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Unseeded Americans Thrive at WTA Indian Wells
Posted on March 10, 2006
On another all-unseeded day for the women at Indian Wells the qualifiers took center stage, with four advancing into the second round led by comeback Americans Jessica Kirkland (d. Klosel from a set down) and Bethanie Mattek (d. (Q) Pratt from a set down), joined by Croat Ivana Lisjak (d. (WC) Stevenson) and Belarus' Anastasiya Yakimova (d. (Q) Poutchek, bagel in the first set).
"I'm not going to give up," Stevenson told reporters, breaking down in tears over returning to the game and her shoulder injury which refuses to heal. "I love tennis."
American wildcards Vania King (d. (Q) Rodionova) and Shenay Perry (d. Diaz-Oliva) also gave U.S. fans reason to cheer, while wildcard Brenda Schultz-McCarthy's comeback was short-lived after managing six games off Japan's Aiko Nakamura in an opening-round loss.
Other players successfully into the second round Thursday were France's Stephanie Foretz (d. Peng from a set down), Severine Bremond (d. Ondraskova) and Stephanie Cohen-Aloro (d. Parra Santonja); China's Li Na (d. (Q) Kremer), the Ukraine's Viktoriya Kutuzova (d. Vesnina), Spain's Lourdes Dominguez Lino (d. Vento-Kabchi in three), Bulgarian Tsvetana Pironkova (d. Ruano Pascual), Japan's Shinobu Asagoe (d. Sprem in three), and Finland's Emma Laine (d. Sromova).
"I was lacking energy," Peng, still recovering from a foot injury, told reporters. "I kept trying to fight but it was my first match in a long time so I have to focus on getting better and better."
On Friday the women's seeds come out to play at Indian Wells in (WC) Harkleroad vs. (2) Davenport, Jamea "Action" Jackson vs. (3) Sharapova, (Q) Pin vs. (19) Hingis, (7) Groenefeld vs. Schruff in an all-German, (5) Myskina vs. Washington, (31) Granville vs. Garbin, Shaughnessy vs. (27) Domachowska, Ani vs. (9) Dechy, (15) Jankovic vs. Sybille "The Whammer" Bammer, (30) Loit vs. Raymond, Stosur vs. (10) Safina, (13) Anabel "Funky Cold" Medina Garrigues vs. Daniilidou, Gagliardi vs. (21) Peer, (23) Castano vs. (Q) Yuan, Sucha vs. (26) Smashnova, and (20) Bartoli vs. Bychkova.
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