Paradorn cancels Phuket match

PHUKET: Thai tennis idol Paradorn “Ball” Srichaphan has canceled a planned visit to Phuket next month, during which he was scheduled to play a match against American Jan-Michael Gambill. Songsak Kitakrankul, Chief of the Office of the Sports Authority of Thailand in Phuket, said that K. Paradorn will play matches in Chiang Mai and Bangkok as scheduled, but will not come to Phuket because the island does not have tennis courts with sufficient seating for spectators. Tickets were expected to cost 1,500 baht apiece, and it was felt that, given the lack of spectator facilities, the match would not be worthwhile in financial terms, said K. Songsak.