NEW YORK, November 18: Belgian Sabine Applemans was the last player into the field of 16 for the season-ending Chase Championships and the first one out, courtesy of seventh seed Mary Pierce of France. Pierce, a two-time semifinalist at the WTA Tour's season finale, opened the 1997 edition of the tournament by spoiling Applemans's Madison Square Garden debut 6-3 6-4 in 65 minutes.

The Canadian-born, Florida-based Frenchwoman at times appeared tighter than her extremely snug black and white tennis dress. But she loosened up as the match unfolded and took care of business on her service games, even playing the occasional serve and volley point while putting 72 percent of her first serves in play.

``I felt I especially served really well tonight. I won the important points,'' said Pierce, who had suffered from a kidney infection in the latter part of the season and only played Fed cup and one tournament since the US Open, making an early exit in Chicago two weeks ago. In the next round Pierce will likely run into world number one Martina Hingis, who opens her campaign for her 13th title of the year against Brenda Schultz-Mccarthy of the Netherlands today.

Gigi-Natasha lose

With a tentative sweep of her right hand, Gigi Fernandez buried a forehand volley into the net, ending the opening match. The easy error was just one of many in what became Fernandez's swan song.``It's the right time,'' Fernandez said when she announced this would be her last tournament. I'll be 34 in February. Life changes, there's different priorities.''Helena Sukova and Larisa Neiland, veterans themselves, upset the top-seeded team of Fernandez and Natasha Zvereva 7-5, 3-6, 6-4 in the season-ending tournament at Madison Square Garden.

After leveling the match by winning the middle set, Fernandez and Zvereva appeared on the verge of pulling out a victory. Tauziat will play either No 6 Iva Majoli of Croatia or Germany's Anke Huber, while Spirlea's next opponent will be either third-seeded Lindsay Davenport or fellow American Mary Joe Fernandez.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.