| HAMBURG, GERMANY (TICKER) -- A well-rested Martina Hingis
made quick work of Austria's Sylvia Plischke today to advance to the quarterfinals
at the $535,000 Betty Barclay Cup claycourt event.
Returning from a one-month layoff, Hingis looked strong in her 6-4,
6-1 victory. The Swiss teenager won this event in 1998 and reached the
final here as a 14-year-old in 1995.
Russian teenager Anna Kournikova headed the list of opening-round winners.
Kournikova, seeded sixth, rebounded from her disastrous weekend in Fed
Cup play by beating Anna Smashnova of Israel, 6-3, 6-2, in her debut at
this event. The 18-year-old Kournikova went 0-3 as her country failed to
reach the Fed Cup semifinals.
Seventh seed Anke Huber, a semifinalist twice in her homeland tournament,
earned a quarterfinal berth by getting past Denisa Chladkova of the Czech
Republic, 6-3, 4-6, 6-0. After starting her season with a 2-7 record, Huber
possibly turned her season around by winning last month's Estoril Open
in Portugal.
Fifth seed Barbara Schett of Austria failed to reach the second round,
retiring in the second set of her match with Russia's Tatiana Panova due
to illness. Panova was leading, 6-3, 1-0.
Hingis snapped a five-match losing streak to Lindsay Davenport by beating
her nemesis to win the Ericsson Open in Miami last month. Despite the win,
Hingis lost her No. 1 ranking to Davenport, but could regain it at the
conclusion of this event. She has to reach at least the final here to move
back into the top spot.
Defending champion and second seed Venus Williams will make her season
debut on Thursday when the American teenager takes on former bitter foe
Irina Spirlea of Romania in a second-round clash.
Williams has been on the sidelines for six months due to tendinitis
in both wrists. The 19-year-old American has not played in a WTA Tour event
since losing to Hingis in the semifinals of the season-ending Chase Championships
in November.
Former champions Conchita Martinez and Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario of Spain,
who led their country into the Fed Cup semifinals over the weekend, also
will seek quarterfinal berths on Thursday.
Martinez, the third seed and 1995 champion, will meet qualifier Lubomira
Bacheva of Bulgaria, and Sanchez-Vicario, the fourth seed, will face countrywoman
Magui Serna. Sanchez-Vicario won here in 1994 and 1996.
Mary Pierce of France, who lost to Williams, 6-0, 6-3, in last year's
final, is taking the week off.
First prize is $87,000.
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