Tennis: More woe for Becker on clay

BORIS BECKER'S dismal performances on clay courts continued yesterday when he was beaten by his German compatriot, Bernd Karbacher, in the third round of the Hamburg Open.

Becker, who in four tournaments since his comeback from a seven-week lay-off has won only two matches, lost 6-3, 6-4. He was in good company, with Sweden's Stefan Edberg, another former Wimbledon champion, losing to Emilio Sanchez, of Spain, 4-6, 7-6, 6-4.

In the wake of Monica Seles's stabbing, Brian Tobin, the International Tennis Federation president, warned that little can be done to stop fans attacking players. 'What happened to Monica was caused by the actions of a madman and we can't do much about it,' he said. 'We can't put fencing around courts because that would ruin the game.'

However, security will be upgraded at next week's Federation Cup qualifying tournament in Nottingham. 'There are a number of countries playing in which are experiencing political turmoil so we have looked at increasing security,' he added.

Wimbledon residents are concerned that expansion plans by the All England Club will bring increased disruption to their lives. The All England Club are anxious to take over an adjacent 71-acre golf course.