Federer pulls out of Paris Masters

PARIS (AP) -Second-seeded Roger Federer has pulled out of his quarterfinal against James Blake at the Paris Masters because of a back injury.

"My back has been stiff for the last couple of days and I woke up this morning and it did not respond to the treatment I had last night,'' Federer said on his Web site Friday. "As a precaution and because I would be unable to play at 100 percent tonight, I have unfortunately had to take the difficult decision not to play.''

Federer apologized to the disappointed fans who came to watch him at the Bercy indoor arena.

"This is the first time ever I've pulled out during a tournament, so it feels bad,'' he said. "I don't like to do it. Feel bad for the tournament and for the fans.''

Federer said he hopes the injury will only take a few days to recover and that he will be able to play in the season-ending Masters Cup in Shanghai which begins Nov. 9.

"Usually the back is something that takes a few days and it's better again,'' Federer said. "I'm confident and I'm positive that hopefully it's going to get better in the next few days.''

The 13-time Grand Slam champion has never reached the semifinals at the Bercy indoor arena after losing in the 2002 and 2003 quarterfinals.

The 11th-seeded Blake now advances to the last four, where he will face either No. 7 Andy Roddick or No. 13 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, who played later.

Federer said he first felt a surge of pain when serving during his second-round match against Robin Soderling on Wednesday. The pain subsided overnight but came back in the third round against Marin Cilic when he lunged to retrieve a shot.

"Usually overnight and maybe with painkillers you sort of get over it, but I just feel like I just can't play the way it is right now,'' Federer said. "I mean, you can hit balls but you can't play professional tennis against the best in the world.''

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Wozniak advances in Bell Challenge

QUEBEC CITY (AP) -Hometown favorite Aleksandra Wozniak beat qualifier Carly Gullickson 6-3, 6-2 Thursday in the second round of the Bell Challenge.

The fifth-seeded Wozniak, who was born in Montreal and lives in Blainville, Quebec, will play Kazakhstan's Galina Voskoboeva in the quarterfinals on Friday. Voskoboeva defeated Canada's Rebecca Marino 6-1, 6-3.

Also Thursday, Angela Haynes of the U.S. beat France's Severine Bremond 6-2, 6-4 and France's Nathalie Dechy upset seventh-seeded Olga Govortsova of Belarus 6-1, 7-5.

Haynes and Dechy will meet in the quarterfinals.

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Nadal,В Federer in Paris quarters

PARIS (AP) -Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer rolled into the Paris Masters quarterfinals without the ousted Novak Djokovic on Thursday.

Fourth-ranked Andy Murray, Andy Roddick, defending champion David Nalbandian and 2006 winner Nikolay Davydenko also made the last eight.

Roddick claimed the sixth spot in the eight-man Masters Cup in Shanghai next month, leaving Juan Martin del Potro and Gilles Simon waiting on Friday's results to see if they keep the last two berths.

Nadal beat Gael Monfils of France 6-3, 6-2, Federer defeated Marin Cilic of Croatia 6-3, 6-4, while Djokovic, the year's other major winner, lost to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France 6-4, 1-6, 6-3.

Nadal saved all nine break points he faced and broke Monfils three times, clinching victory on his first match point when the Frenchman hit a forehand wide.

"I'm not playing my best level, but I'm not playing badly,'' Nadal said. "If I can improve a bit for tomorrow and for Shanghai I think I can finish the year playing well.''

Nadal will play Davydenko, who crushed 2005 champion Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic 6-1, 6-1.

Even though Nadal was guaranteed to start 2009 ahead of Federer in the rankings, he feels like he's still behind him.

"Roger had four or five years with the No. 1, winning two, three Grand Slams a year,'' Nadal said. "So for that reason I think everybody says Federer is the best.''

Federer's fourth ace sealed a dominant win over 20-year-old Cilic, and allowed him to cast an eye on his first semifinals at Bercy Indoor Arena.

"I prefer to come back to a place where I had success in the past. This is not the case here,'' Federer.

He'll have to go through James Blake, who defeated Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany 6-4, 6-4.

Federer is 8-1 against Blake, with the Swiss star's only loss in the quarterfinals at the Beijing Olympics in August.

"I'm not the revengeful type, but I would be pleased to beat him,'' Federer said.

Djokovic beat Tsonga in the Australian Open final for his first major title, but has lost to the Frenchman in successive matches since then. The latest defeat made the world No. 3 less of a fan of the indoor carpet.

"I just don't feel quite comfortable on the court,'' the Serb said. "When you play indoors, points get quicker. (Tsonga) was serving really well.''

Tsonga will next meet Roddick for the first time in nearly two years.

"If I manage to stay in shape physically, I will go from strength to strength in this tournament,'' Tsonga said.

The seventh-seeded Roddick overcame 10th-seeded Simon 6-3, 7-5 on his fifth match point. Both have won three titles this year.

"It wasn't going to do me any good to play patty-cake back and forth with him today,'' Roddick said. "I'm not as quick as he is and I'm not as consistent as he is. It actually made for a pretty simple game plan.''

Murray topped Fernando Verdasco of Spain 6-3, 7-6 (6) for his 14th straight win, staying on track for a third straight Masters title.

Murray will face Nalbandian in the quarterfinals, after the Argentine defeated countryman del Potro 6-4, 6-0.

"His results have been pretty special the last couple of years. Should be a great match,'' Murray said of Nalbandian. "He picks his schedule very well and is fresher than the other players toward the end of the year.''

After victories at Cincinnati and Madrid, Murray hopes to become the only player to win three straight Masters titles.

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Federer, Roddick in Paris quarters
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Federer, Roddick in Paris quarters

PARIS (AP) -Roger Federer defeated Marin Cilic 6-3, 6-4 Thursday to reach the quarterfinals of the Paris Masters, while Andy Murray topped Fernando Verdasco 6-3, 7-6 (6).

Federer will play James Blake, who edged Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-4, 6-4, and the fourth-seeded Murray will face defending champion David Nalbandian.

