Staging one of the best wins of her short career, New Zealand's Eden Marama yesterday won through to the second round of the US$10,000 ($18,500) Wellington women's international tournament.
Marama, 16, beat fifth-seed Chia-Jung Chuang, of Taiwan, who has a WTA ranking of 427, in three sets, 6-7 (4-7), 6-1, 6-1.
Marama, who lives and trains just outside Paris, but hails from Wellington, was 0-3 down in the first few minutes of the match.
However, she won the next four games to lead the set, but then eventually lost in a tiebreak 4-7.
"I was just nervous and couldn't hit the ball," she said.
Marama raised her game on her serve in the second set, and started to out-power her opponent.
"I got angry with myself and had to do something, otherwise I was not going to win.
"In the first set everything was a little off, but in the second everything started to go into place."
Marama cleaned up the set 6-1 and then proved herself one of the event's hardest hitters by dropping just one game in the final set for victory over one of the highest-ranked players she has faced.
The teenager, who reached the quarter-finals of the Australian Open junior singles, will play the winner of the Lara Giltinan (Australia)-Lisa Wilkinson (Wellington) clash.
Marama's sister, Paula, 18, also won, beating Wellington's Natalie O'Rourke after her scheduled opponent, Keiko Tameishi, of Japan, failed to show up for the match.
Her 6-0, 6-0 victory over O'Rourke set her up for a rematch with last year's finalist, Ilke Gers, whom she overcame in three sets in the Wellington Open a few days ago.
In other matches, top seed Shelley Stephens beat Wellington qualifier Natalie Dean in straight sets and will now face talented Australian Dubravka Cupac, who beat another Australian, Bree Calderwood, in straight sets.
Cupac, who turned 17 yesterday, could trouble Stephens, who was not in her best form against Dean.
Second-seed Kristen Van Elden cruised into the second round by beating Wellington's Makere Bradnam 6-1, 6-0.
- NZPA
Tennis: Teen ousts fifth seed in opener
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