Almagro To Face Verdasco In Acapulco QFs; Ferrer Cruises

Two-time champion Nicolas Almagro worked hard for a place in the Abierto Mexicano Telcel quarter-finals, prevailing against 99th-ranked Frenchman Benoit Paire 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 after two hours and 15 minutes on Wednesday in Acapulco.

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Title chasers held, SuperSport fall

Kaizer Chiefs were held to a 1-1 draw with BIDVest Wits and are three points back from leaders Mamelodi Sundowns, who also settled for a 2-2 draw with Swallows, while SuperSport lost 1-0 to AmaZulu.

Socceroos knock out Saudis

Three goals in four second-half minutes were enough for Australia to turn their final Group D 2014 FIFA World Cup™ match with Saudi Arabia on its head to win 4-2, knocking the Middle Eastern side out of qualification.

Bernard Tomic: Getting Stronger Each Year

ATPWorldTour.com caught up with Bernard Tomic at the Delray Beach International Tennis Championships to discuss the physical challenges in competing on the ATP World Tour and his memorable comeback win over Fernando Verdasco in the first round of the Australian Open this past January.

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Almagro To Face Verdasco In Acapulco QFs

Two-time champion Nicolas Almagro worked hard for a place in the Abierto Mexicano Telcel quarter-finals, prevailing against 99th-ranked Frenchman Benoit Paire 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 after two hours and 15 minutes on Wednesday in Acapulco.

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Isner beats Sweeting to reach Delray quarters

DELRAY BEACH, Fla. (AP)â€"Top seed John Isner captured a 6-3, 6-4 win over fellow American Ryan Sweeting on Wednesday to move into the Delray Beach International Tennis Championships quarterfinals.

The 11th-ranked Isner struggled through his first round win over wildcard recipient Jesse Levine on Tuesday because of the humidity, but was in better shape playing Sweeting.

“Whenever, in the past, when I’ve played tournaments in humidity I’ve always struggled because I hadn’t acclimated yet,” Isner said. “But tonight I felt so much better than I did yesterday.

“I’m still not all the way there. I could feel better out there but it was so much better.”

Isner broke Sweeting’s serve twice in the matchâ€"in the second game of the first set and the fifth game of the second setâ€"which was all he needed to take the win.

Sweeting was unable to capitalize on five break points when Isner kicked his potent serve into overdrive to save the points.

“A lot of times for me to be successful I’m going to have to have my serve and I did today when I needed it,” Isner said. “I served well, went for my second serve, wasn’t going for broke, but I hit my spots and it got me out of a couple of jams.”

Isner will face eighth seed Bernard Tomic in the quarterfinals on Friday. The 37th-ranked Tomic scored a 6-1, 7-5 win over American qualifier Tim Smyczek, ranked No. 287, to move ahead in the draw.

Australian qualifier Marinko Matosevic beat No. 6 seed Alex Bogomolov Jr. of Russia 4-6, 6-1, 6-3 to reach his first career ATP quarterfinal.

The 173rd-ranked Matosevic had 11 aces and won five of eight break points.

“It was a tough match and I’m happy to get through and make my first quarterfinal,” said Matosevic, who next faces 2010 Delray Beach champion Ernests Gulbis. “I knew his game pretty well and he reaches a lot of balls, so I just had to keep staying aggressive.

“I played the big points well.”

The 26-year-old has spent most of his career playing on the Challenger circuit.

Bogomolov had the best season of his career in 2011, starting the year at No. 166 and finishing at No. 34. Fellow players voted him the year’s most improved player.

Bogomolov struggled throughout the match, including in his victorious first set.

Gulbis beat Steve Darcis of Belgium 6-7 (6), 6-1, 6-3 to reach his first quarterfinal of the season. The Latvian won 40 of 45 points on his first serve and fired 10 aces.

“Today was tough because I couldn’t get my timing right in the first set,” said Gulbis, who said the wind made it tough to play. “From one side it was much easier to get your serve going than the other side.

“I didn’t play my best tennis today but I’m happy I won the match because I was fighting.”

Top seed John Isner meets fellow American Ryan Sweeting on Wednesday night. Eighth seed Bernard Tomic of Australia will take on American qualifier Tim Smyczek in the second night match.