Nalbandian defeated Juan Martin del Potro 6-4, 6-0, and Andy Roddick overcame Gilles Simon 6-3, 7-5 to seal his spot in the Masters Cup.

Federer used an ace to finish the dominant win over the 20-year-old Croatian, while Murray clinched his 14th straight win and improved to 5-0 against his Spanish opponent.

Murray looks to become the only player to win three straight Masters titles after victories at Cincinnati and Madrid.

Federer could reach the semifinals at the Paris Masters for the first time. He reached the quarters in 2002 and 2003.

"I had better results in other tournaments, that's for sure,'' Federer said. "Of course, I prefer to come back to a place where I had success in the past. This is not the case here.''

Federer is 8-1 against Blake, with the Swiss star's only loss coming in the quarterfinals at the Beijing Olympics in August.

"I'm not the revengeful type, but I would be pleased to beat him,'' Federer said.

Roddick needed five match points to get the better of Simon. The American will play No. 13 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, who beat No. 3 Novak Djokovic 6-4, 1-6, 6-3 in a rematch of the Australian Open final.

"If I manage to stay in shape physically, I will go from strength to strength in this tournament,'' Tsonga said.

The Masters Cup in Shanghai features the top eight players in the ATP race. Blake remains in contention, and Simon can qualify for the tournament if other results go his way.

Roddick felt he had to dictate the pace against Simon.

"It wasn't going to do me any good to play patty-cake back and forth with him,'' Roddick said. "I'm not as quick as he is and I'm not as consistent as he is. It actually made for a pretty simple game plan. "

Later, top-ranked Rafael Nadal meets No. 16 Gael Monfils.

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Roddick reaches Paris quarters

PARIS (AP) -Andy Roddick overcame Gilles Simon 6-3, 7-5 to seal his spot in the Masters Cup, and defending champion David Nalbandian defeated Juan Martin del Potro 6-4, 6-0 Thursday to reach the quarterfinals of the Paris Masters.

Roddick needed five match points to get the better of Simon. The American will play No. 13 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga , who beat No. 3 Novak Djokovic 6-4, 1-6, 6-3 in a rematch of the Australian Open final.

The Masters Cup in Shanghai features the top eight players in the ATP race. Eleventh-seeded James Blake of the United States remains in contention after edging Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-4, 6-4.

Roddick said he had to dictate the pace against Simon.

"It wasn't going to do me any good to play patty-cake back and forth with him today,'' Roddick said. "I'm not as quick as he is and I'm not as consistent as he is. It actually made for a pretty simple game plan. "

Simon was powerless to attack Roddick's first serve, winning only four points on it. Simon also missed four chances to break Roddick in the second set.

Roddick clinched the match when Simon went for a forehand winner and the ball clipped the net and bounced out.

The eighth-seeded Nalbandian broke Del Potro's serve twice in the first set and three times in the second to defeat his Argentine compatriot for the second time in less than a week after winning in the Swiss Indoors semifinals on Saturday.

"I think he was a little tired, particularly in the second set,'' Nalbandian said. "I think I played well all the match and it was a very good performance.''

Del Potro, who had beaten Nalbandian in the third round of the Madrid Masters two weeks ago, won only 13 points in the second set as Nalbandian repeatedly attacked his weak second serve.

Nalbandian will face either No. 4 Andy Murray or No. 15 Fernando Verdasco, who plays later.

Later, top-ranked Rafael Nadal meets No. 16 Gael Monfils and No. 2 Roger Federer plays Marin Cilic.

Nalbandian through to 3rd round at Paris Masters
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Nadal reaches 3rd round at Paris Masters

PARIS (AP) -Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and defending champion David Nalbandian reached the third round of the Paris Masters on Wednesday without dropping a set.

Nadal topped Florent Serra of France 6-2, 6-4, and eighth-seeded Nalbandian downed Nicolas Kiefer of Germany 7-6 (5), 6-3.

Federer had the most trouble, saving two set points in the tiebreaker to beat Robin Soderling 6-4, 7-6 (7).

"He's got a big serve, really suits the indoors well,'' Federer said. "I'm happy to be through, kind of a relief for me. I was surprised he didn't return a bit better, but I think I've been really serving well lately, basically since the U.S. Open.''

Soderling won the Lyon Grand Prix on Sunday but lost for the eighth straight time to the Swiss star.

The Swede had set point at 6-5 on serve but hit a forehand wide. He got another chance after the next point but didn't take it again and his long forehand gave Federer match point.

Federer is enjoying the end to a tough season, getting a win at the Swiss Indoors in Basel last week to add to an Olympic gold medal in doubles and the U.S. Open title for his 13th major.

"I'm happy the way things have gone this season after kind of a rough start and a rough Wimbledon final,'' said Federer who lost that final to Nadal. "So I've really been able to turn around, you know, get some emotional wins with the Olympic gold and Basel again and then the U.S. Open.''

Also second-round winners were fourth-seeded Andy Murray, sixth-seeded Nikolay Davydenko, 10th-seeded Gilles Simon, 11th-seeded James Blake and 13th-seeded Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. No. 5 David Ferrer and No. 12 Stanislas Wawrinka were upset.

Nadal was looking forward to facing No. 16 Gael Monfils of France for the first time in nearly 2 1/2 years.

"(Monfils) is playing very well this year,'' Nadal said. "He can play aggressive, sometimes he plays defensive, two meters behind the baseline. He can do something different.''

Federer will play Marin Cilic of Croatia, and Nalbandian will meet Juan Martin del Potro for the third time in three weeks.

"That is a little bit strange,'' Nalbandian said of facing his fellow Argentine. "It's going to be a tough one, we both know each other very well.''

Nalbandian beat del Potro in the semifinals of the Swiss Indoors last week, after del Potro won in the Madrid Masters third round.

Murray defeated Sam Querrey of the United States 6-2, 6-4 to stay on track for a record third straight Masters title after winning Cincinnati and Madrid.

Davydenko, the 2006 champion, advanced with a 7-6 (5), 7-5 win over Ivan Ljubicic of Croatia. He will play 2005 champ Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic, who beat Wawrinka 6-3, 7-5.

