NEWS
OTHER SPORTS
DIARY
PEOPLE
MATCH REPORTS
SLIDE SHOW
ARCHIVES

Little-known Thai shocks Norman

Two days after winning the Shanghai Open, Swede Magnus Norman found himself out of the Singapore Heineken Open today, a 6-3, 1-6, 6-3 upset victim of fighting Thai spoiler Paradorn Srichaphan.

The 19th-ranked Norman was playing his opening match in Singapore just 48 hours after defeating Marcelo Rios in a rain-delayed final on Monday in China.

''I'm very disappointed,'' said the Swede of his performance in the 725,000-dollar tour stop. ''It's always tough to change from outdoor to indoor. It's very different. I was not hitting the ball as cleanly as I did last week.''

Srichaphan, the third national No. 1 in his family and the world's No. 156 player, scored the upset of his life as he knocked out the trophy leader on this season's ATP tour.

The Asian fell to his knees after the victory. Srichaphan, 20, later bowed to the crowd after reaching the quarter-finals in two straight tournaments. He lost on Friday to Norman in a Shanghai semi-final.

Norman's fifth trophy of 1999 claimed at Shanghai put him into the lead on the tour, one better than both world No. 1 Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras.

''I'm having a great year and I still have three more tournaments to go,'' said the 23-year-old Swede. ''I'm playing more aggressively than before and moving well. Winning also gives confidence, you go for more on court.''

The Thai won the first set before Norman rallied to take the second. But in the third, Srichaphan broke twice to ensure his upset win.

The contest ended as Norman sent a backhand wide. Unseeded Todd Woodbridge dealt a blow to 1998 semi-finalist Sjeng Schalken, dealing the fifth seed from Holland a 4-6, 7-5, 6-3 defeat in their first- round meeting.

Number 154-ranked Woodbridge, who reached the quarter-finals last week in Shaghai and played the final in doubles, credited his 10 matches in China for restoring his flagging confidence.

''Shanghai was exactly what I needed, lots of matches. This year is a write-off in singles, but I'm building a base for 2000, putting stuff in the bank for next year.''

He also did not want repeat his history here. ''I remember losing to Schalken on this court last year,'' said the Australian, who first played in Singapore a decade ago. ''I knew he made the semi-finals here last year and was under some pressure.

''My attitude was to try and grind it out. I started hitting the ball well when I was down 2-5 in the first set.''

Woodbridge called his current form ''by far my best of the year''.

Daniel Nestor got a singles win for Canada while compatriot Sebastien Lareau took a loss in the opening round.

Nestor beat American Cecil Mamiit 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 while Dane Kenneth Carlsen handed U.S. Open doubles champion Lareau his second consecutive first-round defeat this month in Asia.

Woodbridge's doubles partner Mark Woodforde, last year's losing finalist to top seed Rios, fell at the first hurdle, beaten by Frenchman Anthony Depuis 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7-2).

Draw cards Rios and unseeded local hero Michael Chang were playing night-time showcase matches at the Singapore indoor stadium. Rios was taking on Swedish qualifier Fredrik Jonsson while Chang faced Indian Leander Paes.

UNI