Ten left standing as Saudis, Bahrain fall

Qatar snatched a draw in Iran and a place in the final phase of Asian Zone qualifying at the expense of Bahrain, while Oman went through thanks to Saudi Arabia’s collapse in Australia and Korea Republic and Lebanon completed the last ten.

Almagro, Verdasco advance at Mexican Open

ACAPULCO, Mexico (AP)â€"Two-time champion Nicolas Almagro of Spain defeated Benoit Paire of France 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 to reach the third round of the Mexican Open on Wednesday.
 
The second-seeded Spaniard lost serve twice to drop the first set, but settled and took control of the match to win in it in more than two hours at The Fairmont Acapulco Princess.

The 99th-ranked Benoit saved 10 break points against Almagro, who two weeks ago won the Brazil Open.
 
Almagro won the Mexican Open in 2008 and 2009. In 2011, he was runner-up to David Ferrer, the top seed this year.
 
Almagro’s next opponent will be compatriot Fernando Verdasco, who defeated Juan Ignacio Chela of 2Argentina 6-4, 6-2.

Isner, Gulbis Advance To Delray Beach QFs

Former Delray Beach champion Ernests Gulbis reached the quarter-finals at the Delray Beach International Tennis Championships by defeating Belgian Steve Darcis 6-7(6), 6-1, 6-3 Wednesday afternoon.

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Almagro, Verdasco To Meet In Acapulco QFs

Two-time champion Nicolas Almagro worked hard for a place in the Abierto Mexicano Telcel quarter-finals, prevailing against 99th-ranked Frenchman Benoit Paire 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 after two hours and 15 minutes on Wednesday in Acapulco.

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Your View: Is Australia the ‘least viable’ race?

If you were to compile a list of ‘least viable’ races on the Formula One calendar, would Melbourne be one of them? Would you consider Australia economically impotent to the system of Formula One? F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone seems to think that Melbourne is the only venue in the Great Southern land that makes any

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Lotus back on track after chassis issues

Lotus say they have resolved the chassis problem - confirmed as an issue with the mounting of the upper front wishbone rear arm - that caused them to abandon last week's second pre-season test in Spain after only a handful of laps. The team were using their second E20 car for the first time and after driver Romain Grosjean reported a problem their initial suspicion was a manufacturing fault specific to that chassis. However, subsequent investigations showed that changes were required to both chassis.

Llodra/Zimonjic Lead Seeds Into Dubai QFs; Bryans Return

Top seeds Michael Llodra and Nenad Zimonjic required just 48 minutes to beat Marsel Ilhan and Malek Jaziri 6-1, 6-3 on Wednesday at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.

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Gulbis Advances To Delray Beach QFs

Former Delray Beach champion Ernests Gulbis reached the quarter-finals at the Delray Beach International Tennis Championships by defeating Belgian Steve Darcis 6-7(6), 6-1, 6-3 Wednesday afternoon.

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Tsonga received advice from Agassi

World No. 5 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, who has been without a full-time coach since splitting with Eric Winogradsky last April, says he sometimes receives advice from French Davis Cup captain Guy Forget, and in 2011 tapped into the brain of Andre Agassi. Both Tsonga and Agassi are sponsored by adidas. "Last year I had some advice from Agassi," Tsonga said. "And there is a lot of other players. I will not say the name, but there is people around me who give me advice."

Matosevic beats Bogomolov in Delray Beach

DELRAY BEACH, Fla. (AP)â€"Australian qualifier Marinko Matosevic beat No. 6 seed Alex Bogomolov Jr. of Russia 4-6, 6-1, 6-3 Wednesday to reach his first career ATP quarterfinal at the Delray Beach International Tennis Championships.

The 173rd-ranked Matosevic had 11 aces and won five of eight break points.

“It was a tough match and I’m happy to get through and make my first quarterfinal,” said Matosevic, who next faces 2010 Delray Beach champion Ernests Gulbis. “I knew his game pretty well and he reaches a lot of balls, so I just had to keep staying aggressive.

“I played the big points well.”

The 26-year-old has spent most of his career playing on the Challenger circuit.

