Bhupathi enters final qualifying round

Meanwhile Nirupama Vaidyanathan after winning the first set crashed out of the qualifying tournament losing to Austrian Stella Plischke. The latter won 3-6, 6-4, 6-3.

While one former champion, Pat Cash winner here in 1987, was awaiting his third round match in the qualifiers to make the tournament proper, the 1992 winner, Andre Agassi, sent word of his pulling out of the Championships, on account of a wrist injury, which had also forced him to opt out of the French Open last month.

Sixth seed Thomas Muster, who has not won a round in four visits to Wimbledon, has already announced that he is pulling out due to injury.Another direct entry, Germany’s Oliver Gross, will also miss the championship because of a hand injury.

Both Agassi and Gross will be replaced by qualifiers, and they could well be some lucky’ losers in the qualifying tournament.

Bhupathi, who alongwith Leander Paes is ranked 20th in the world in doubles, could run into 11th seeds, Neil Broad of England and Piet Norval of South Africa, in case the Indians win the first round against Cristian Brandi and Filippo Messori in the main Championships.

News also filtered in of the defeat Paes suffered at the hands of Sjeng Schalken of the Netherlands in the second round at Rosmalen. Paes lost 2-6, 2-6 and later in the doubles with Mark Kiel gave a walkover to top seeds Jacco Eltingh and Paul Haarhuis.