SPORTS NEWS FLASH: Noppowan secures Phuket ITF final berth

PHUKET: Thailand’s stellar tennis talent Noppowan Lertcheewakarn defeated number four seed Reka-Luca Jani of Hungary to continue her fantastic run of form at the Phuket Chang ITF Women’s Pro Circuit event being held at Thanyapura Sports and Leisure Club (TSLC).

Having beaten the number one seed Erika Sema in the quarter final yesterday, and previously beaten the Hungarian, the 20-year-old Thai went into today’s semi-final clash confident of a win.

The match didn’t start well for Noppowan, who lost the first set 2-6. But she gained control and took the second set 6-3.

Seeded number six for this tournament, she had her eyes firmly focused on the US$25,000 final and conceded just one game in the third set for a 2-6, 6-3, 6-1 win.

In the second semi-final, Dinah Pfizenmaier of Germany cruised past the number eight seed Yuliya Beygelzimer of Ukraine, 6-2, 6-2.

The women’s doubles final produced a shock result this afternoon with Natela Dzalamidze (Russia) / Marta Sirotkina (Russia) making light work of the number one seeds Chin-Wei Chan (Taipei) / Saisai Zheng (China), 6-4, 6-1.

The women’s singles final will be played tomorrow at 10am. Get on up to TSLC and give Noppowan the best of Phuket support!

— Neil Quail