TENNIS ROUNDUP : Seles Routs Sabatini; Graf Withdraws With Injury

Monica Seles of Yugoslavia easily defeated Argentina’s Gabriela Sabatini, 6-2, 6-2, Friday to advance to the semifinals of a $500,000 women’s tournament at Essen, West Germany.

Manuela Maleeva of Bulgaria also advanced to the semifinals by defeating Mary Joe Fernandez, 6-4, 6-4.

Neither Seles or Maleeva will have to worry about facing top-seeded Steffi Graf of West Germany. Graf, the world’s No. 1 women’s player, withdrew from the tournament Thursday night with an injured stomach muscle after beating Fernandez earlier in the day.

In today’s semifinals of the round-robin tournament, Seles plays French Open winner Arantxa Sanchez Vicario of Spain and Sabatini faces Maleeva.

Seles’ victory in the 63-minute match put her on top of one of two groups in the tournament.

Second-seeded Jay Berger of the United States and third-seeded Martin Jaite of Argentina will meet in the final of the closing men’s Grand Prix tournament of the year at Itaparica, Brazil.

Berger got past fifth-seeded Jaime Yzaga of Peru, 6-4, 7-5, and Jaite defeated seventh-seeded Emilio Sanchez of Spain, 6-3, 7-6 (7-4).