Hyung-Taik Lee won Sydney title

[PKBasu]

Asia now has a second world-class player, with Korea's Hyung-taik Lee winning the Sydney International, beating Ferrero (who was in the top 5 last year) in the final. Recall that Lee had won a Challenger in Yokohama (or somewhere in Japan) immediately before his R1 match against Rohan Bopanna in Thailand.
Our hero won a tough straight sets victory. But, as has so often been the case for Indian tennis players who do spectacularly in one round, he promptly disappointed in the very next round. (The saddest such performance in the past two decades was probably by Ramesh Krishnan, who beat the World #1 and defending US, Australian and French Open champion Mats Wilander in the 1988 Australian Open, but promptly lost in the next round to Slobodan "Big Bobo" Zibojinovich).
Hyung-taik Lee was ranked #91 when he lost to Rohan, and will probably be ranked in the top 40 now. His rise is turning out to be almost as meteoric as Paradorn Srichaphan's. Seeing those two move so rapidly up the rankings should, hopefully, be an inspiration to other Asian tennis players. Let us hope Rohan and Harsh take heart...and realise that you don't have to be a world-beater at 19 to rise to the top in tennis. Hard work and diligence -- plus fitness and proper planning -- do pay off.

[Dhruv]

But, as has so often been the case for Indian tennis players who do spectacularly in one round, he promptly disappointed in the very next round.

Well as some sort of defense but not really of Rohan, the guy who he lost to Frank Moser, went on to finals and lost to John Van Lottum who was the second seed after Lee.

Anyway, this set of futures tournaments in my mind is a good test of the level of Indian male tennis player competitiveness. Prior tournaments(2002 atleast) did not have very many promising foriegn players and so the victories by Indian players were somewhat fabricated.

[BSharma]

Recent ATP titles by Lee and Srichaphan reflect the gradual overall improvement of the Asian players. I agree with PK Basu that Indian players should follow the lead of Lee and Srichaphan and work on every aspect of the game - physical and mental. Go Indian players! Go Asian players!