Tsonga rallied to beat 2004 runner-up Radek Stepanek 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 and next faces No. 3 Novak Djokovic of Serbia.

"(Stepanek's) difficult to play because he has a very special rhythm,'' Tsonga said. "Sometimes he plays fast, sometimes slow, sometimes he changes the pace, and sometimes he plays shots no one would play.''

Djokovic beat Tsonga in the Australian Open final, then Tsonga paid him back somewhat by winning the Bangkok final.

Also, 10th-seeded Simon defeated Igor Andreev of Russia 6-3, 7-5 to keep alive his chances of reaching the eight-man Masters Cup in Shanghai. The Frenchman next faces seventh-seeded Andy Roddick of the United States, who was also vying for a Masters Cup spot.

Their hopes were improved when Ferrer lost 6-3, 6-2 to Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany.

Kohlschreiber will play Blake, who kept alive his Masters Cup chance with a 6-7 (10), 6-3, 6-4 win over Simone Bolelli of Italy.

Cilic won 6-4, 7-6 (2) over Marcel Granollers of Spain.

Nadal, Nalbandian into 3rd round at Paris Masters
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Nadal, Nalbandian into 3rd round at Paris Masters

PARIS (AP) -Top-ranked Rafael Nadal and defending champion David Nalbandian advanced to the third round of the Paris Masters with straight-sets wins Wednesday.

Nalbandian, who beat Nadal in last year's final, downed Nicolas Kiefer of Germany 7-6 (5), 6-3 to set up another meeting with fellow Argentine Juan Martin del Potro.

Nadal topped Florent Serra of France 6-2, 6-4 and next faces No. 16 Gael Monfils of France.

"(Monfils) is playing very well this year, and I have to play my best tennis if I want to have chances to win tomorrow,'' Nadal said. "He can play aggressive, sometimes he play defensive, two meters behind the baseline. He can do something different.''

Nadal took only 27 minutes to win the first set before Serra rallied briefly, forcing Nadal to save a break point in the fourth game of the second set.

Sixth-seeded Nikolay Davydenko, who won here in 2006, advanced with a 7-6 (5), 7-5 win over Ivan Ljubicic of Croatia. He will play 2005 champion Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic, who beat No. 12 Stanislas Wawrinka 6-3, 7-5.

No. 13 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France rallied to beat 2004 runner-up Radek Stepanek 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 and next faces No. 3 Novak Djokovic of Serbia.

Kiefer saved two match points before the eighth-seeded Nalbandian served out the match with an ace to secure a third matchup this month against the ninth-seeded Del Potro. Nalbandian beat Del Potro in the semifinals of the Swiss Indoors last week after losing to him in the third round of the Madrid Masters the week before.

"This is going to be the third time in three weeks, so that is a little bit strange,'' Nalbandian said of facing del Potro again. "It's going to be a tough one, we both know each other very well.''

Also, 10th-seeded Gilles Simon advanced 6-3, 7-5 past Igor Andreev to keep alive his chances of reaching the season-ending Masters Cup in Shanghai, which is reserved for the top eight players in the ATP race.

The Frenchman next faces seventh-seeded Andy Roddick of the United States, who is also vying for a Masters Cup spot.

Simon and Roddick both took a step closer to qualifying after No. 5 David Ferrer of Spain lost 6-3, 6-2 to Germany's Philipp Kohlschreiber in Wednesday's play.

Marin Cilic of Croatia also advanced to the third round with a 6-4, 7-6 (2) win over Marcel Granollers of Spain.

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Nalbandian through to 3rd round at Paris Masters

PARIS (AP) -Defending champion David Nalbandian beat Nicolas Kiefer of Germany 7-6 (5), 6-3 to reach the third round of the Paris Masters on Wednesday to set up another meeting with fellow Argentine Juan Martin del Potro.

Kiefer saved two match points before the eighth-seeded Nalbandian served out the match with an ace to secure a third matchup this month against the ninth-seeded Del Potro. Nalbandian beat Del Potro in the semifinals of the Swiss Indoors last week after losing to him in the third round of the Madrid Masters the week before.

"This is going to be the third time in three weeks, so that is a little bit strange,'' Nalbandian said of facing del Potro again. "It's going to be a tough one, we both know each other very well.''

Nalbandian saved a break point in the sixth game of the first set but was then largely in control and it was Kiefer who struggled on second serve, fending off two break points in the ninth game.

Nalbandian broke him in the second game of the second set with a backhand shot that bounced on the line.

Meanwhile, tenth-seeded Gilles Simon advanced 6-3, 7-5 past Igor Andreev to keep alive his chances of reaching the season-ending Masters Cup in Shanghai, which is reserved for the top eight players in the ATP race.

Simon broke Andreev in 11th game to lead 6-5 and won on his second match point when Andreev returned into the net. The Frenchman next faces seventh-seeded Andy Roddick of the United States, who is also vying for a Masters Cup spot.

Simon and Roddick both took a step closer to qualifying after No. 5 David Ferrer of Spain lost 6-3, 6-2 to Germany's Philipp Kohlschreiber in Wednesday's play.

Ferrer started the week in ninth place in the ATP race behind Simon, del Potro and Roddick, and the Spaniard would now need a forfeit from another player to qualify for the prestigious tournament.

Marin Cilic of Croatia also advanced to the third round with a 6-4, 7-6 (2) win over Marcel Granollers of Spain and meets the winner of Wednesday's later match between Roger Federer and Robin Soderling.

Top-ranked Rafael Nadal of Spain was also in action later against Florent Serra of France, and fourth-seeded Andy Murray faced Sam Querrey of the United States.

The 21-year-old Murray is bidding to win a third straight Masters Series title after victories in Cincinnati and Madrid. Murray has five titles this year and hasn't lost since Federer beat him in the U.S. Open final.

(jp)

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Djokovic, Roddick, del Potro advance at Paris

PARIS (AP) -Andy Roddick and Juan Martin del Potro boosted their chances of qualifying for next month's Masters Cup by winning their second-round matches in straight sets at the Paris Masters on Tuesday.

