The Star Online: Sports
The Star Online: Sports |
- Tennis: Injured Azarenka out, Ferrer advances at Miami
- Golf: Rose shares PGA lead as Tiger stumbles late
- Rugby: Jamaica debut at Hong Kong Sevens
| Tennis: Injured Azarenka out, Ferrer advances at Miami Posted: 22 Mar 2013 06:39 PM PDT MIAMI: World No. 3 Victoria Azarenka withdrew with a right ankle injury while Spanish men's third seed David Ferrer advanced by walkover Friday at the WTA and ATP Masters Miami hardcourt event. Reigning Australian Open champion Azarenka complained of ankle pain after a 6-3, 6-1 fourth-round victory over Urszula Radwanska in the Indian Wells quarter-finals last week before withdrawing eight days ago. "I am very disappointed that I am unable to compete this year in Miami," Azarenka said. "This is one of my favorite events and the Miami fans are always supportive. "I have been working very hard to rehab my ankle this week but unfortunately it is still not fit to play. I look forward to returning next year." Ferrer moved into the third round of the $8.5 million tournament when Russian opponent Dmitry Turnsunov withdrew with a stomach bug. He next faces Italian 32nd seed Fabio Fognini, who beat France's Michael Llodra 6-3, 6-1. World No. 1 Novak Djokovic plays his first match later Friday against Czech Lukas Rosol while Argentina's fifth-seeded Juan Martin del Potro meets German Tobias Kamke and Russian third seed Maria Sharapova meets Canadian wild card Eugenie Bouchard. Azarenka, who like all Miami seeds received a first-round bye, is unbeaten on court this year, a 17-0 run that includes the Australian Open and a title in Doha. But she has twice surrendered matches by walkover, the first in January at a Brisbane semi-final against Serena Williams with an infected right toe that resulted from a pedicure. Azarenka was replaced in the Miami draw by 19-year-old US lucky loser Lauren Davis, who saved three match points in the deciding tiebreaker to defeat compatriot Madison Keys 6-1, 5-7, 7-6 (9/7). Davis, ranked 81st, never expected to even have the chance to play after watching Azarenka warm up in the morning. Now she awaits either Britain's Laura Robson and France's Alize Cornet to decide a spot in the last 16. "I'm so ecstatically happy," Davis said. "I came here this morning with like no hope left that I was going to get in, because I had seen Azarenka practicing and stuff, but I just hoped and I wished and I prayed that I would get in." "I got a call at 10 a.m. saying I got in. I was just so happy. I didn't care if I won or lost. I just was so grateful for the opportunity to play." - AFP |
| Golf: Rose shares PGA lead as Tiger stumbles late Posted: 22 Mar 2013 06:32 PM PDT ORLANDO, Florida: England's Justin Rose fired a two-under par 70 on Friday to keep a share of the lead after two rounds of the Arnold Palmer Invitational as Tiger Woods stumbled. Rose and American Bill Haas stood on nine-under 135 after 36 holes at the $8.5 million US PGA event, which for Woods and many others is likely the final tuneup event for next month's Masters, the year's first major championship. Woods moved within a stroke of the lead only to finish with three bogeys, a disappointing 70 leaving him in a share of seventh, four strokes behind overnight leader Rose and Haas, who fired a bogey-free 66 to leap up the leaderboard at Bay Hill. "I played good," Woods said. "I missed a couple short ones. The score doesn't indicate how well I played. "I'm four back. I'm right there. The good news is we've got 36 holes to go. There's a lot of golf left. Certainly four shots can be made up." Rose birdied the par-3 second and par-5 sixth, 12th and 16th holes while taking a bogey at the par-3 14th and missing a five-foot par putt at the 18th to fallback into only a share of the lead with Haas. Woods, who would become World No. 1 with a victory this week, opened with a birdie, eagled the sixth and added birdies at the par-4 11th and 13th holes to pull within a stroke of the lead. But then everything fell apart for the 14-time major champion. He found a bunker off the 16th tee, then went into the water and missed a 27-foot par attempt to take a 6. At the par-3 17th, Woods found the rough left off the tee, punched out 21 feet from the cup and two-putted for another bogey. At the par-4 18th, Woods found the right rough off the tee and left himself 30 feet for par, coming up just short to drop yet another stroke. American John Huh, who birdied two of the last three holes, was third on 136 with Americans J.J. Henry, Ken Duke and Jimmy Walker sharing fourth on 138. Woods was on 139 with Fiji's Viji's Singh and American Mark Wilson. Haas, who is due to become a father in eight weeks, birdied the second and par-4 eighth, added back-to-back birdies at the 12th and 13th and eagled the par-5 16th to make his charge. Haas has been bothered by a sore neck for more than a month but showed no sign of distress on Friday. "It's not bad. I can honestly play," Haas said. "I can make a full turn. Sometimes when I look to the left it kind of tightens in the back of the neck. We should call it a sore neck, not an injury. "When you're playing poorly, it hurts, and when you're playing well, it doesn't hurt." - AFP |
| Rugby: Jamaica debut at Hong Kong Sevens Posted: 22 Mar 2013 06:25 PM PDT HONG KONG: While the titans of international rugby slug it out at the Hong Kong Sevens this weekend, Jamaica are hoping their first outing at the tournament will put the game on the map back home. In a nation lauded for its cricket, athletics and football prowess, rugby is a fledgling but growing sport with an increasing fan base, says Jamaica coach Conroy O'Malley. "It's not as popular as soccer but it is a growing sport. We've been progressing over the past 12 years in terms of rugby development and we have a lot of fans now - I'd say around 50,000 people that are really interested. They'll be watching us in this Sevens on TV," he told AFP. Jamaica are taking part in a pre-qualifier tournament at the Hong Kong Sevens which runs parallel to the main HSBC Sevens World Series competition. They are vying with 11 other teams to come in the top four of that contest, earning them a place at the London Sevens in May and a chance to be promoted into the World Series next year. The dramatic setting of the 40,000-seater Hong Kong Stadium with its singing crowds and electric atmosphere is a far cry from what the team are used to. "This is the biggest stadium and crowd the team has played in front of and it will help us build confidence," captain Tyronie Rowe told AFP. "The pitch here for us is like velvet. We train on asphalt so most of the guys here get a lot of injuries," said Rowe, who also plays for the national 15s side. Rowe hopes that a good performance in Hong Kong will spur sponsors and the authorities in Jamaica to give rugby better backing. "Rugby can join cricket, track-and-field and football, with more support from local authorities. We could have better training conditions and push a lot further. Because we don't have gym facilities at the moment, I home-train on my own," he said. Jamaica lost their first match to Georgia 27-17 on Friday night and are bottom of their group going into Saturday, when they take on Japan and Brazil. But O'Malley said he was happy with the team's performance. "A lot of folks may have expected us to be trampled by the Georgians but with that score I think they'll look at us differently from now on," he said. "I just told the players to get out there, enjoy themselves and put on a good show." - AFP |
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