Published on June 18, 2004

Thai No 2 makes it to main draw

Danai Udomchoke became the second Thai man to have his name inscribed in the Wimbledon main draw after fighting off a bout of nerves to beat Swiss Filipp Prpic 7-5 6-4 6-1 in the rain-delayed final qualifying round on Thursday.

The world No 161 had to summon all his courage to put behind him last year’s nightmare when he lost to Belgian Christopher Rochus in five close sets, to beat the 271st-ranked Prpic in a match that was several hours behind schedule because of rain.

“I was nervous at the beginning because I wanted to win and qualify for the main draw so much. I could not stop thinking about that loss. That’s why the first two sets were close even though I knew I was the better player,’’ said Danai, who squandered a series of opportunities to Rochus in the final qualifying last year.

The 24-year-old has now registered as only the second Thai player in the Open Era to make the men’s singles main draw at All England after Paradorn Srichaphan in 1999. But his debut in a major main draw came in the US Open last year.

“I’m so happy but not as much as I was at the US Open. But Wimbledon is a great tournament and I feel proud,’’ said Danai who was greatly boosted by the presence of his mother, sister and niece. For the first time he was supported by all of them, especially his mother, in a major. “Their company helped me a lot. Normally my family does not come with me on tour,’’ said Danai whose breakthrough at Wimbledon could also be attributed to Czech coach Jan Storces. Danai and his close friend Lu Yen-hsun have shared the US$2,000 cost of hiring Storces over the past two weeks. And both players successfully made it through to the main draw.

“He played a key role in helping me reach the main draw. We also worked together when I qualified for the US Open,’’ said Danai, whose next challenge is to move beyond the first round in a slam. He lost to Tommy Robredo of Spain at Flushing Meadows last year.

Austria’s Stefan Koubek will be his first round opponent in the main draw. No matter who comes his way, “It will be tough whomever I have to meet in the main draw. I feel more comfortable on grass now and I’m gaining more and more confidence with each match I play.”

Danai looked rusty when he started his match against Prpic. He lost his early service game to fall 0-2 behind but fought back to surge ahead at 6-5 in the first set. The Thai created a crucial break to go ahead 5-4 in the second and held his serve for a 2-0 set lead. Danai took a full charge in the final set and allowed his opponent only one game.