TennisDaniela Hantuchova of Slovakia claimed her first title in four years Sunday, defeating Sara Errani of Italy 6-0 6-2 in the Pattaya Open final. The fourth-seeded Slovak collected her fourth career title and first since Linz in 2007. Hantuchova improved to 3-1 against Errani. Hantuchova used her forehand to pressure Errani from start, racing to a 5-0 lead in the first set in just 20 minutes.
Tennis
Verdasco meets Raonic in San Jose final (AP)
Fernando Verdasco saw the way Juan Martin del Potro dismantled Lleyton Hewitt in the quarterfinals of the SAP Open and knew he'd have to be at the top of his game to make a return trip to the final. Verdasco used another strong serving match and a powerful forehand that delivered winners at key moments to beat del Potro 6-4, 6-4 in the semifinals Saturday night.
Almagro wins second Brazil Open title (AP)
Nicolas Almagro won his eighth ATP title on Saturday, beating Alexandr Dolgopolov of Ukraine 6-3, 7-6 (3) in the Brazil Open. The Spaniard also won this event in 2008. All of his tournament titles have come on clay. Dolgopolov, who reached the quarterfinals last month in the Australian Open, was appearing in his first ATP final.
2-time champ Cilic ousted at Zagreb (AP)
Two-time defending champion Marin Cilic of Croatia lost to fifth-seeded Florian Mayer of Germany 6-3, 6-4 in a Zagreb Indoors quarterfinal Friday. "I made too many unforced errors and could not find any rhythm," Cilic said. Mayer will play eighth-seeded Michael Berrer, who advanced when fourth-seeded Richard Gasquet of France retired with a shoulder injury while trailing 5-2 in the first...
Anderson vs. Mannarino in SA Open semis (AP)
Fourth-seeded Kevin Anderson will face sixth-seeded Adrian Mannarino in the semifinals of the SA Open. The only remaining seeds in the tournament advanced in straight sets Friday. South African Anderson defeated Karol Beck of Slovakia 6-3, 6-1 win in less than an hour, while Frenchman Mannarino cruised past Frank Dancevic of Canada 6-3, 6-2.
Giraldo reaches semifinals in Chile (AP)
Santiago Giraldo of Colombian defeating fourth-seeded Juan Ignacio Chela of Argentina 6-4, 6-3 Friday to reach the semifinals of the Movistar Open. The eighth-seeded Giraldo has reached the quarterfinals -- or better -- three times in the first five weeks of the season. Three other quarterfinals were scheduled later Friday.
Clijsters-Oudin at Fed Cup on Saturday (AP)
Australian Open champion Kim Clijsters will play Melanie Oudin on Saturday in the Fed Cup when Belgium faces the United States in the best-of-five series. Yanina Wickmayer will try to shake off lingering symptoms of a cold when she faces Bethanie Mattek-Sands, the top-ranked player on the American team, in the opening singles.
Injured Djokovic pulls out of ABN Amro (AP)
Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic has pulled out of the ABN Amro Tournament, citing a shoulder injury. Tournament director Richard Krajicek says Djokovic called him to say the injury will prevent the Serb from training for a week. The defending champion Robin Soderling will replace Djokovic as the top-seeded player for the tournament in Rotterdam.
Without Li, China loses at Fed Cup (AP)
Without injured Li Na, top-seeded China lost to Uzbekistan 3-0 in Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Group I on Friday. Li, the Australian Open runner-up, retired with a leg cramp on Thursday and wasn't available Friday. Uzbekistan's top player, Akgul Amanmuradova, also was sidelined, with an arm injury, but Sabina Sharipova beat Tang Haochen 6-3, 6-2, then Nigina Abduraimova defeated Lu Jing Jing 4-6,...
Sharapova to make Fed Cup home debut (AP)
Maria Sharapova will make her long-awaited home debut for Russia in a Fed Cup match against France this weekend. Sharapova made her Fed Cup debut with two victories in a 4-1 first-round win in Israel in 2008. She said some in the crowd in Ramat Hasharon threw food onto the court while she was playing.
