Second-seeded Vince Spadea outlasted qualifier Bobby Reynolds 1-6, 7-6 (4), 7-6 (2) Tuesday in the first round of the Tennis Channel Open, fighting off two match points in the second set.
Spadea came in at 7-5 this season, battling stomach flu and aching from tendinitis in his right shoulder that forced him out of last week's tournament in Memphis. He hadn't practiced since Saturday, and had to wait through four rain delays that totaled more than 3 hours to get started.
But the 30-year-old journeyman still knows how to win.
"All excuses aside, I decided to play," he said. "My preparation wasn't ideal, but I still was out there to compete."
Top-seeded German Tommy Haas withdrew because of flu, and Wayne Arthurs of Australia upset fourth-seeded American Taylor Dent 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (4).
Defending champion and top seed Carlos Moya defeated Ecuador's Nicolas Lapentti 6-4, 7-6 (4) Tuesday in the first round of the Mexican Open.
Second-seeded Argentine Gaston Gaudio withdrew with an injury after splitting two sets with Tomas Zib of the Czech Republic. Gaudio took the first set 6-2, but lost the second 7-5 before withdrawing.
Eighth-seeded Rafael Nadal of Spain defeated Alex Calatrava 6-4, 6-4. The 18-year-old Nadal used a dominant service game on the clay court to defeat his countryman.
Marat Safin, playing his first match since winning the Australian Open three weeks ago, was in the opening round of the US$1 million tournament, eliminated by Germany's Nicolas Kiefer 7-6 (2), 6-4.
In the day's marquee match, Tim Henman saved one match point and rallied to beat Greg Rusedski 4-6, 7-6 (7), 6-4 for his fifth straight victory over his fellow Briton.
Kiefer, the 2000 Dubai champion and a two-time finalist in the United Arab Emirates, earned grudging applause from a capacity crowd, which overwhelmingly supported Safin.
Conchita Martinez rallied from a set down to beat Roberta Vinci of Italy 5-7, 6-0, 6-2 and reach the second round of the US$600,000 tournament.
Martinez broke Vinci six times in the match, three in the second set, to prevail in 1 hour, 46 minutes.
Also on Tuesday, Ai Sugiyama of Japan reached second round by beating Samantha Stosur of Australia 6-2, 6-3 and set up a clash with Francesca Schiavone of Italy. Elsewhere, 18-year-old Russian Maria Kirilenko of Russia beat Lucie Safararova of the Czech Republic 6-3, 6-1, and Nicole Pratt of Australia outlasted Selima Safr of Tunisia 7-5, 6-2 to earn a second-round clash with compatriot and No. 4 seed Alicia Molik.
A homeless man accused of stalking tennis star Anna Kournikova pleaded innocent Tuesday to battery and other charges stemming from his arrest on her neighbor's pool patio.
William Lepeska, 40, has been jailed in a psychiatric unit on US$250,000 bond. He could face 30 years in state prison if convicted of two counts of battery on police officers, resisting arrest and burglary, all felonies. He also faces misdemeanor charges of stalking, indecent exposure and criminal mischief.
Yu Yao-hsing on Tuesday nabbed Taiwan’s only goal in the final round of qualifiers for the 2027 AFC Asian Cup, as they fell 3-1 to Sri Lanka at Taipei Municipal Stadium. Early goals from Sri Lanka in the first half left Taiwan struggling to get on the board, and Christopher Tiao’s own goal at 53 minutes sealed the team’s fate in the third round of qualifiers. While acknowledging that the defeat, Taiwan’s sixth in Group D, was disappointing, head coach Matt Ross said he saw reasons to stay positive about the team’s development. “There were lots of positive signs in terms of the
Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli yesterday vowed to “keep raising the bar” after winning the Japanese Grand Prix to become the youngest driver in Formula One history to lead the championship standings. The 19-year-old Italian took advantage of a mid-race safety car to jump into the lead after a dreadful start from pole position, crossing the line ahead of McLaren’s Oscar Piastri and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. Antonelli’s Suzuka victory came two weeks after the first grand prix win of his career in China, and sent him top of the championship standings after three races, nine points ahead of team-mate George Russell. Mercedes are struggling to
INDIGESTION: Italy failed to qualify for the World Cup for a third consecutive time after a 4-1 defeat to Bosnia on penalties in a loss Gattuso said was ‘difficult to digest’ Coach Graham Arnold on Tuesday challenged his players to “shock the world” after Iraq became the 48th and final team to qualify for the FIFA World Cup with a nerve-shredding 2-1 win over Bolivia in an intercontinental playoff in Mexico, as Bosnia and Herzegovina, Turkey, the Czech Republic, Sweden and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) also secured their places at the finals. Iraq, whose preparations were disrupted by the war in the Middle East, sealed their first appearance at the finals in 40 years and are to play in Group I against France, Senegal and Norway. Goals from Ali al-Hamadi
Teng Kai-wei, the only Taiwanese player on an opening-day roster in this year’s Major League Baseball (MLB) season, took his first win of the year with the Houston Astros in his season debut. Teng entered in relief in the top of the fifth inning against the Los Angeles Angels on Saturday, with the Astros trailing 5-0. He pitched 2-1/3 scoreless innings with two strikeouts, as Houston scored 11 runs during his outing to snatch an 11-9 comeback victory. The win is the Astros’ first of the season and the third of Teng’s MLB career. “It’s my first time pitching for the Astros, so
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