TENNIS ROUNDUP : Cramps Beat Connors, Who Won’t Play Open

Jimmy Connors had to default, but the real loser was the U.S. Open.

Connors showed flashes of his old form Saturday in the $350,000 WCT Tournament of Champions at New York, winning the first set from Ivan Lendl, 6-3, before losing the second, 7-5, and then being forced to retire by cramps early in the third set of a rain-delayed quarterfinal match.

Afterward, Connors said he will not play in his 21st consecutive Open this week.

“I think it would better for me not to play the Open due to the fact that I don’t think I can go out there and play the kind of tennis necessary to give it an all-out effort,” said Connors, a five-time Open champion whose streak will end second only to the 24 in a row played by Vic Seixas. From 1974 through 1985, Connors reached the semifinals 12 consecutive times.

He has won a men’s record 107 matches.

Later in the day, Lendl and Aaron Krickstein advanced to today’s title match. Lendl defeated Leconte, 6-7 (7-4), 6-3, 6-1, and Krickstein beat Emilio Sanchez of Spain, 6-4, 7-6 (8-6).

Stefan Edberg, the No. 1 player in the world, moved into the final of a $250,000 tournament at Commack, N.Y., by winning two matches. First, he completed a rain-delayed, 6-4, 6-2 victory over fellow Swede Jonas Svensson.

Then, he defeated John McEnroe, 6-1, 6-4.

Goran Ivanisevic of Yugoslavia beat fourth-seeded Pete Sampras, 7-6 (7-5), 6-3, and Guy Forget of France, 6-2, 1-6, 6-3, to advance to the final.

Ramish Krishnan of India upset top-seeded Martin Jaite of Argentina, 1-6, 6-3, 7-5, to advance to the final of a $225,000 tournament at Schenectady, N.Y.

He’ll meet Kelly Evernden in today’s championship match. Evernden advanced by beating Brad Pearce, 6-2, 3-6, 6-4.

In the women’s semifinals, Anke Huber of West Germany defeated Wiltrud Probst, also of West Germany, 6-2, 6-0, and Marianne Werdel defeated Mercedes Paz of Argentina, 4-6, 7-5, 6-3.