Bogomolov had the best season of his career in 2011, starting the year at No. 166 and finishing at No. 34. Fellow players voted him the year’s most improved player.

Bogomolov struggled throughout the match, including in his victorious first set.

Gulbis beat Steve Darcis of Belgium 6-7 (6), 6-1, 6-3 to reach his first quarterfinal of the season. The Latvian won 40 of 45 points on his first serve and fired 10 aces.

“Today was tough because I couldn’t get my timing right in the first set,” said Gulbis, who said the wind made it tough to play. “From one side it was much easier to get your serve going than the other side.

“I didn’t play my best tennis today but I’m happy I won the match because I was fighting.”

Top seed John Isner meets fellow American Ryan Sweeting on Wednesday night. Eighth seed Bernard Tomic of Australia will take on American qualifier Tim Smyczek in the second night match.

Querrey, Ginepri among Indian Wells wild cards

INDIAN WELLS, California (AP)â€"Former top-five player David Nalbandian of Argentina and American veterans Sam Querrey, Robby Ginepri and Jill Craybas are among the wild cards into the main draws of the BNP Paribas Open to be played March 5-18 in Indian Wells.

Nalbandian was a 2002 Wimbledon finalist whose best finish at Indian Wells was reaching the quarterfinals in 2008.

Querrey reached a career-high ranking of No. 17 in the world at the beginning of 2011 before injuries sidelined him for much of the year.

On the men’s side, American teenagers Jack Sock and Denis Kudla were granted wild cards. On the women’s side, American players Irina Falconi, Sloane Stephens, Jamie Hampton, Coco Vandeweghe, and Lauren Davis earned wild cards, as did Urszula Radwanska of Poland and Sania Mirza of India.

Four Former Champions Headline Houston Field

Four former winners of the US Men’s Clay Court Championship headline the initial acceptance list for the 2012 tournament that will be played April 9-15 at River Oaks Country Club.

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Does Nascar contribute to car wrecks?

I heard a snippet of a story this morning that I just have to share. Forgive me. A study out of West Virginia has concluded that Nascar causes car wrecks. That’s the nugget version. It’s a bit more nuanced than that, but not a whole lot as far as I can tell. I heard this

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Llodra/Zimonjic Lead Seeds Into Dubai QFs

Top seeds Michael Llodra and Nenad Zimonjic required just 48 minutes to beat Marsel Ilhan and Malek Jaziri 6-1, 6-3 on Wednesday at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.

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Tsonga tops Rosol, reaches quarters

Running near the baseline, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga dug out a defensive lob that soared diagonally into the corner, causing Lukas Rosol to spin and sprint back to the baseline, where he somehow summoned a over-the-shoulder forehand lob that pinned Tsonga in the backcourt. Rosol's retrieval would have been the shot of the match against most players, but if you've watched the flashy Frenchman, you know he doesn't operate like most players. Tsonga leaped in the air and slammed down a smash that landed on the opposite baseline, a shot so audacious it would have made the young Yannick Noah proud.
 
That shot typified the match: Despite a slow start, the feisty Rosol refused to give in, but Tsonga summoned some magical shotmaking to prevent the 26-year-old Czech from closing the gap. In the end, Tsonga posted a 6-3, 6-4 victory that was often more exciting than the scoreline suggests.
 
The rangy Rosol is ranked No. 96 and entered this event with just three wins and four consecutive first-round exits to his credit. So when Tsonga broke twice at the outset and fired an inside-out forehand winner to streak to a 5-0 lead after a mere 17 minutes of play, the match evoked memories of the Frenchman's exhibition against Stefan Edberg last month in Doha.
 
But Rosol did not appear awed by the occasion; he was so pumped up that the adrenaline elevated his aggression into an over-ambitious series of shots. He finally settled down to save a pair of set points and get on the scoreboard, inciting a run of three straight games to close to 3-5. Tsonga ended the uprising with a love hold, firing a forehand winner to seal the opening set in 32 minutes.
 
The man from Le Mans sporting a modified mohawk is a physical presence who can combine titanic power, terrific touch, and tremendous athleticism in one potent package. Tsonga is explosive without forcing the issue. He broke to open the second set and dug out of an 0-30 hole to consolidate for 2-0. Neither man was pushed to deuce over the final eight games, as Rosol showed the ability to unload flat strikes off both wings, sometimes following them to net, while Tsonga managed his lead.
 
