The Star Online: Sports
The Star Online: Sports |
- Canada make Argentina work hard for Pan-Am hockey win
- Radwanska qualifies for WTA finals without playing
- Garcia leads after Castello Masters second round
| Canada make Argentina work hard for Pan-Am hockey win Posted: 21 Oct 2011 05:26 PM PDT GUADALAJARA, Mexico, Oct 21 (Reuters) - World hockey champions Argentina were given a run for their money by Canada, the second best team in the women's Pan-American Games tournament based on performance, before winning 7-3 on Friday. It was a match of two halves in which Canada stunned the Las Leonas (the lionesses) with a sixth-minute opening goal from Thea Culley. Argentina then scored four goals in 10 minutes but Canada hit back twice through Hannah Lynn Haughn and defender Katherine Gillis in fine attacking plays at the end of the half to hold the favourites to a narrow 4-3 lead at the interval. Having adjusted defensive issues, captain Luciana Aymar's team scored three more goals in the second half for a comfortable victory that might have been by a greater margin but for some brave goalkeeping from Azelia Liu. Argentina's coach Carlos Retegui gave the Canadians full credit for their three goals and smiled about the fact that they were all from field plays with none from short corners. "We had set ourselves the target of not conceding from corners," he told reporters. "But, well, (the ball) did go in in plays. I think we need to be a bit more alert with 50-50 balls in the area. Retegui said the ball could have fallen to either team in those tight goalmouth situations and all Argentina's rivals were going to play them that way with fast counter-attacks. "Lots of teams are going to play us like that, get into the area and they're going to knock it in... we must do a bit more zonal marking to be able to intercept those crosses," he added. TAKING CHANCES "The goals (conceded) were merit of the rival team who came into the area, created goal chances and were good at taking them. "We need to correct those mistakes but I think the team did good things with the ball," Retegui said after his team had mostly kept Canada on the back foot. Argentina, who had crushed Trinidad & Tobago 11-0 in their first match, equalised through Soledad Garcia. Then Aymar, the world's top-ranked player, scored two trademark goals following brilliant dribbling runs that have earned her comparisons from her compatriots with soccer ace Diego Maradona. Garcia made it 4-1 in the 25th minute before Canada's two fine breakaway goals in the last five minutes of the first half. Argentina then pulled away with two goals from short corners by specialist Noel Barrionuevo after 41 and 53 minutes and a final strike from Carla Rebecchi at the end of a move that Retegui called brilliant. "The seventh goal deserves to be framed... It was a combination of three - Lu (Aymar), Sole (Garcia) and Rebecchi - that will stick in the mind. The team played very well at times," Retegui said. "We're turning our minds to Barbados on Sunday and then the semi-final which surely be with Chile. The United States beat Chile (in Pool B) so they are our most likely opponents," he added, confident of taking the points against the Barbadians. Argentina are looking to win the single Olympic berth on offer at the tournament. Full content generated by Get Full RSS. |
| Radwanska qualifies for WTA finals without playing Posted: 21 Oct 2011 05:24 PM PDT MOSCOW, Oct 21 (Reuters) - Agnieszka Radwanska secured the last remaining spot in the season-ending WTA Championships without hitting a ball after Marion Bartoli retired from her Kremlin Cup quarter-final with an illness on Friday. Kremlin Cup organisers said the Frenchwoman was forced to withdraw from her match against Russia's Elena Vesnina after suffering from a viral infection. World number nine Bartoli was the only player with a chance of catching the eighth-ranked Pole but she needed to win in Moscow to clinch a place in the eight-player field in Istanbul. "I think my whole body needed a break," Bartoli said in a statement. "Yesterday, during my match I didn't feel very well but I still had energy left so it was enough to win." The third seed had crushed unseeded Russia Ksenia Pervak 6-1 6-1 in just over an hour on Thursday to reach the last eight. "This morning I had so much pain in my whole body, in my neck... I couldn't even warm up today. So I knew it would be very difficult," added Bartoli, who won her second title of the year on Sunday after beating U.S. Open champion Samantha Stosur in the Japan Open final. "It has been a very long season and I really tried to play till the very end but that was it for me." Russia's top seed Vera Zvonareva, who has already booked her ticket to Turkey, was upset by eighth-seeded Slovak Dominika Cibulkova 4-6 6-4 6-4 after a near three-hour battle. Despite losing her opening match in Moscow on Wednesday, Radwanska will join world number one Caroline Wozniacki, Maria Sharapova, Victoria Azarenka, Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova, Zvonareva, Stosur and French Open champion Li Na in Istanbul next week. SORE SHOULDER Zvonareva blamed a sore shoulder for her defeat. "I started having pain in my shoulder in the second set and I started thinking about it and was afraid it would get worse," the world number five told reporters. "I've tried to fight through the pain but just couldn't get it done. I probably should have stopped," she added. "I have this bad habit - I often keep on playing even when I have an injury and it doesn't do me any good." Cibulkova said she was unaware of Zvonareva's problems. "I didn't notice she was having any problem," said the Slovak, who now faces 64th-ranked Vesnina in Saturday's semi-finals. "She kept serving at top speed so I was very surprised she had called for a trainer midway through the third set." The second semi-final pits Estonian Kaia Kanepi, who crushed Russia's sixth seed Svetlana Kuznetsova 6-1 6-2, against Czech Lucie Safarova, a 6-4 6-4 winner over Russian Vera Dushevina. Full content generated by Get Full RSS. |
| Garcia leads after Castello Masters second round Posted: 21 Oct 2011 05:20 PM PDT CASTELLON, Spain, Oct 21 (Reuters) - Former world number two Sergio Garcia, chasing his first European Tour victory for almost three years, fired a blistering eight-under 63 to take a two-shot lead after the Castello Masters second round on Friday. The 31-year-old Spaniard, who has slumped to 49th in the rankings, finished with a 12-under total of 130, two ahead of Swede Alex Noren (63). "I'm getting there with my ball striking although there are a couple of things I'd like to get better," Garcia told reporters. "A couple of shots didn't come out the way I wanted them to today." Tournament promoter Garcia is this week playing on his home Mediterraneo course where he also won this event in 2008. The Champions Tournament in China in November 2008 was the last trophy Garcia lifted before his relationship with Greg Norman's daughter Morgan ended, a split he said he took some time to recover from. Garcia was back on form on Friday, compiling his best round for two years. He strung together seven birdies and an eagle courtesy of a 40-foot putt at the par-five eighth. His 63 equalled the score he registered when finishing fourth in this event in 2009. "I do have an advantage over a couple of shots here and there on my course," said Garcia. Earlier this week Ryder Cup captain Jose Maria Olazabal predicted Garcia would be back in the European side in 2012 after missing out on the biennial team event last year. "There are no givens," said Garcia. "I want to make sure my head and my will is good and I don't want to have to rely on a captain's wildcard pick." Noren, looking for his third win of the season after claiming the Wales Open and Scandinavian Masters titles, was delighted to score his 63 playing alongside Olazabal. "I've been thinking more and more about the Ryder Cup since playing in the Seve Trophy a few weeks ago," Noren told Reuters. "It's always good to play well in front of the captain. "I'm finding things easier since understanding I can't hit every shot perfectly so I play to my strengths instead." Overnight leader Ross McGowan (70), fellow Briton Gary Orr (67) and Australia's Marcus Fraser (64) were four strokes off the lead in joint third place. Full content generated by Get Full RSS. |
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