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Posted at 3:40 a.m., Monday, January 7, 2008

Tennis: Jelena Dokic wins on comeback trail

Associated Press

HOBART, Australia — Jelena Dokic, coming off a two-year injury layoff, beat Germany's Martina Mueller 6-4, 0-6, 6-2 at the Hobart International today.

Formerly ranked No. 4, Dokic, had to win three rounds of qualifying to reach the main draw. And the 24-year-old Australian now has a potential problem — whether to continue playing in the Hobart event or contest qualifying for next week's Australian Open in Melbourne.

Tennis Australia officials declined to offer Dokic a wild card into the main draw at Melbourne, and women's qualifying will start at Melbourne Park on Thursday.

Dokic is scheduled to play Italian Flavia Pennetta tomorrow and if she wins must decide between continuing to play in Hobart or heading to Melbourne.

Dokic said she thought she had done enough to deserve a main draw wild card for the Open.

"Based on my previous results and how hard I have worked in the past ... I thought I deserved a wild card," Dokic said Monday. "But I wasn't expecting one."

Dokic said she would play her match against Pennetta and then decide on her next move.

Pennetta advanced to the second round with a 6-4, 1-6, 6-2 win over No. 4 seed Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland.

Top-seeded Alona Bondarenko of Ukraine won her first-round match, beating Australian Jessica Moore 7-5, 6-2 and second-seeded Vera Zvonareva defeated fellow Russian Olga Poutchkova 6-3, 6-0.

Fifth-seeded Victoria Azarenka of Belarus, the losing finalist to Li Na at last week's Australian women's hardcourt championships, retired due to a right leg injury in her match against countrywoman Olga Govortsova.

Ninth-seeded Gisela Dulko of Argentina also retired during her match with Spain's Nuria Llagostera Vives due to a left hip injury.