Tennis: Wimbledon 99 - Parmar fightback too hot for Costa

ARVIND PARMAR, the British No 10 who had gone out of his last six tournaments in the first round, pulled off the surprise of Wimbledon's first day when he defeated the world No 25, Spain's Alberto Costa.

Parma, the 21-year-old world No 455 from Hitchin, won 0-6, 7-6, 6-3, 6-3, despite losing the first nine games to a player who has been a quarter-finalist at Wimbledon and in the Australian and French Opens and was listed among the world's top 10 players only two years ago. It is comfortably the best result of his career.

Parma said he felt he was a better player than his ranking suggested. "I felt confident coming into the tournament on the back of the qualifiers," he said. "I played very well today. I was a little bit nervous at the start. It's the first time I've been on the courts as a singles player and I was panicking. At 6-0, 3-0 down I told myself `get back to basics' and I managed to break back." His next opponent will be none other than Britain's No 2, Greg Rusedski.

Parmar, who turned professional in 1996, has been slightly higher in the world rankings, but only just, reaching the dizzy heights of No 394 in October last year, while his doubles standing is also slightly more respectable - No 416, also down slightly from last August's 370.

Even further down the singles standing is Danny Sapsford, the world No 595 who is biding his time until retirement. Even at his peak three years ago, Sapsford only reached 178th in the world, so it is fair to say the British No 12 never had Pete Sampras and company quaking, but he might if he continues in the same vein as yesterday in beating Spain's Julian Alonso 6-2, 6-2, 7-5.

Not that Sapsford is bothered too much either way. "Today was the first day I could get out on the court and run around, I've been struggling with my knees and back," he said. How had he prepared for the tournament? "Taking it easy, resting and doing the gardening."

That is a little ingenuous because the 30-year-old Sapsford had the little matter of seven qualifying matches just to play at the tournament but, if the state of him after he had a five-setter at Roehampton is anything to go by, he is probably the unfittest player at Wimbledon. And yes, I do know there is an over-35s event.

"I'm a lot more relaxed," said Sapsford, who will quit playing and coach as soon as he loses. "There are low expectations so anything I get on court is a bonus. I haven't practised much and it's not so intense."

There used to be great expectations of Jamie Delgado, but the wonder boy of British tennis never lived up to the promise he implied when he won the Orange Bowl as a 14- year-old. Eight years later he is outside the world's top 300, but he won yesterday, although he might feel like checking the results to make sure.

Delgado, who was born in Birmingham, beat Ramon Delgado, who hails from Asuncion, Paraguay, 6-2, 6-1, 7-5 which, if nothing else, will help the tournament administrators. As it was, the umpire's jaw is receiving physiotherapy after 27 games of distinguishing between Delgados.

Nevertheless, it was a good win for the British Delgado because his namesake is ranked nearly 300 places above him and beat Sampras in the French Open last year. "People expected a lot of me from an early age," he said "and it's my job to make this a new start."

Sam Smith would probably like to start the year again. Last season she crashed into the top 60 when she became the first British woman to reach the fourth round since Jo Durie in 1985 and has quietly been backing away almost ever since.

Yesterday the reverse got into a higher gear because her 6-2, 1-6, 6- 2 defeat by Argentina's Ines Gorrochategui will have cost her all her Wimbledon points from 12 months ago. "I've just got to look at what I'm doing and what direction I'm going in," the British No 1 said. "I think it's tough to play around the 50 mark when you've played most of your career around 100."

Most years Wimbledon's first victim is usually some hapless Brit so it was a distinct change from the norm when Karen Cross's name appeared in the first result of the 1999 championships, except on the winner's side.

Cross, 25, was 5-0 up within 18 minutes against Lilia Osterloh, and although the American rallied a little, the British No 4 was putting her feet up by lunchtime after a 6-1, 6-4 rout. "I was quite nervous but I served well and that made the difference," Cross said. "I like the courts here. I wish there was a tournament at Wimbledon every week of the year."

Lousie Latimer joined Cross in the second round when she surprised Ann- Gaelle Sidot, who is ranked 45th in the world, 6-4, 6-2. From the less than promising position of 137th, she also startled herself a little. "It's the best win of my career," she said.