Bhupathi enters second round

ROEHAMPTON, June 19: Mahesh Bhupathi won his opening round match in the Wimbledon qualifiers at Roehampton yesterday. He beat David Salvado...

ROEHAMPTON, June 19: Mahesh Bhupathi won his opening round match in the Wimbledon qualifiers at Roehampton yesterday. He beat David Salvador of Spain 6-0, 6-2.

Meanwhile, Pat Cash, the 1987 Wimbledon champion, clawed his way back to beat American Steve Campbell. The Australian scored a 4-6, 6-2, 11-9 victory in two hours, 20 minutes, but lost his temper several times along the way.Cash unleashed several expletives as he clashed with line judges, ball girls and spectators, but escaped censure by the umpire.

Seles hopeful

EASTBOURNE: Former world number-one Monica Seles, who will launch her bid to win the only Grand Slam title missing from her collection next week, hopes Wimbledon8217;s new number-one showcourt will help her achieve her goal.

8220;To be honest I8217;ve never felt I8217;ve played great tennis at Wimbledon and that bugs me,8221; rattled off the fast-talking American left-hander who is defending her title at the WTA event here.

8220;I love centre-court for its extra special feeling 8212; even if I can8217;t say I8217;m sad to see the old number-one court go. It was never very nice to me,8221; she added. The 23-year-old Seles, who is seeded two for next week8217;s championships behind Swiss teenager Martina Hingis, flopped on Wimbledon8217;s now demolished number-one court against Slovakia8217;s virtually unknown Katarina Studenikova twelve months ago. 8220;I always love to win any Grand Slam 8212; but especially Wimbledon because I have never done it there,8221; she said.

8220;I don8217;t want to put extra pressure on myself by saying I8217;m going to win it. There will still many other years for me to have a chance.8221; But she added ominusly: 8220;Wimbledon looks a very open competition this time and if somebody, hopefully me, gets her game in shape early on they will be hard to stop.8221;

Pierce injured

DEN BOSCH: French second seed Mary Pierce withdrew from the Heineken Trophy grass court tournament today because of an injured right elbow. Pierce, seeded ninth for Wimbledon, was due to play her quarter-final match against eighth seed Asa Carlsson of Sweden.

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Wimbledon champion Richard Krajicek, seeded three, indicated he is unlikely to stay for Sunday8217;s final. The Dutchman said he would play a couple of rounds here, but playing the final would be tricky with his Wimbledon title defence due to begin Monday.

Odds favour Sampras

LONDON: Leading odds issued by bookmakers William Hill for the Wimbledon tennis championships which begin on Monday:

Men8217;s singles: 13-8 Pete Sampras, 6-1 Richard Krajicek, 13-2 Boris Becker, 7-1 Goran Ivanisevic, 15-2 Mark Phillippousis, 9-1 Yevgeny Kafelnikov, 14-1 Patrick Rafter, 20-1 Tim Henman, 25-1 Michael Chang, 28-1 Jonas Bjorkman, 33-1 and upwards others.

Women8217;s singles: 6-4 on Martina Hingis, 3-1 Monica Seles, 9-1 Jana Novotna, 10-1 Iva Majoli, 16-1 Lindsay Davenport, Aranxta Sanchez-Vicario, Amanda Coetzer, 25-1 Conchita Martinez, Anke Huber, 28-1 Mary Pierce, Mary Joe Fernandez, 33-1 and upwards others.

Security stepped up

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LONDON: Security at this year8217;s Grand Slam tennis tournament at Wimbledon is being stepped up, the All-England Club confirmed today, with officials and police eager to avoid a repeat of April8217;s Grand National chaos.

8220;Security has been increased and the Grand National was taken into account. We liaise very closely with police on these matters,8221; an All-England spokesman said.

A bomb scare halted April8217;s Grand National Steeplechase. The race was postponed for two days.

All bags will be searched when spectators enter the grounds and all vehicles will be checked as part of the increased security measures.