Nadal, Clijsters reach Aussie quarters (AP)
The "Rafa Slam" is still alive after Rafael Nadal beat Marin Cilic 6-2, 6-4, 6-3 at the Australian Open on Monday to maintain his chance of owning all four Grand Slam trophies at once. That's a feat that hasn't been achieved since Rod Laver won four majors in a calendar year in 1969.
Makarova forced to move logo on shirt (AP)
The start of Ekaterina Makarova's fourth-round match against Kim Clijsters at the Australian Open was delayed slightly when the chair umpire noticed that a sponsor logo on the front of the Russian's shirt was too large. The umpire, Mariana Alves of Portugal, asked Makarova to change the shirt before the match could begin.
Bryan brothers laugh it up in Melbourne (AP)
The Bryan brothers are more like Warner Bros. at the Australian Open. The world's best men's doubles pair, American twins Mike and Bob Bryan, have been making mini-movies from behind the scenes of international tennis and posting them online, where they are getting a growing following. The idea started when the brothers, who beat Benjamin Becker and Michael Kohlmann of Germany 7-5, 6-2...
Schiavone wins 4-hour, 44-minute match (AP)
One of the players was so exhausted she forgot who was serving. The other kept checking the ticking clock on center court and thinking to herself, "Brava, Francesca!" The clock finally stopped at 4 hours, 44 minutes, when French Open champion Francesca Schiavone of Italy beat Svetlana Kuznetsova 6-4, 1-6, 16-14 in the fourth round at the Australian Open and set a record for the longest...
WTA bans Rezai's relative from events (AP)
The WTA has banned a member of Aravane Rezai's family from attending its tournaments while it investigates a safety issue. "A serious safety matter has been brought to the WTA's attention, which has resulted in a family member of Aravane Rezai being indefinitely suspended from all future WTA events pending our investigation," the WTA said in a statement Sunday.
Sharapova ousted in 4th round of Aussie (AP)
Former champion Maria Sharapova has lost in the fourth round of the Australian Open to Andrea Petkovic. The 30th-seeded Petkovic of Germany was rarely challenged in beating the 2008 Australian Open champion 6-2, 6-3 on Sunday. Petkovic benefited from an easy third round -- she only needed to play seven points before seven-time major winner Venus Williams retired on Thursday night with an injured...
Injured Baghdatis retires in 3rd round (AP)
Former finalist Marcos Baghdatis has retired from his third-round match at the Australian Open because of a reported groin injury. Baghdatis was trailing Saturday's match 6-7 (5), 6-2, 6-1, 4-3 when went to the net and shook hands with No. 11-seed Jurgen Melzer of Austria. The 21st-seeded Cypriot player pulled out of the Sydney International last week with the same injury.
Nishikori advances to Chennai quarters (AP)
Kei Nishikori of Japan rallied to beat Alejandro Falla of Colombia 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 on Thursday and reach the quarterfinals of the Chennai Open. The 98th-ranked Nishikori, who beat two-time defending champion Marin Cilic in the opening round, was down a break and trailing 3-0 in the second set when he turned the match around.
Federer, Nadal advance to Qatar semis (AP)
Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer remain on course to meet in the Qatar Open final after both won their quarterfinals in straight sets on Thursday. Federer, a two-time champion in Doha, routed sixth-seeded Viktor Troicki 6-2, 6-2 in just 65 minutes and will face third-seeded Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the semifinals.
Djokovic puts Serbia into Hopman final (AP)
Serbia reached the Hopman Cup final on Thursday despite losing 2-1 to Belgium in its final round-robin series. Serbia blanked Kazakhstan and Australia this week and only needed to win one match against Belgium to advance. Novak Djokovic took care of that, beating Ruben Bemelmans of Belgium 6-3, 6-2 after Justine Henin had defeated Ana Ivanovic 6-4, 6-3.
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