Striking his 10th ace to earn double match point, Tsonga went sprawling to the court after lashing a two-handed backhand pass down the line, but kept his head up to see Rosol net the volley, ending the 67-minute encounter. Tsonga raised his record on the season to 13-2.
 
Starting this week with a career-high rank of No. 5, Tsonga's next match likely won't be as concise. He faces eighth-seeded Argentine Juan Martin del Potro, who has won 10 of his last 11 matches, for a spot in the final four. Del Potro defeated Tsonga in a two hour and 49-minute semifinal last Saturday en route to his 10th career title in Marseille.  The rematch should spark fireworks again, as the winner could face four-time champion Roger Federer in the semis.
 
â€"Richard Pagliaro

Federer, Djokovic, Murray into Dubai quarterfinals

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP)â€"Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer each won in straight sets Wednesday to advance to the quarterfinals of the Dubai Tennis Championships.
 
Djokovic beat Sergiy Stakhovsky of Ukraine 7-6 (5), 6-3, while Federer defeated Feliciano Lopez of Spain 7-5, 6-3.
 
Andy Murray of Britain also reached the final eight with a 6-3, 6-4 win over Marco Chiudinelli of Switzerland, as did Russia’s Mikhail Youzhny, who beat American Mardy Fish 6-2, 7-6 (0).
 
The top-ranked Djokovic, seeking his fourth consecutive title in Dubai, wasn’t at his best for a second straight match after struggling against Cedrik-Marcel Stebe in the opening round. The Serb hadn’t played in a tournament since winning the Australian Open.

Stakhovsky was 4-3 up in the first-set tiebreaker, but two costly unforced errors let Djokovic off the hook, and he took the set when the Ukrainian hit a forehand long.
 
Djokovic was down 3-1 in the second but won five straight games to set up an all-Serbian match against Janko Tipsarevic, who beat Flavio Cipolla of Italy 6-7 (2), 6-1, 6-1.
 
“The difference between the top players and maybe the lower-ranked players is actually those moments,” Djokovic said of his comeback. “And managing to keep your composure and cope with the pressure and just focus, have an extra focus, mental strength.”
 
Federer broke Lopez in the final game to end a tight opening set. The second set was more routine, with the Swiss breaking the Spaniard for a 5-3 lead before closing the match with a volley from the net.
 
Federer, who was beaten in the Dubai final last year by Djokovic, is going for his fifth title and second in 2012 after winning in Rotterdam.
 
“It was tough getting used to his serve early on. I wasn’t having many looksâ€"he was serving aces left and right,” said Federer, who won 92 percent of his points on first serve.
 
In a reprise of the 2007 final, Federer will next face Youzhny, whom he has never lost to in 11 meetings.
 
Fish’s loss was another setback to what has already been a disappointing start to 2012.
 
After replacing Andy Roddick as the top-ranked American last year, Fish has struggled. He lost in the second round of the Australian Open and was beaten by 388th-ranked Albano Olivetti in the Marseille quarterfinals last week. He did, however, help the United States rout Switzerland 5-0 in the Davis Cup.
 
“It’s no disgrace to lose to someone like him, but it’s frustrating to lose,” Fish said. “I had a rough trip, last couple of matches did sting a little bit going into Indian Wells and Miami.”
 
Murray broke Chiudinelli early in the first set and moved him around the court with ease. The second set was closer as both players held serve for the first eight games. But Murray broke to lead 5-4, winning the match on a powerful serve Chiudinelli couldn’t return.
 
Murray will play fifth-seeded Tomas Berdych, who beat Lukas Lacko of Slovakia 6-1, 6-2.
 
In the late match, fourth-seeded Jo-Wilfried Tsonga beat Lukas Rosol of the Czech Republic 6-3, 6-4. He will play eighth-seeded Juan Martin del Potro, who beat Andrey Golubev of Kazakhstan 6-4, 6-2.

Djokovic: Not easy to talk to biggest rivals

Novak Djokovic tells the Gulf Times that while he engages well with Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer off court on ATP issues, it is not a simple process.

