Tennis: Cork all-rounder Emma Murphy was the only Irish player in action yesterday when the Ellesse ITF Women's Irish Open championships began at the Castleknock club.
Murphy, an international soccer player on scholarship at the University of San Diego but who has opted to concentrate on tennis, made an early exit, beaten in straight sets by the superior skills and persistence of a remarkable Swiss entry, Timea Bacsinszky, in a little over an hour, 6-3 6-2.
The Swiss youngster, who is only 14, is predicted to be a future world star.
The ITF world-ranking points on offer has attracted a field of quality overseas players, and early indications of this came over the weekend during the qualifying rounds when Tipperary's Clodagh McMorrow was the only Irish player to survive.
It was a case of out of the frying pan into the fire for the Tipperary girl as she drew Ireland's fifth-seeded Elsa O'Riain in the main draw.
Only two Irish players, Yvonne Doyle (seeded two) and O'Riain, earned places in the main draw by right. Five others received wild cards in an event which has Britain's Amanda James as the number one seed.
The Irish will be out in force today and included is Karen Nugent, one of the four Irish main-draw wild-card entries, who takes on the defending champion Helena Norfeldt of Sweden.
