Defending champion Gael Monfils finished off Michael Russell of the US with his 17th ace in winning 6-3, 6-3 to reach the Open Sud de France quarter-finals on Thursday.
Russell double-faulted to drop serve at 3-3 and lost the opening set. Monfils capitalized on a backhand error from Russell to break for a 3-1 lead in the second set.
Monfils next plays eighth-seeded Jarkko Nieminen, who dismissed French wild-card Paul-Henri Mathieu 7-6 (7/4), 6-1.
Photo: EPA
The top-seeded Tomas Berdych cruised past French qualifier Florent Serra 6-0, 6-2 in another second-round match.
Berdych, recovered from his grueling quarter-final loss to Rafael Nadal at the Australian Open, broke Serra five times to set up a match against Nicolas Mahut of France, who beat sixth-seeded Florian Mayer 7-6 (7/3), 6-3.
Mahut jumped out to 4-1 in the tiebreaker and took the first set when Mayer double-faulted. He broke the German twice in the final set to clinch victory.
ZAGREB INDOORS
AP, ZAGREB, CROATIA
Lukas Lacko of Slovakia ousted second seed Alex Bogomolov Jr of Russia 6-0, 6-7 (7/1), 6-1 to advance to the Zagreb Indoors quarter-finals on Thursday.
Bogomolov, a quarter-finalist last year, rallied after dropping the first set, but lost five games in only 14 minutes in the decider to bow out.
Third-seeded Mikhail Youzhny of Russia defeated Grega Zemlja of Slovenia 6-1, 6-3 to reach his third quarter-final in Zagreb.
Defending champion Ivan Dodig beat Guillermo Garcia-Lopez of Spain 4-6, 6-4, 6-4. The fourth-seeded Dodig will face No. 6 Marcos Baghdatis, the 2007 champion, who downed Lukasz Kubot of Poland 6-4, 6-2.
Another Croat, eighth-seeded Ivo Karlovic, won his second-rounder by hitting a dozen aces past Dudi Sela in beating the Israeli 6-3, 6-2.
VINA DEL MAR VTR OPEN
AP, VINA DEL MAR, CHILE
Argentine qualifier Federico Delbonis reached his second career ATP quarter-finals when he upset third-seeded Thomaz Bellucci of Brazil 6-2, 7-5 in the VTR Open on Thursday.
Delbonis’ opponent is scheduled to be Carlos Berlocq, who overwhelmed fellow Argentine Diego Junqueira 6-1, 6-0.
Second-seeded Juan Ignacio Chela of Argentina defeated countryman Horacio Zeballos 6-4, 7-6 (7/2), setting up a quarter-final against Brazilian Joao Souza, who upset Chile’s Fernando Gonzalez 6-3, 7-6 (8/6).
DOUBLE: Harry Kane has now netted 12 goals in six games, scoring his second hat-trick this season after Bayern’s opening Bundesliga match against Leipzig last month That man again. Harry Kane scored his second hat-trick of the season on Saturday to steer Bayern Munich to a 4-1 win at Hoffenheim for the best Bundesliga start any team has made after four rounds. The England captain scored before the break and converted two penalties after it to take his club tally to 12 goals in six games across all competitions — 13 goals in seven games including the German Supercup. Kane’s other hat-trick was in the Bundesliga-opening 6-0 rout of Leipzig. Bayern’s record of 12 points with a goal difference of 15-plus is the best after four rounds of the Bundesliga
Rwanda is to take center stage from today as the first African country to host the cycling world championships, in its latest use of sports to improve the country’s reputation. As it prepares for 5,000 cyclists and 20,000 spectators, Rwanda has spruced up its roads, created a network of cycle lanes and run multiple police drills. A poor, landlocked country in east Africa still widely associated with a horrific genocide in 1994, Rwanda has used various sports to revamp its image, attract tourists and impress investors with its organizational efficiency. It has spent lavishly on soccer sponsorship deals with clubs
New Zealand yesterday basked in “amazing” athletics glory after winning two gold medals in as many days at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo. Geordie Beamish on Monday claimed New Zealand’s first track gold in history with a shock victory in the 3,000m steeplechase, while high jumper Hamish Kerr followed with gold on Tuesday to make it an unprecedented double success for a country much better known for rugby than its prowess in track and field. Before this week, the country had won only six golds in total at the championships. Yesterday morning New Zealand were in the giddy position of fourth on
After Shohei Ohtani on Tuesday pitched five hitless innings for the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Philadelphia Phillies’ Rafael Marchon hit a tiebreaking, three-run homer off Blake Treinen with two outs in the ninth inning for a 9-6 win. Brandon Marsh had a two-run homer and Max Kepler added a solo shot in a six-run sixth for Philadelphia. Ohtani’s 50th homer leading off the eighth helped the Dodgers tie the game 6-6. The Phillies erased a 4-0 deficit against Justin Wrobleski in another stunning collapse by the Dodgers bullpen. Philadelphia rallied for four runs in the seventh and eighth innings and another in the
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