Day 2
by Barry Wood

Normal service was resumed at the Pattaya Open on Tuesday, with warm weather, even if there wasn't much sun. No sun is okay. It can be 55 degrees in direct sunlight, which is a bit of a challenge. It might be fine for lounging by the pool or on the beach beside the courts, but it's not much fun for running around in. But the first round took place without the second seed. Or who should have been the second seed. Sania Mirza pulled out. This is what she said.

"I am very sorry for withdrawing from the Pattaya Open 2008. I was really looking forward to playing this event, but I am still feeling the left hamstring injury which occurred during the Australian Open. Although I was at Fed Cup (in Bangkok) I wasn't able to participate. I am really looking forward to next year's event."

Fair enough. The tournament still has a couple of tremendous players topping the bill. The top seed is Agnieszka Radwanska, from Poland. If you haven't heard of her you haven't been paying attention, because she beat Maria Sharapova at the 2007 US Open, and she's also beaten Venus Williams, Martina Hingis, Daniela Hantuchova, Marion Bartoli, Nadia Petrova and Elena Dementieva. And she just defeated world number two Svetlana Kuznetsova at the Australian Open on her way to the quarter-finals. She won the Wimbledon junior title in 2005 and the French Open juniors in 2006.

Promoted to second seed is Aussie Casey Dellaqua, another player who did extremely well at the Australian Open. In fact, it was a life-changing experience for her, putting her on the world map in a big way as she beat former champion Amelie Mauresmo to reach the fourth round. A great down-to-earth personality, she charmed everyone she met and became a star. So one worth watching, and worth watching out for in the weeks and months ahead. One tournament does not make a great player, and she's fully aware that she has to follow up what she did in such spectacular style in Melbourne. Pattaya, then, will be a good test for her. Win or lose, she's loving her first visit, despite Monday's rain. What she and the other players really enjoy is staying at the Dusit Resort and being able to return to their room after a match to shower. No hour-long journey to the courts to be endured as there can be at some other tournaments.

Among other players in the draw is Yung-Jan Chan from Chinese Taipei or Taiwan, whichever you choose to call it. She's a promising youngster, just 18, who reached the Bangkok final last October. At the other end of the age scale there's the always amiable and 33-year old Jill Craybas from the United States, who famously beat Serena Williams at Wimbledon in 2005. Jill, who is seeded seven, faced Ukraine's Olga Savchuk today and won 6-1 6-1. Then there's former Pattaya champion Anne Kremer from Luxembourg, and 2006 Bangkok winner Vania King from the US.

And, of course, there's Thai favourite Tamarine Tanasugarn, who faced eighth seed Anastasia Rodionova in the first round. Anastasia was from Russia the last time she played here, but now she's an Aussie because she's applied for citizenship and they need every decent player they can find at the moment. So now it's Anastasia Rodionova from Australia. But she still talked to herself in Russian as she struggled to find any form at all against a very efficient Tammy, who claimed a convincing 6-2 6-1 victory.

It doesn't happen often. In fact, it might never have happened at all. Yaroslava Shvedova took a shower during her match against fellow Russian Ekaterina Bychkova. The heat rule was in force, which allows the players to take a 10 minute break before a third set, and she used the time to shower after losing the second set on a tiebreak. It didn't do her any good though, as she lost the final set 6-3.

Before the main draw got underway they had to finish off the qualifying rounds, and the players who came through were Yi-Fan Xu and Yi-Miao Zhou from China, Vesna Manasieva of Russia and Japan's Akiko Yonemura. It was an especially good effort by Yi-Miao Zhou, because she's ranked way down at 455.