TENNIS ROUNDUP : Seles Won’t Play Under Yugoslav Flag

Monica Seles of Yugoslavia, the top-ranked women’s tennis player in the world, will not play under the Yugoslav flag when she bids for her first Wimbledon title starting Monday at London.

Georgina Clark, a spokeswoman for the Women’s Tennis Assn., said the 18-year-old will play as Monica Seles from Sarasota, Fla.

Seles, who has lived in the United States since 1986 and is believed to be seeking citizenship, requested that she not be listed as Yugoslav to avoid making any apparent political statement.

“So that she can concentrate on playing tennis and not be caught up in a political situation way beyond her control, she has decided to take this step so nobody can say she is supporting one side or the other,” Clark said.

Croatia’s official representative in Britain, Drago Stambuk, said Seles would face protests by Croatian demonstrators at Wimbledon if she played under the Yugoslav flag.

Seles, an ethnic Hungarian from the Serb province of Vojvodina, has maintained a public silence about the civil war in Yugoslavia.

Jacco Eltingh of the Netherlands served 16 aces and upset third-seeded David Wheaton, 6-4, 6-4, in a grass-court tournament at Manchester, England.

Second-seeded Brad Gilbert beat Gary Muller of South Africa, 6-3, 6-2; Luis Herrera of Mexico defeated Markus Naewie of Germany, 6-0, 7-5, and fourth-seeded MaliVai Washington overcame Jeremy Bates of Britain, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3.

Second-seeded Mary Joe Fernandez moved into the quarterfinals with a 6-3, 6-3 victory over Patricia Hy of Canada in a women’s tournament at Eastbourne, England.

Lori McNeil needed only 53 minutes to oust third-seeded Conchita Martinez of Spain, 6-0, 6-3.