Chang Advances to Second Round  of  USTA Challenger of Calabasas

By Fred Sidhu

Calabasas, Ca. – Top-seeded Michael Chang defeated Great Britain’s Arvind Parmar, 6-2, 6-3 in his opening round match at the USTA Challenger of Calabasas at the Calabasas Tennis & Swim Center.

After losing in the first round of last week’s Challenger tournament in Tarzana, Chang put on a strong performance from start to finish as he eliminated Parmar in one-hour and six-minutes.

At 2-2 in the first set, Chang began dominating Parmar from the baseline as he won eight of the next nine games on his way to the straight-set victory.

“It feels good. Last week is last week. You start out a new week and you hope for better things,” Chang said. “It’s nice to win a match. It’s been a while.”

Before winning his first round in Calabasas, Chang’s last victory came in January in the second round of a Challenger event in Hawaii.

When asked about his goals coming into the Calabasas, Chang said, “I’m not even thinking that far. I’m just taking things match by match. No use looking too far. I just want to concentrate on my second round match." 

Chang, ranked 92, will play his second round match on Thursday afternoon against Alex Waske of Germany, who defeated qualifier Thomas Dupre 6-1, 6-4.

In other first round action, sixth-seeded Kenneth Carlsen of Denmark defeated qualifier Eric Taino, 6-2, 6-4. Taino had won last week’s Challenger in Tarzana.

Fresno’s Robert Kendrick, a lucky loser, eliminated fellow American, Paul Goldstein, 6-4, 6-0. Kendrick lost in the final round of qualifying, but entered the main draw when Brian Vahaly withdrew with a wrist injury.

Admission is free through Thursday’s day session. Tickets for Thursday night’s Pro/Celebrity Exhibition are $12. Tickets Friday through Sunday are $8 - $12. Children under 18 will be admitted for $5 Friday through Sunday. For ticket information, call (818) 222-2782.

All tournament sessions through Friday begin at 11 a.m. Saturday’s semifinals and Sunday’s final, begin at noon.

The USTA Challenger of Calabasas is a $50,000 Challenger event. The tournament is part of the United States Tennis Association Professional Circuit.