Third-seeded Novak Djokovic was leading 6-2, 4-3 against Dmitry Tursunov when the Russian retired with an injured right shoulder, seventh-seeded Roddick beat Feliciano Lopez of Spain 6-3, 6-4, and ninth-seeded del Potro defeated Mario Ancic of Croatia 6-0, 6-4.

Also, 15th-seeded Fernando Verdasco outlasted Spanish countryman Tommy Robredo 6-2, 6-7 (6), 6-2, and 16th-seeded Gael Monfils topped Juan Monaco of Argentina 6-4, 6-4 to set up a possible match against top-ranked Rafael Nadal.

Tursunov retired against Djokovic after twice needing treatment on his shoulder. Djokovic, the Australian Open champion, hasn't won a title since his third of the year at the Rome Masters in May.

"Still trying to find my top form. Lately I've been struggling on the court,'' Djokovic said. "But still, I'm fighting. I know that I have to fight for every point and just find my best shape.''

Djokovic has never beyond the third round at the Paris Masters and next plays either No. 13 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga or 2004 runner-up Radek Stepanek in the third round.

"This time I'm motivated to do well and I have nothing to lose,'' Djokovic said.

Roddick has reached the Paris semifinals twice in his last three appearances.

"I felt like I hit the ball pretty well tonight,'' Roddick said. "You know, I wanted to try to hit it firm and deep, because anything short and he tries to get in on and then starts putting pressure on.''

He and del Potro are chasing the last three spots for the season-ending, eight-man Masters Cup in Shanghai. Roddick was sixth in the standings and del Potro seventh heading into this week's tournament at Bercy Indoor Arena.

Roddick refused to think ahead to Shanghai.

"I'm not going to talk about going to a tournament that I'm not even in yet,'' he said. "I think that's a little bit cocky, maybe a little bit arrogant to assume that you're going to make something.''

Del Potro, who unlike Roddick has never qualified, said, "I'm trying not to think about it. I always wake up thinking about Shanghai.''

Del Potro next faces eighth-seeded David Nalbandian of Argentina or Nicolas Kiefer of Germany. If Nalbandian, it will be their third match in three weeks, with a win apiece.

"I'm playing more aggressive now, I'm serving very well,'' del Potro said.

Del Potro, Roddick and Gilles Simon are looking to gain enough points to hold their places in the top eight for Shanghai. Simon, in the eighth spot, will play Igor Andreev in the second round on Wednesday. If he wins, Simon will face Roddick in the third round.

"He's definitely improved,'' Roddick said of Simon. "To kind of have his career-best year and to make a run late in the year, he's been winning a lot of close matches, which shows his confidence level.''

Monfils, meanwhile, was celebrating his first appearance in the Paris Masters third round.

"I wanted to do so well. Juan is a very good player, and he beat me twice already,'' Monfils said. "Thanks to my serve I was able to be more confident.''

In first-round action, new Lyon Grand Prix champion Robin Soderling won his sixth straight match against Josselin Ouanna of France 6-3, 6-4 to set up an eighth career meeting with Roger Federer.

Soderling was 0-7 against Federer, who won his 57th career title at the Swiss Indoors on Sunday.

Germany's Philipp Kohlschreiber beat Russia's Mikhail Youzhny 6-1, 6-4; 2005 runner-up Ivan Ljubicic of Croatia beat Viktor Troicki of Serbia 6-3, 6-4; and Stepanek of the Czech Republic downed Marc Gicquel of France 6-4, 3-6, 6-4, and Florent Serra beat Guillermo Canas of Argentina 4-6, 7-5, 6-3. Serra will meet Nadal next.

Ljubicic will play 2006 champion Nikolay Davydenko of Russia.

Kohlschreiber had to save eight break points, and next plays fifth-seeded David Ferrer of Spain.

Ferrer is just behind Simon in the race for Masters berths, with James Blake, Stanislas Wawrinka and Australian Open finalist Tsonga all hoping a good showing will help them qualify.

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Del Potro advances at Paris Masters

PARIS (AP) -Ninth-seeded Juan Martin del Potro of Argentina beat Mario Ancic of Croatia 6-0, 6-4 in the second round of the Paris Masters on Tuesday, boosting his chances of reaching the season-ending Masters Cup.

Del Potro is one of several players chasing the last three spots for the prestigious end of season tournament in Shanghai, open to only the top eight players in the ATP race, and was in seventh place heading into this week's indoor tournament in Paris.

"I'm trying not to think about it,'' del Potro said. "I always wake up thinking about Shanghai.''

Del Potro next faces eighth-ranked David Nalbandian of Argentina or Nicolas Kiefer. Del Potro beat Nalbandian at the Madrid Masters but Nalbandian won a rematch when they met in the semifinal of last week's Swiss Indoors.

"I'm playing more aggressive now, I'm serving very well,'' del Potro said.

The seventh-seeded Andy Roddick, who is defending sixth place in the ATP race, played Feliciano Lopez later Tuesday.

Del Potro, Roddick and Gilles Simon are looking to gain enough points to hold their ranking in the top eight and reach Shanghai. Simon held eighth place heading into the tournament and played Igor Andreev in the second round on Wednesday.

Also Tuesday, Gael Monfils of France beat Juan Monaco of Argentina 6-4, 6-4 to reach the third round and set up a possible match against top-ranked Rafael Nadal.

Sixteenth-seeded Monfils had never been beyond the second round in two previous appearances at the Bercy indoor arena, while Nadal faces Florent Serra of France in the second round match on Wednesday.

"I wanted to do so well. Juan is a very good player, and he beat me twice already,'' Monfils said. "Thanks to my serve I was able to be more confident.''

Serra beat Guillermo Canas of Argentina 4-6, 7-5, 6-3, while Robin Soderling won his sixth straight match by beating Josselin Ouanna of France 6-3, 6-4 to set up an eighth career meeting against Roger Federer in the second round.

The big serving Swede, who won his third career title at the Lyon Grand Prix on Sunday, broke his French opponent once in each set and saved all four break points he faced in the first round match.

