Tennis : Graf, Kohde-Kilsch Gain Quarterfinals

West Germany’s Steffi Graf and Claudia Kohde-Kilsch advanced to a quarterfinal meeting in the Lipton International Players Championships, while Chris Evert and Miloslav Mecir won third-round matches in the $2.1-million tournament Sunday.

Graf, top-seeded in the women’s draw, lost the first game of her fourth-round match but won the next 11 on her way to a 6-1, 6-2 win over Jo Durie of Great Britain.

The victory sends the defending champion into the quarterfinals against sixth-seeded Kohde-Kilsch, who defeated Nathalie Tauziat of France, 6-1, 6-4.

“I need to feel I’m on top and playing well,” said Graf, who has been slowed by a cold since losing to Argentina’s Gabriela Sabatini in the final of the Virginia Slims of Florida. “I had that feeling from the start today.”

In evening matches, Yannick Noah defeated Joey Rive, 6-2, 6-3, 6-2, and Andre Chesnokov of the Soviet Union upset fourth-seeded Tim Mayotte, 6-0, 6-7, 6-2, 4-6, 6-3 to advance.

Evert, seeded second among the women, beat Terry Phelps, 6-1, 6-4, in a third-round match delayed until Sunday because of rain. After offering token resistance in the opening set, Phelps forced the three-time Wimbledon champion to work harder in the second.

Evert, who won her first-round match in 39 minutes and a second-rounder in 48 minutes, welcomed the extra pressure.

“The first set was very easy,” she said. “The second set, she probably felt like she didn’t have anything to lose and played much better. She really pressed me.

“It was a good match to have at this time. I needed to hit more balls than I did in the other matches.”

Mecir, the men’s third-seeded player from Czechoslovakia, routed Dan Goldie, 6-2, 6-2, 6-3, to advance to the fourth round against Mikael Pernfors of Sweden. Pernfors defeated Robert Seguso, 6-2, 6-0, 6-4.

Also reaching the men’s round of 16 were Jay Berger, a 6-3, 6-0, 6-2 winner over Italy’s Paolo Cane, and Emilio Sanchez of Spain, who outlasted Jim Gurfein, 3-6, 6-3, 3-6, 6-2, 6-4.

Fifth-seeded Helena Sukova of Czechoslovakia made it to the women’s round of 16 with a 6-4, 6-0 win over Anna Ivan. Rafaella Reggi of Italy beat Claudia Porwick of West Germany, 6-3, 6-2; Patricia Tarabini of Argentina defeated Karen Schimper of South Africa, 6-4, 6-2, and Stephanie Rehe eliminated Pam Casale, 6-1, 6-3.