"Roger, Rafa and me do talk to each other on issues," Djokovic said. "We respect each other a lot, but it's really hard to communicate with somebody who is your biggest rival. I believe that we have a great amount of respect for each other and for what we have achieved. Each of us is modest, self aware and composed and this is good for the sport. It's good to have people who are educated, successful, but modest and well presented in public."

In the late summer of 2010, Djokovic asked his parents, Srdjan and Dijana, not to travel with him as much anymore and they are no longer at every big event he plays. He also no longer allows his family to join him in the locker room prior to matches.

"My parents live through the emotions of every point when they watch me play," he said. "It's like they are playing themselves! In a way it's normal to expect that because they are parents and we feel their love, their support and their stress as well. It's up to us to adjust and use it in a good way. My parents allowed me to become what I am and realize my dreams."
 
The five-time Grand Slam champion added that he believes that his spectacular season last year was predestined.

"I believe that everything in life happens for a reason," said. "The reason I did what I did in 2011 was written down already by the Almighty, but on the other hand I think that I worked very hard for it. I always believed in what I could do. I always believed in my qualities and when you make the commitments you get the outcome."

Federer Beats Lopez, Youzhny Next; Tsonga-Del Potro Set

Four-time former champion and second seed Roger Federer dropped 12 points on his serve and struck 12 aces past two-time runner-up Feliciano Lopez of Spain for a 7-5, 6-3 victory on Wednesday night at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.

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Dubai: Murray survives Berrer in three sets

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP)â€"Andy Murray overcame an error-strewn performance to defeat German qualifier Michael Berrer 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 Tuesday in the first round of the Dubai Championships.

Fourth-seeded Jo-Wilfried Tsonga edged Marcos Baghdatis 7-6 (2), 6-4 to set up a second-round encounter with Lukas Rosol of the Czech Republic.

Murray, playing his first match since losing to Novak Djokovic in the Australian Open semifinals, looked ragged and at times his movement appeared labored in the midday heat. He said he didn’t “feel great” at the start of the match and at times felt nauseous on court.

“It was quite a frustrating match because I was up a break in the second set, and each time I think gave it straight back,” Murray said. “And then the third set again, I went up a break and gave the break straight back. So I could have made it a little bit easier for myself if I played a bit better.”

The third-seeded Murray lost his opening service game, but broke back twice to claim the first set. He was saved by his serve, which produced three aces and kept the 116th-ranked German off balance.

Berrer dominated the second set, displaying an improved service game and more aggressive play that forced Murray into a slew of unforced errors. Murray went up 3-2 only to see Berrer break back when he hit a volley into the net. Berrer broke Murray to force the third set when the 24-year-old Briton made four unforced errors. After hitting a backhand into the net, Murray punched his leg and muttered to himself.

The first four games of the third set went against serve. Berrer went up 4-3 only to see Murray regain the momentum and win the final three games.

Murray will faces Swiss qualifier Marco Chiudinelli, who beat Nikolay Davydenko 6-4, 5-7, 6-4. It will be the first time Murray has faced Chiudinelli. He added he needs to make his game more “match tight” if he wants to go deep in the tournament.

“He’s quite a flat striker of the ball. He’s pretty quick. He’s obviously going to have a lot of experience as well on his side,” Murray said. “He had a very good win today and a couple of good wins in qualies, so he’s playing well.”

Baghdatis served for the first set at 5-4 against Tsonga, who said he was tired coming into his match after reaching the semifinals Saturday in Marseille. But Tsonga broke back and then easily won the tiebreaker.

In the second set, the fifth-ranked Tsonga stepped up his game. He broke Baghdatis to go up 3-2 and never trailed after that.

“It was a tough challenge,” said Tsonga, who won the title in Qatar last month. “Not a lot of energy. Without this energy, it’s difficult to play. But I was there mentally and I did it, so I’m really happy.”

In other first round matches, fifth-seeded Tomas Berdych also made quick work of Benjamin Becker 6-2, 6-2 in just over an hour. Mikhail Youzhny defeated Richard Gasquet when the Frenchman retired with the flu after losing the first set 6-3.