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Published on November 11, 2007

Danai Udomchoke and Tamarine Tanasugarn lived up to expectations leading Thailand to the Asian Hopman Cup final against arch-rivals Taiwan following a sensational 2-1 win over South Korea.

Fans at the LTAT National Tennis Centre were treated to high-quality tennis with the two local players throwing everything they had to move past their opponents in the last pool A round-robin match.

In the first singles, Danai needed 2 hours 8 minutes to subdue South Korean rising star Im Kyu-tae 6-3 5-7 6-1 before Tamarine gritted her teeth to produce a comeback 6-4 6-4 win over Lee Ye-ra despite suffering from cramps during the match. The injury forced Thailand to concede their mixed doubles match.

The victory sent Thailand to the top of the group with two wins, which include the 3-0 victory over China. Taiwan qualified for the final today moving past Japan.

Danai could have won his match while serving for victory at 5-4 in the second but failed to capitalise on the opportunity. The inspired Im, who reached the semi-finals in Busan last week, blasted heavy ground strokes to take three straight games and level the match.

The Thai enjoyed an early break in the decisive set to lead 3-0 and the Korean ran out of steam with a wrist injury adding to his woes.

"I had expected a tough match. He was playing unbelievable at 4-5 in the second set, hitting two winners,'' Danai said. "But after I broke to lead 3-0 in the third set, his mental condition faded away."

In the final, Danai lines up against close friend Lu Yen-hsun, who eliminated him from the Japan Open first round last month after the Thai blew away a match point. "We take turns in winning. He might hold the edge a bit now as his ranking is higher. I have to hit every ball back and hope for him to miss,'' said Danai, who made his debut in the tournament.

Fans were prepared for a possible heartbreak after Tammy suffered cramps at 1-3 in the second set and called a medical time-out. But after being down 2-4 she fought back and hit a series of winners that clipped the baselines to turn the situation around.

"I was so lucky that I made all those shots as I had cramps all over my body. I had to thank the therapist for making me feel better. I need to rest and have good nutrition and hopefully I will be OK for tomorrow,'' said Tamarine, who is also recovering from an ankle injury.

"Taiwan will be even tougher. We have no option but to fight it out and take it point by point," she said.

Taiwan completed their domination in group B with a 2-1 win over Japan. Hsieh Su-wei, ranked No 133, outclassed Ayumi Morita of Japan 6-4 6-2. Lu Yen-hsun then put his team in an unassailable position with a 6-3 6-2 win over Japan's Kei Nishikori. Japan won the inconsequential mixed doubles 6-4 6-2.

Taiwan, who thrashed Uzbekistan 3-0 on Friday, finished atop the pool and moved ahead to the final.

Lerpong Amsa-ngiam

The Nation

Nonthaburi