TENNIS ROUNDUP : McNeil Ousts Graf in Stunning Upset

Lori McNeil, the lowest-ranked player in the field, shocked second-seeded Steffi Graf in the opening round of the Virginia Slims Championships in New York on Tuesday night, ousting the two-time champion, 7-6 (7-1), 6-4.

It was the biggest victory of McNeil’s nine-year career and her first over Graf. Playing in her fifth Virginia Slims Championships, McNeil won for the first time on the carpet in Madison Square Garden.

“She played good tennis,” Graf said of McNeil. “She hit lots of low, deep approaches. There was nothing I could do. I didn’t play well enough in either set when it was important.”

Jana Novotna of Czechoslovakia registered the night’s second upset, eliminating sixth-seeded Mary Joe Fernandez, 7-6 (7-3), 6-2. The victory sends Novotna into a quarterfinal match against top-seeded Monica Seles.

*

Stefan Edberg, seeking to regain the No. 1 ranking for the third time this year, defeated Petr Korda, 6-3, 7-6 (11-9), in the opening match of the ATP World Championship in Frankfurt, Germany.

Pete Sampras, the defending champion, survived 15 aces by Boris Becker of Germany to also advance, 7-6, (7-5) 7-6 (7-3). In the last match of the day, Goran Ivanisevic eliminated Michael Chang, 7-6 (7-4), 6-2.