However, Soderling could struggle to continue his winning streak given that he is 0-7 against the 13-time Grand Slam champion Federer, who won his 57th career title by winning the Swiss Indoors for the third straight year on Sunday.

Germany's Philipp Kohlschreiber also advanced to the second round after beating Russia's Mikhail Youzhny 6-1, 6-4, and 2005 runner-up Ivan Ljubicic of Croatia beat Viktor Troicki of Serbia 6-3, 6-4.

Ljubicic next plays 2006 champion Nikolay Davydenko of Russia.

Kohlschreiber had to save eight break points, and next plays fifth-seeded David Ferrer of Spain.

Ferrer is just behind Simon in the ATP race, with James Blake, Stanislas Wawrinka and Australian Open finalist Jo-Wilfried Tsonga all hoping a good showing will help them qualify for the year-end championship.

In later matches Tuesday, No. 3 Novak Djokovic - already qualified with Federer for Shanghai - takes on Dmitry Tursunov.

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Monfils beats Monaco at Paris Masters

PARIS (AP) -Gael Monfils of France beat Juan Monaco of Argentina 6-4, 6-4 on Tuesday to reach the third round of the Paris Masters and set up a possible match against top-ranked Rafael Nadal.

Sixteenth-seeded Monfils had never been beyond the second round in two previous appearances at the Bercy indoor arena, while Nadal faces Guillermo Canas of Argentina or Florent Serra of France when he plays his second round match on Wednesday.

"I wanted to do so well. Juan is a very good player, and he beat me twice already,'' Monfils said. "Thanks to my serve I was able to be more confident.''

Robin Soderling won his sixth straight match by beating Josselin Ouanna of France 6-3, 6-4 and set up an eighth career meeting against Roger Federer in the second round.

The big serving Swede, who won his third career title at the Lyon Grand Prix on Sunday, broke his French opponent once in each set and saved all four break points he faced in the first round match.

However, Soderling could struggle to continue his winning streak given that he is 0-7 against the 13-time Grand Slam champion Federer, who won his 57th career title by winning the Swiss Indoors for the third straight year on Sunday.

Germany's Philipp Kohlschreiber also advanced to the second round after beating Russia's Mikhail Youzhny 6-1, 6-4, and 2005 runner-up Ivan Ljubicic of Croatia beat Viktor Troicki of Serbia 6-3, 6-4.

Ljubicic next plays 2006 champion Nikolay Davydenko of Russia.

Kohlschreiber had to save eight break points, and next plays fifth-seeded David Ferrer of Spain.

Ferrer is one of several players hoping to grab one of the three remaining places for the season-ending Masters Cup.

Andy Roddick, Juan Martin del Potro and Gilles Simon are also looking to gain enough points to hold their ranking in the top eight and reach Shanghai.

But Ferrer is just behind Simon, with James Blake, Stanislas Wawrinka and Australian Open finalist Jo-Wilfried Tsonga all hoping a good showing will help them qualify for the prestigious year-end championship.

In later matches Tuesday, the seventh-seeded Roddick plays Feliciano Lopez, ninth-seeded del Potro faces Mario Ancic and No. 3 Novak Djokovic - already qualified with Federer for Shanghai - takes on Dmitry Tursunov.

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Federer to play Davis Cup against U.S.

GENEVA (AP) -Roger Federer ended the speculation over his Davis Cup plans Tuesday and announced he will play for Switzerland against the United States next March.

It will be the first time in five years that the 13-time Grand Slam singles winner has broken up his early season schedule for the Davis Cup.

"I am excited to once again join my fellow Swiss teammates, who I have a great friendship with,'' Federer said on his official Web site. "I look forward to what I am sure will be a tough weekend.''

The World Group first-round series will be played March 6-8 in the U.S. at a venue to be chosen by the United States Tennis Association in the next six weeks.

Federer helped Switzerland rejoin the elite World Group when it beat Belgium last month.

He beat Kristof Vliegen in straight sets, then teamed up with Stanislas Wawrinka, his Olympic doubles gold medal-winning partner in Beijing, to win their doubles match.

Federer last played a Davis Cup first-round match in 2004, a victory over Romania in Bucharest.

"We are obviously very pleased that he decided he will be joining the team,'' Swiss Tennis spokeswoman Sandra Perez said. "That increases our chances.''

Swiss officials were hopeful Federer would face the U.S. because his tournament schedule takes him to California immediately after the Davis Cup for the March 9-22 Indian Wells tournament.

"Probably if we were playing the tie in Australia that would have been a little bit more difficult,'' Perez said.

Switzerland and the U.S. have a 1-1 record in Davis Cup meetings.

In 2001, Federer won three points - including singles victories over Todd Martin and Jan-Michael Gambill - when Switzerland beat the United States in the first round in his home city, Basel.

The U.S. beat the Swiss in the 1992 final at Fort Worth, Texas, with Andre Agassi and Jim Courier playing singles and John McEnroe and Pete Sampras in doubles.

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Soderling beats Ouanna at Paris Masters

PARIS (AP) -Robin Soderling won his sixth straight match Tuesday by beating Josselin Ouanna of France 6-3, 6-4 in the Paris Masters and set up an eighth career meeting against Roger Federer in the second round.

The big serving Swede , who won his third career title at the Lyon Grand Prix on Sunday, broke his French opponent once in each set and saved all four break points he faced in the first round match.

However, Soderling could struggle to continue his winning streak given that he is 0-7 against the 13-time Grand Slam champion Federer, who won his 57th career title by winning the Swiss Indoors for the third straight year on Sunday.

Germany's Philipp Kohlschreiber also advanced to the second round after beating Russia's Mikhail Youzhny 6-1, 6-4.

Kohlschreiber had to save eight break points, and next plays fifth-seeded David Ferrer of Spain.

Ferrer is one of several players hoping to grab one of the three remaining places for the season-ending Masters Cup.

Andy Roddick, Juan Martin del Potro and Gilles Simon are also looking to gain enough points to hold their ranking in the top eight and reach Shanghai.

