last year, won his first round match against Tomislav Hadzic of Croatia, 6-3, 6-3, on Monday to all but clinch the 2001 ITF World Champion title.
"I haven’t felt a lot of pressure (since winning the US Open)," said Mueller, who won his match before Tipsarevic took the court. "I think if I concentrate, I can win this week. Some days you can run into someone who’s just playing too well, though."
Widom won the USTA Super National Boys’ 18s Clay Court Championships this summer after graduating from J.P. Travaella High School in nearby Coral Springs, Fla.. He will face Juan Monaco of Argentina in the third round on Wednesday. His next challenge, however, comes in the classroom and not on the tennis court.
"I’ve got my last final of the semester on Wednesday - Poly Sci," said Widom, a freshman at the University of Miami who is majoring in Business Administration. "I hope I can reschedule."
Seven of the top eight seeds remain in the Boys’ 18s draw. Each of the Top 8 seeds in the Girls’ 18s draw is still alive. The winners of the 18-and-under singles will be awarded a wild card into the 2002 Ericsson Open qualifying rounds.
No. 2 seed Svetlana Kuznetsova of Russia was the highest active Girls’ 18s seed yesterday. She defeated Salome Devidze of Georgia, 6-2, 6-1, in a first round match. Kuznetsova, runner-up at the Wimbledon and US Open girls’ singles this summer, is currently ranked No. 1 in the world and is in a select group of young ladies capable of finishing the year as the top-ranked junior in the world.
The match of the day in the girls’ draw saw 14-year-old Maria Sharapova of Russia outlast No. 9 seed Barbora Strycova of Czech Republic, 1-6, 6-4, 7-6 (4). The final singles match of the day lasted two hours and 46 minutes with the third and decisive set taking up nearly half the time. Sharapova served for the match and led 5-3, 30-15 in the final set, but Strycova rallied for a 6-5 advantage by winning 11of the next 14 points. Sharapova then broke to force the tiebreaker, which she won to advance to the third round.
Sharapova’s next opponent will be No. 4 seed Marion Bartoli of France on Wednesday. Bartoli, the current US Open girls’ singles champion, defeated Andreja Klepac in straight sets.
Only 15 matches in the 18-and-under age group are scheduled for Tuesday, completing the entire second round. Muller and Marie-Gaiane Mikaelian, the No. 1 Girls’ 18s seed, will be in action.
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