Greek spectators frantically waved their blue and white striped flags, stomped their feet, booed and shrieked until they were hoarse Tuesday as their tennis hope, Eleni Daniilidou, beat 15th-seeded Magdalena Maleeva of Bulgaria in the second round of the Olympic tournament.
Earsplitting screams accompanied the limping Daniilidou as she left Center Court exhausted following her 2-6, 6-4, 6-4 victory.
PHOTO: AP
Dormant until Tueaday, the Olympic tennis stadium suddenly erupted when the Greek heroine came from a set down to gain momentum in the second session.
The match resembled more a soccer game than a tennis contest as spectators chanted "Hellas!" the Greek name for Greece nearly nonstop throughout the match.
"The crowd was great," Daniilidou said. "If this match had been in another country, I'm not sure I would have won."
Leading 3-1 in the final set, she continued to inflame the crowd, dropping her racket and punching the air after winning a key point. She nodded her head at the crowd after winning that game.
The drama continued when, up a break at 4-2, Daniilidou suddenly dropped to the ground after apparently straining her left inner thigh muscle while serving. She writhed on the ground until medics rushed to her aid. The crowd cheered and chanted as ice was applied.
The Greek player, who was helped off the court, is scheduled to play French Open champion and third-seeded Anastasia Myskina of Russia on Wedneday.
Daniilidou was the only Greek player to survive the first round.
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