TENNIS ROUNDUP : Australians Defeat U.S. in Hopman Cup
PERTH, Australia — Monica Seles and Goran Prpic both won singles matches, then combined for a victory in mixed doubles as Yugoslavia upset the top-seeded United States pair, 3-0, in the final today of the Hopman Cup team tennis championship.
Seles crushed Zina Garrison 6-1, 6-1, taking only 65 minutes; Prpic rallied to beat David Wheaton, 4-6, 6-3, 7-5, and the two then combined to beat the Americans, 8-3, in the mixed doubles, which was reduced to one “professional” set.
The Yugoslav pair shared $100,000 for the victory in the exhibition tournament.
The 12-nation exhibition was one of a series of warm-up tournaments before the Australian Open, which begins Jan. 14 in Melbourne.
John McEnroe has pulled out of next week’s Sydney tennis tournament and might be forced to miss the Australian Open because of a shoulder injury, his agent said today.
“He just got injured in practice this week and he doesn’t know how bad it is,” Sergio Palmieri said in a telephone interview from his office in Bologna, Italy. “The doctors said don’t play for five to six days, and he will see them again on Tuesday when he will make his decision about the Australian.”
American Jim Courier beat Dutchman Paul Haarhuis in the second round of the $150,000 Australian Hardcourt tennis championship at Adelaide.
The second-seeded Courier, playing his first tournament in seven weeks, moved to the quarterfinals with a 6-4, 6-4 victory over Haarhuis.
Courier will next meet Martin Sinner of Germany.
At Brisbane, Australia, Larisa Savchenko overwhelmed top-seeded Jana Novotna in straight sets, 6-2, 6-4, to advance to the quarterfinals of the Danone Open.
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