Marina Erakovic brushed aside her disappointing early exit from the Australian Open to upset world No 27 and third seed Su-Wei Hsieh of Taiwan in the first round of the Pattaya Open in Thailand last night.
The New Zealander, who is ranked 75th in the world, beat her Taiwanese opponent 6-2 6-2 to set up a second-round match with Thai wildcard Varatchaya Wongteanchai.
Erakovic was ousted in the first round of the Australian Open by Frenchwoman Alize Cornet and was also beaten in the first round of the doubles.
She is using the Pattaya Open to prepare for the upcoming Fed Cup tournament in Kazakhstan and said it was a good win, especially against a player she hadn't faced for a long time.
"I felt like both of us started a little nervously because it was a first round,'' Erakovic said.