But Ferrer is just behind Simon, with James Blake, Stanislas Wawrinka and Australian Open finalist Jo-Wilfried Tsonga all hoping a good showing will help them qualify for the prestigious year-end championship.

In later matches Tuesday, the seventh-seeded Roddick plays Feliciano Lopez, ninth-seeded del Potro faces Mario Ancic and No. 3 Novak Djokovic - already qualified with Federer for Shanghai - takes on Dmitry Tursunov.

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Study: Players should challenge 'out' calls

LOS ANGELES - Two tennis players are locked in a furious baseline exchange. Eventually, a line judge calls the ball “out.” Should the player who lost the point protest the ruling?

Yes, a new study suggests. Researchers say professional tennis players could increase their chances of having a ruling reversed in their favor by an instant replay review if they challenge “out” calls more than “in” calls.

A study of 57 randomly selected matches during the 2007 Wimbledon tournament found that officials were more likely to err by calling a shot “out” than “in.” It’s not a matter of bad refereeing, scientists say, but rather, it has to do with a bias in the way humans perceive moving objects.

Current rules allow tennis players to make an unlimited number of correct challenges during matches that use replay technology, but up to three unsuccessful challenges per set (with an extra incorrect challenge allowed in a tiebreaker).

“When a ball is called ’in,’ a player should usually not challenge the call, even when she believes it to be an incorrect call,” psychologist David Whitney of the University of California, Davis wrote in the study. “Players should concentrate their challenges on balls that are called ’out.”’

In 2006, the U.S. Open became the first Grand Slam tournament to use instant replay to challenge line calls. Wimbledon and the Australian Open later followed. The French Open is the only major event that doesn’t use the video technology because officials can check ball marks left on the clay surface.

Serena Williams’ quarterfinal loss to Jennifer Capriati during the 2004 U.S. Open is widely considered the match that led tournaments to use instant replay. In the opening game of the third set, the chair umpire’s ruling on a backhand by Williams — a ball called “out” that TV replays showed should have been called “in” — awarded a point to Capriati, who went on to win the match 2-6, 6-4, 6-4.

In the study, three scientists independently reviewed TV footage of 4,457 points from Wimbledon in 2007. Calls were spot on most of the time. Of the 83 wrong rulings, researchers found, 70 — or 84 percent — were instances of a shot landing in but being called “out.” Only in 13 cases was a ball that landed out ruled “in.”

Researchers attributed the errors to perceptual bias in which a moving target appears to be farther along its path than it really is — a bias phenomenon also seen in the general population.

The study was funded by the National Institutes of Health and the results will appear in Tuesday’s issue of the journal Current Biology.

“It’s an interesting concept, and if the research is accurate ... I’m sure players will take it under advisement as they see fit,” said U.S. Open spokesman Chris Widmaier. “Any professional player at the upper levels of the game is looking for any type of fair, competitive advantage they can find.”

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Three spots for Shanghai decided at Paris Masters

PARIS (AP) -The three remaining spots for the season-ending Masters Cup will be decided at the Paris Masters, with Andy Roddick, Juan Martin del Potro and Gilles Simon each looking to gain enough points to hold their ranking in the top eight and reach Shanghai.

But David Ferrer is just behind Simon, with James Blake, Stanislas Wawrinka and Australian Open finalist Jo-Wilfried Tsonga all hoping a good showing at the Bercy indoor arena will help them qualify for the prestigious year-end championship.

In Sunday's first round action, Tommy Robredo of Spain and Dmitry Tursunov of Russia advanced to the second round in straight sets over their French opponents.

Robredo beat Jeremy Chardy 7-6 (4), 7-6 (5), and Tursunov defeated Adrian Mannarino 6-3, 6-2.

Robredo saved the only break point he faced in the first set, while Tursunov broke Mannarino's serve five times in a comfortable win.

Tursunov next plays third-seeded Novak Djokovic in the second round, while Robredo faces No. 15 Fernando Verdasco.

Last year, Frenchman Richard Gasquet jumped from 13th to eighth and took the final spot for the Masters Cup by reaching the semifinals in Paris.

Gasquet pulled out on Sunday because of an injury to his right elbow.

"I felt the injury during the Madrid (Masters) tournament,'' Gasquet said. "Of course I am very disappointed.''

The 14th-seeded Gasquet, who may need an operation on the elbow, will be replaced by a lucky loser from qualifying.

Roddick dented his chances after losing to Robin Soderling in the quarterfinals of the Lyon Grand Prix on Friday. Simon picked up points there by reaching the semis, and Roddick could play Simon in the third round in Paris.

Top-ranked Rafael Nadal, 13-time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer, Djokovic, Andy Murray and Nikolay Davydenko have clinched their spots for Shanghai, but Davydenko is the only one who has won the Paris tournament, in 2006.

Nadal will hope to go one better than last year, when he was well beaten 6-4, 6-0 by David Nalbandian in the final, while Federer will be hoping to can put an end to his Paris jinx by reaching at least the semifinals for the first time.

Nadal, who already leads the ATP for titles this year, will go for his ninth trophy of the year.

The Spaniard could meet Frenchman Gael Monfils in the third round and Davydenko in the quarters, while Federer opens against either Josselin Ouanna or Robin Soderling - against whom he is 7-0.

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Federer to cut exhibitions, focus on Slams in '09

BASEL, Switzerland (AP) -Roger Federer will cut exhibition matches from his 2009 schedule as he pursues Pete Sampras's record of 14 Grand Slam singles titles.

Federer faced Sampras in a three-match series across Asia last November and again in New York City last March. Federer's agent, Tony Godsick, told The Associated Press that such commitments won't be repeated next year.

"Roger will only play a schedule that works for him physically,'' Godsick said Sunday after Federer won his hometown Swiss Indoors tournament.

"The next couple years you will see him put his seat belt on and focus for the big ones, the Grand Slams and the big tournaments.''

Federer is within sight of history with 13 Slams after a fifth straight U.S. Open victory last month.

