Open earns Li's blessing
CHINESE number one Li Fang has hailed the inaugural Nokia Women's Open in Beijing as an important milestone in the development of tennis on the mainland.
Li, who yesterday lost to Pam Shriver 4-6, 7-5, 6-1 in the quarter-finals of the US$100,000 professional event, said the wide talent base in China has been crying out for tournaments of this calibre.
The 21-year-old, China's leading hope for the women's singles title at this year's Asian Games in Hiroshima, is fortunate to travel the region and play against overseas opposition.
But she said: ''This tournament is good and will be very successful. We have longed for tournaments like this in China so our players can compete against top players from overseas.
''If I, or other Chinese players can do well, it would show the juniors that we can compete with top players.'' The Hunan-born, Beijing-based Li was China's most successful player in the tournament.
Her compatriot Chen Li, who is partnering Li in the doubles competition, was defeated in the second round, also by Shriver.
Indonesian second seed Yayuk Basuki will play Shriver in the semi-final after a topsy-turvy win over Maja Zivec-Skulj, winning 6-0, 0-6, 7-6 (7-4).
Japan's Kyoko Nagatsuka and Czech Republic's Andrea Strnadova meet in the other semi-final.
