Bartoli blames upset on injury; TENNIS DFS CLASSIC: Last year's Wimbledon finalist bows out.Byline: By Nick PullenTHERE were more surprises in store at Edgbaston Priory's DFS Classic DFS Classic is a Tier III tennis tournament on the WTA Tour held at the Edgbaston Priory Club in Edgbaston, Birmingham, United Kingdom. Held since 1982, the tournament is played on outdoor grass courts. yesterday as top seed and World No.10 Marion Bartoli of France was beaten by Czech player Petra Cetkovska 5-7, 6-4, 6-0. Bartoli looked a shadow of the player who reached last year's Wimbledon final - especially in the third and final set which World No.52 Cetkovska dominated. Bartoli later pointed to a problem with her wrist which she hurt in the French Open, after it was suggested she should have pulled out of the game, but she claimed: "I try to be fair to everyone. "I have a problem with the wrist. I can't concentrate on my game, because there's something wrong." It leaves Bartoli's prospects of playing at Wimbledon in serious doubt. Also going out at Edgbaston was India's popular sixth seed Sania Mirza Sania Mirza (born November 15, 1986) is an Indian tennis player. She was born in Mumbai, brought up in Hyderabad. Coached by her father, Imran Mirza, she began playing tennis at the age of six, turning professional in 2003. who was easily beaten 6-3, 6-0 by New Zealand New Zealand (zē`lənd), island country (2005 est. pop. 4,035,000), 104,454 sq mi (270,534 sq km), in the S Pacific Ocean, over 1,000 mi (1,600 km) SE of Australia. The capital is Wellington; the largest city and leading port is Auckland. player Marina Erakovic. World No.33 Mirza, who enjoys a huge following in Birmingham, has just returned to the Sony Ericsson For an arrangement of Sony Ericsson products, see list of Sony Ericsson products Sony Ericsson is a joint venture established in 2001 by the Japanese consumer electronics company Sony Corporation and the Swedish telecommunications company Ericsson to make mobile phones. circuit following surgery to her wrist. She claimed: "I'm only here to get matches. I still feel pain in the wrist. At one point I was taking five to six painkillers a day which wasn't the solution to anything. "It doesn't matter that I'm not winning at the moment - the fact is I'm back!" The smart money is now on third seed Nicole Vaidisova to lift the title this year. World No.19 Vaidisova from the Czech Republic made light work of of Frenchwoman Nathalie Dechy 6-1, 6-3. She now faces Russian Ekaterina Makarova today, who disposed of Britain's Elena Baltacha in the opening round. CAPTION(S): OUT... top seed Marion Bartoli's Wimbledon is in doubt. |
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