China’s Li Na, Taiwan’s Lu win at Open

China’s grand slam heroine Li Na stormed into the Australian Open third round yesterday as a top official said it was only a matter of time before the country produced a great male player.
As Li subdued Australian wildcard Olivia Rogowska 6-2, 6-2, delighting her Chinese fans on centre court, compatriot Peng Shuai was sent crashing in the second round.
But Taiwan’s Lu Yen-hsun beat Florent Serra of France to set up a daunting clash with Juan Martin del Potro – and a chance to add another chapter to his history of giant-killing at major tournaments.
Earlier, French Open winner Li was broken in the first set but proved far too strong for Rogowska as she stayed on course for a fourth-round clash with Kim Clijsters, her conqueror in last year’s final.
“I think today, the score looks like it was easy, but some games she was fighting a lot,” said the fifth seed from Wuhan.
“I mean, she’s young. I think she needs more experience. I am 29 years old, so I have a lot of experience on the court.”
Li reached the Melbourne final last year en route to becoming Asia’s first grand slam winner at Roland Garros, a result which catapulted her to instant celebrity in China.
While China’s women have enjoyed strong performances in recent years, the country’s top-ranked men’s player is Zhang Ze, languishing at a lowly 292nd in the rankings.
But new Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) boss Brad Drewett said it was just a matter of time before a world-beating men’s player emerged from China, which he acknowledged was pivotal to the game’s future.
“I get asked this question a lot when I’m in China: ‘When are we going to have the first great Chinese male player?’ My answer is, ‘it’s not a matter of if, it’s a matter of when’,” Drewett said.
Li will face Spain’s Anabel Medina Garrigues in the third round while China’s Zheng Jie plays her second match, against Italian Roberta Vinci, today.
Meanwhile Taiwan’s Lu, ranked 79, beat Frenchman Serra 7-5, 6-2, 6-2 to set up a third-round match with world number 11 del Potro, the 2009 US Open champion.