 Photographer: Hiromasa Mano
Date: 13 Oct 2006 |  Photographer: Hiromasa Mano
Date: 13 Oct 2006 |  Photographer: Hiromasa Mano
Date: 13 Oct 2006 |  Photographer: Hiromasa Mano
Date: 12 Oct 2006 |  Photographer: Hiromasa Mano
Date: 13 Oct 2006 |  Photographer: Hiromasa Mano
Date: 13 Oct 2006 |  Photographer: Hiromasa Mano
Date: 13 Oct 2006 |  Photographer: Hiromasa Mano
Date: 13 Oct 2006 |
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| 13 Oct 2006 - Helen McFetridge | |
| Unseeded Japanese into Osaka Semis |
Unseeded Japanese players Yuichi Sugita and Tatsuma Ito caused the big upsets in Osaka today as they knocked out fifth seed Greg Jones (AUS) and 16th seed Peraklat Siriluethaiwattana respectively. Sugita, who has an excellent record in Osaka having reached the quarter finals in his previous two appearances here, has now gone one better by making it through to the last four. He will now play Ito in the semi finals, thus guaranteeing the Japanese fans a local finalist. Ito, winner of the Grade 1 Japan Junior Open earlier this year, made short work of Siriluethaiwattana, allowing the Thai player just three games in a 62 61 victory.
The top half of the draw also saw an upset as top seed Luka Belic (CRO) was defeated in straight sets by Finland’s Harry Heliovaara. The 12th seed now takes on another Croat, unseeded Luka Somen, who came from a set down to eliminate Zhou-Qing Zhou (CHN). 16-year-old Somen is playing in his first ever Grade A event, his previous best result a semi-final showing at a Grade 4 tournament in Sweden earlier this year.
In stark contrast to the boys’ event, all four of the girls’ top seeds have made it through to the semi-finals, with none of them dropping a set today. Top seed Caroline Wozniacki (DEN) continued her dominant form with a 63 62 win over Hong Kong’s Ling Zhang, seeded seven, while local favourite Ayumi Morita, seeded two, was almost as comfortable in a 64 63 victory over fellow Japanese Shiho Akita. Those two will be firm favourites to meet in Sunday’s final, but third seed Nikola Hofmanova (AUT) and number four Anastasia Pivovarova (RUS) will be aiming to stop them on Saturday.
The doubles finals will also take place tomorrow, with Wozniacki and Morita taking on Pivovarova and Ksenia Lykina in the girls’ decider, while the boys’ final is an all-Japanese affair featuring Ito and Hiromasa Oku against Sho Aida and Fumiaki Kita.
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