That Flushing Meadows win was defined as a defiant comeback in a year when Federer fell sick with mononucleosis, was beaten by players outside the top 10 and lost his No. 1 ranking to Rafael Nadal after a record reign of 237 weeks.

"It was tough for him when people were writing him off,'' said Godsick, who guides Federer's off-court activities for IMG agency. "For him to do what he did (at the U.S. Open) was good for him, good for his confidence, and I think really silenced the critics.''

Godsick dismissed the idea that the 27-year-old Swiss is old in tennis terms, but says Federer is entering a new phase after his rise to the top and multiple seasons of domination.

"I think it is the third stage of his career, but it is just the beginning of the third stage,'' Godsick said. "I think he has got many years to come.''

Federer is already nursing his body more carefully after his usual training calendar was wrecked this season by illness and the timing of the Beijing Olympics in August.

He skipped a tournament in Stockholm, Sweden, earlier this month and has yet to commit to the Paris Masters beginning Monday.

His agent believes Federer must have time to build up to the Slams in '09.

"He is not going to overplay next year,'' Godsick said. "He is just going to try to make sure that he peaks for the tournaments that mean the most to him.''

The exhibition tour visited Seoul, Kuala Lumpur and Macau inside five days, then drew a sold-out audience of 19,690 to Madison Square Garden,

"The Sampras thing was fun,'' Godsick said. "Roger got to spend some time with Pete, who was a childhood idol. He learned a lot from him.''

Now, Federer wants to take Sampras' record and show his lighter side off-court while marking the moment in tennis history.

"You will probably see some fun set of commercials that help celebrate what is potentially going to take place,'' Godsick said. "For him, it can't all be serious. Off the court, he is just a kid.''

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Federer wins hometown tourney yet again

BASEL, Switzerland - Roger Federer won his hometown tournament for the third straight year on Sunday, beating second-seeded David Nalbandian of Argentina 6-3, 6-4 in the Swiss Indoors final.

The top-seeded Federer hit eight aces and conceded just seven points on his serve all match.

“I’m very happy, everything worked as planned,” Federer said. “It was a match played at a high level.”

It was Federer’s fourth title of the season after victories at the U.S. Open, in Estoril, Portugal; and Halle, Germany. He is 4-4 in finals this season and 57-21 overall.

Federer improved to 10-8 against the 26-year-old Nalbandian, who won in Basel in 2002 and is a three-time runner-up.

The 27-year-old Swiss broke to lead 4-2 in the first set and again in the third game of the second set.

The fourth game of the first set epitomized the high-quality tennis. Nalbandian saved five breakpoints, twice with aces, and eventually held after six deuces.

Federer kept up the pressure on his opponent’s next service game, creating two break points with a forehand passing shot on the run. Nalbandian then hit a forehand long to drop serve.

Federer held to love in the next game, helped by two heavily sliced aces to the Argentine’s forehand. He clinched the set with an ace and three service winners.

In the second set, Federer hit a backhand crosscourt winner to break Nalbandian and lead 2-1.

Federer closed out the match with a forehand winner behind a big serve.

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Federer to meet Nalbandian in Swiss final

BASEL, Switzerland - Top-seeded Roger Federer defeated Feliciano Lopez of Spain 6-3, 6-2 Saturday to reach the final of the Swiss Indoors.

Federer will seek a third straight Swiss Indoors title Sunday against 2002 champion David Nalbandian of Argentina.

Federer was never in trouble against the 39th-ranked Lopez, winning in 61 minutes.

“I feel great and I’m playing better as the days go by,” Federer said. “Tomorrow will come down to who gets off to the better start.”

The second-seeded Nalbandian defeated Davis Cup teammate Juan Martin del Potro 6-4, 6-4 in the other semifinal.

“Always, playing Roger is tough but it’s good fun playing against him,” said Nalbandian, who is 8-9 against Federer.

Nalbandian was the last player to beat Federer at the US Open — in 2003 — before the Swiss star started his current five-year title streak at Flushing Meadows.

“David is one of the best returners in the game,” Federer said. “Today I had the upper hand and that could be different tomorrow.”

Nalbandian avenged his straight-set loss to Del Potro at the Madrid Masters last week.

“I was the lucky one today, last week it was him,” Nalbandian said. “I served almost perfect and I think that is why I won today.”

The 26-year-old Nalbandian dropped his first service game but didn’t allow another break-point opportunity until serving for the match. He rallied to lead 4-2, breaking Del Potro at love and then forcing his 20-year-old opponent to hit a backhand volley into the net.

The ninth-ranked Del Potro, who won four straight titles earlier this year, called for the trainer to bandage the big toe on his right foot.

Del Potro said his need to qualify for the Masters Cup in Shanghai, China, next month meant he played through his toe injury and tiredness in a match he would have preferred to skip.

“I am fighting for one place there,” he said. “I did my best but it was not enough.”

Nalbandian took his second set-point chance with a serve that was returned long, causing Del Potro to slam his racket in frustration.

Nalbandian broke in the third game of the second set when Del Potro’s running forehand went out. Facing a break point while leading 5-4, Nalbandian used a drop shot with backspin to bring Del Potro to the net, then passed him with a forehand.

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Ivanovic, Zvonareva reach Generali Ladies final

LINZ, Austria - Top-seeded Ana Ivanovic reached her first final since winning the French Open in June, beating No. 3 Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland 6-2, 3-6, 7-5 Saturday in the Generali Ladies.

The Serb will play Sunday against second-seeded Vera Zvonareva, who routed No. 6-seeded Marion Bartoli of France 6-0, 6-1 in the other semifinal.

It will be Ivanovic’s fourth final this season. She won in Indian Wells but lost to Maria Sharapova at the Australian Open.

The fourth-ranked Ivanovic is 3-2 against Zvonareva, who will play her seventh final this season. She has also won two titles this year, in Prague and Guangzhou. Both have won seven tournaments in their careers.

Ivanovic dominated the opening set from the baseline, but dropped serve three times in the second after facing nine break points.

She had four aces in the deciding set.

Zvonareva, who only dropped two games in her last match against Bartoli, improved to 6-1 against the Frenchwoman.

