Tennis: Overseas stint serves this apprentice well

By DAVE WORSLEY

Each year the New Zealand Residential championships produce a surprise player.

This year, apart from the predicted success of whizkid Marina Erakovic, the name to jump out is Matt Prentice.

The only unseeded player to make the men's semifinals, Prentice has a cracking serve and knocked off another Wellingtonian and the second seed, Robbie Cheyne, in straight sets in his quarter-final.

The 22-year-old, 1.98m Prentice has had his serve clocked at 209km/h while playing college tennis in the United States, where he has spent the past four years.

His 6-4, 7-6 win over Cheyne sets up a showdown with Alistair Hunt for a place in the final.



It is Prentice's first tournament in New Zealand in more than four years.

The last time he played here was in the Caro Bowl competition for Pompallier and in the national 18s championships.

He said his game had improved a lot at Oklahoma State University, where he will graduate in May with an international business degree.

"I learnt plenty in the US. Today against Robbie I was serving pretty big at the important stages of the match.

"When I play Al, I just hope to continue the same way but I know he's a good player."

Top seed and defending champion Simon Rea, from North Harbour, beat seventh-seed Adam McNeil in two tight sets. He meets fourth-seed Lee Radovanovich in the other semifinal, at 10am today.



Radovanovich looked to be in for a tough match against Daniel King-Turner.

He won the first set in a tiebreak, but his experience did the talking against the young Cantabrian and he won the next set to love.

In the women's singles, Erakovic continued her run of nine straight wins after taking the 18s nationals in the week.

Erakovic beat third-seed Ilke Gers 6-3, 6-4 and will now play Leanne Baker in the semifinals.

Baker downed Erakovic in the final of the Auckland champs in three sets just over a week ago and has not been tested in the Residentials.

The New Zealand No 3, who originally hails from the Waikato, easily dispatched unseeded Rachel Dive in straight sets.

For Erakovic, it was yet another good win on her way to what is no doubt going to be a battle as to who will get the wildcards for the ASB Classic.

The 14-year-old was too consistent for Gers, who has a WTA ranking of 515.

Erakovic is in a three-way battle for wildcards to the international event, alongside Baker and Residentials top seed Shelley Stephens.

Stephens was forced to battle in hot conditions against eighth-seed Dianne Hollands, of Otago, who now lives and plays her tennis in the United States.

Stephens eventually won 6-4, 6-4, but only after there had been some discussions over line-calls.

Stephens plays sixth-seed Niki Tippins, who out-rallied fourth-seed Tracey O'Connor 6-3, 6-2.