Michael Chang to face Petr Korda in Washington Classic final

WASHINGTON, July 20: Defending champion Michael Chang and second seed Petr Korda advanced to their first meeting in an ATP final with strai...

WASHINGTON, July 20: Defending champion Michael Chang and second seed Petr Korda advanced to their first meeting in an ATP final with straight-set victories here at the $ 675,000 Washington Classic.

World No 2 Chang ousted New Zealand’s Brett Steven 6-2, 7-6 (7/4) while 21st ranked Czech Korda eliminated American qualifier David Wheaton 6-2, 6-3 at this US Open tuneup.

Chang has beaten Korda in five of their seven prior career matches, including all three on hardcourts and won their recent meeting last year at Key Biscayne. Tomorrow’s winner takes home $90,000.

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Chang is seeking his fifth title of 1997 and 100th career triumph as a top seed. The Asian-American star has 14 titles and a 99-12 record in 27 events as a top seed. Chang is 40-10 in 1997, 27-3 on hardcourts.

Qualifier beats Mantilla

STUTTGART: Spain’s Albert Portas, who was the last automatic qualifier for the tournament, posted a quick 6-2, 6-4 win over compatriot Felix Mantilla to qualify for the semi-finals of the $1.04 million Mercedes Cup.

Portas, ranked 52 in the world, held a 5-2 lead over Mantilla when their match was adjourned yesterday. When play resumed today, the pair played for six minutes long enough for the underdog to complete his opening-set win before another shower arrived.

The weather finally broke long enough for Portas, 23, to break in the second set and carry on victory as Mantilla returned long to lose in the eighth game.

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Earlier, Karol Kucera overcame two rain delays to finally earn a place in the semi-finals with a 6-3, 2-6, 7-5 win over fourth seed Sergi Bruguera.In the semi-finals, Portas plays Kucera, while third seed Spaniard Alex Corretja, who beat compatriot Alberto Berasategui, meets Albert Costa, also of Spain, who knocked out 1996 finalist Yevgeny Kafelnikov of Russia.

Big guns for ATP

LOS ANGELES: Four of the biggest servers on the ATP tour will bring plenty of firepower to the $328,000 dollar ATP tour event starting here tomorrow, led by third-seeded Australian Mark Philippoussis.

Philippoussis, the 20-year old whose serve was clocked at an ATP record 143 mph in Scottsdale, Arizona in March, will be looking for his fourth title of 1997.

The field also boasts the third-fastest server in 1996 Wimbledon champion Richard Krajicek, the fourth-fastest in Croatian Goran Ivanisevic and the fifth-fastest in Sweden’s Thomas Enqvist.

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Tournament organisers were celebrating Andre Agassi’s decision to accept a wild card invitation on Friday. The mercurial American will be seeded seventh.

Seles concedes

MAHWAH (NEW JERSEY): Hampered by back pain, Monica Seles retired from the semifinal against Chandra Rubin in the A and P tennis classic.

Seles, the top seed and the third-ranked player in the world, won the first set 6-3 and the players were on serve with Rubin leading 3-2 when Seles decided she couldn’t continue in the exhibition event yesterday.

Testud in final

PALERMO: Sandrine Testud of France, the second seed in the $163,000 Palermo WTA women’s tournament, advanced yesterday to the final by defeating the No. 3 seed, Austrian Barbara Schett, 0-6, 6-3, 7-6 (7-3). The 25-year-old Testud will play either Austrian Barbara Paulus or Russian Elena Makarova.