New York, Aug 28: Serbian star Jelena Dokic wants tennis fans who ogle Anna Kournikova to start loving the sport's sex symbols for their skill with a racket as much as their looks.
The 20-year-old blonde beauty from Belgrade beat Italy's Emmanuelle Gagliardi 6-4 6-2 here Monday to reach the second round at the US Open, then begged fans to look beyond such poor-playing cuties as Anna Kournikova.
"People should stop looking for a babe," Dokic said. "They should look at tennis players first. There are plenty of good looking girls out here besides Anna.
"Anna hasn't played for a long time. Tennis is definitely looking for someone else and has a lot of better players, some of them good-looking girls. Everyone has definitely found some good looking girls out here other than her."
Admitting that sex appeal has helped the WTA tour expand, Dokic said the competition has gone beyond the court into the greater game of glamour.



"It's not just tennis anymore. It's much more than that," Dokic said. "It has gone more into shorter skirts, who looks good, who doesn't. I think we all expect that.



"The tour has grown. They have used that a little bit and it has helped. There's much more attention on women's tennis because of that.



"You shouldn't overexpose this. You should also look at the athleticism and power we have on the tour, not just the looks. All of us just try to compete and beat each other on the court. If you can look good at the same time, it's a bonus."



Dokic emigrated to Australia with her controversial father Damir, whose tirades have seen him ejected from grand slam events, but returned to Belgrade two years ago.



She has skipped the Australian Open the past two years, citing bad times she had during her time down under. But Dokic said she is considering making the scene in Melbourne next January.



"I haven't decided. I am thinking about it for sure," Dokic said. "I'll make a decision in the next few weeks. Right now I'm both ways but I'll see how I feel."



Dokic, who will face France's Mary Pierce here in the second round, hopes she would receive a warm reception in the land she once represented.



"I don't know what the feeling is, but I had a lot of support when I was there," Dokic said. "With all the other things that happened, I don't want to get into that, but the crowds were great to me. I had a lot of fans.



"I would like to go back and have that again. But we'll see."



Dokic's coach-father, who was unhappy with support from Aussie tennis officials, will have a say in her decision, however.



"I don't think I should decide myself," she said. "There should be some other people involved, all the people that are close to me."


Bureau Report