KEY POINTS:
New Zealand No 1 Marina Erakovic was knocked out of the Australian Open qualifying tournament in Melbourne yesterday after a 2 1/4 hour battle.
Erakovic put up a tough fight but eventually fell 3-6, 7-5, 6-4 to Timea Bacsinszky of Switzerland, the 10th seed in the qualifying tournament who is ranked 124 in the world.
Erakovic, 18, struck first in the match, winning the first set comfortably before losing an up-and-down second set.
The 17-year-old Bacsinszky won the first four games of the second set before Erakovic won the next five games.
She could not maintain her momentum, however, and Bacsinszky took the set when she won the next three games.
Erakovic did not help her cause by serving nine double faults and hitting 44 unforced errors.
The New Zealander, ranked 153 in the world, has yet to qualify for the main draw of a grand slam tournament.
- NZPA