TOKYO (AP) — Monica Seles became the latest prominent player to withdraw from the Toyota Princess Cup because of the terrorist attacks in the United States.
Defending champion Serena Williams, Jennifer Capriati and Amy Frazier pulled out Monday before the $565,000 tournament began.
Seles was seeded second and had been scheduled to arrive Tuesday. She won the Brazil Open on Saturday for her second title of the year.
Bart McGuire, chief executive officer of the WTA Tour, said his organization was “deeply sorry” for the withdrawals.
“This is a situation that is completely out of the control of the Toyota Princess Cup,” he said.
In Tuesday’s first round, Ai Sugiyama of Japan beat eighth-seeded Cristina Torrens Valero of Spain 6-1, 6-2. Sugiyama will next face Joannette Kruger of South Africa, a 7-5, 3-6, 6-2 winner over Alicia Molik of Australia.
Also, Lina Krasnoroutskaya of Russia defeated Mariana Diaz-Oliva of Argentina 6-4, 6-0.