The sixth-seeded Bartoli failed to hold serve in the match. Zvonareva saved five of six breakpoints.

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Dementieva, Wozniacki in Luxembourg final

LUXEMBOURG - Top-seeded Elena Dementieva will face Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark in the final of the Fortis Championships on Sunday.

Dementieva easily defeated eighth-seeded Sorana Cirstea of Romania 6-2, 6-2 in the semifinals on Saturday.

The Olympic champion is chasing her third title of the year.

Wozniacki secured her place in the final by defeating sixth-seeded Li Na of China 7-6 (1), 3-6, 6-2.

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Jankovic to end season as women's No. 1

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) -Jelena Jankovic of Serbia will end the season at No. 1, outlasting four other players who held the top ranking during the year.

Jankovic's 4,555 points give her a commanding lead over Dinara Safina (3,782) and Serena Williams (3,716). She will retain the top spot regardless of the outcome of the season-ending Sony Ericsson Championships in Doha, the WTA Tour announced Saturday.

"It has been a truly amazing year for me,'' Jankovic said. "I worked really hard this year, and to finish No. 1 is where I want to be and where I hope to stay.''

The 23-year-old, who hasn't won a major, lost to Williams at the U.S. Open final in September. She won four titles and is 63-17 so far this year.

Jankovic secured the year-end ranking by winning 12 straight matches en route to three consecutive titles: the China Open in Beijing, the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart, Germany, and the Kremlin Cup in Moscow.

She first claimed the No. 1 ranking on Aug. 11, holding it for one week. She regained the top spot on Oct. 6 following her win in Stuttgart.

She also advanced to the semifinals of two other Grand Slams, losing to eventual champion Maria Sharapova at the Australian Open and eventual champion Ana Ivanovic at the French Open.

The other players to hold the top ranking were the retired Justine Henin (20 weeks), Ivanovic (12), Sharapova (three) and Williams (four).

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Soderling to face Benneteau in Lyon final

LYON, France - Robin Soderling rallied past fourth-seeded Gilles Simon 5-7, 6-3, 6-3 Saturday at the Lyon Grand Prix to reach his fourth indoor final of the year.

He will face Julien Benneteau in Sunday’s final. The Frenchman came back from 5-3 down in the first set to upset third-seeded Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 7-6 (4), 7-5.

The big-serving Soderling, who won at Lyon in 2004, lost his previous three finals this season. Soderling, who clinched the victory with a smash at the net, goes for his third career title.

“I have been playing better and better this week,” Soderling said. “It was tougher against Simon. He has a peculiar way of playing, which means you play less well.”

He led 5-4 and had Simon trailing 15-30 on his serve but then crumbled to lose the first set.

The players swapped breaks at the start of the second set. At 2-1 up, Soderling called for a trainer to treat blisters on his left foot. He broke the Frenchman again to lead 3-1 and then saved two break points with aces.

Simon waited until the eighth game of the third set before getting a chance to break back, but his shot hit the net.

Simon, who has three titles this year and reached the Madrid Masters final, has climbed into the top eight of the Champions Race this week, which determines qualifiers for the Masters Cup.

The final spots will be decided next week at the Paris Masters.

 

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Soderling beats Simon to reach Lyon final

LYON, France (AP) -Robin Soderling rallied past fourth-seeded Gilles Simon 5-7, 6-3, 6-3 Saturday at the Lyon Grand Prix to reach his fourth indoor final of the year.

The big-serving Soderling, who won at Lyon in 2004, lost his previous three finals this season.

Third-seeded Jo-Wilfried Tsonga played Julien Benneteau in an all-French match later Saturday.

Soderling, who clinched the victory with a smash at the net, goes for his third career title.

Soderling led 5-4 and had Simon trailing 15-30 on his serve but then crumbled to lose the first set.

The players swapped breaks at the start of the second set. At 2-1 up, Soderling called for a trainer to treat blisters on his left foot. He broke the Frenchman again to lead 3-1 and then saved two break points with aces.

Simon waited until the eighth game of the third set before getting a chance to break back, but his shot hit the net.

Simon, who has three titles this year and reached the Madrid Masters final, has climbed into the top eight of the Champions Race this week, which determines qualifiers for the Masters Cup.

The final spots will be decided next week at the Paris Masters.

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Murray faces Golubev in St. Petersburg Open final

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia (AP) -Defending champion Andy Murray defeated Fernando Verdasco 6-0, 6-3 Saturday to advance to the St. Petersburg Open final.

On Sunday, the top-seeded Murray will play qualifier Andrey Golubev, who reached his first career ATP final by beating Victor Hanescu 6-3, 6-0.

Murray, who won the Madrid Masters last Sunday for his fourth title this season, exploited Verdasco's poor serve and won eight straight games to go up a set and 2-0 in the second.

The third-seeded Spaniard, who lost to Murray in last year's final, broke back for 2-2 and tried to stay in the match until the Briton broke decisively in the eighth game and served for the match.

It was the 11th consecutive win for the fourth-ranked Murray, including two victories in Britain's Davis Cup World Group playoffs against Austria in September. His win-loss record this season is 52-14, making him the fourth player this year to win more than 50 matches.

Murray also won titles in Doha, Marseille and Cincinnati. His only loss in a final this season was to Roger Federer at the U.S. Open.

The 150th-ranked Golubev dominated his Romanian opponent throughout and never faced a break point. At 3-3 in the first set, the 21-year-old qualifier from Kazakhstan won 10 consecutive games to close out the match in 54 minutes.

Golubev upset eighth-seeded Marat Safin in straight sets in the second round Thursday to reach his first ATP quarterfinal.

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Nalbandian beats Del Potro in Swiss Indoors semis

BASEL, Switzerland (AP) -David Nalbandian of Argentina defeated Juan Martin del Potro 6-4, 6-4 Saturday to reach the Swiss Indoors final.

The second-seeded Nalbandian avenged his straight-sets loss to Del Potro at the Madrid Masters last week.

"I was the lucky one today, last week it was him,'' Nalbandian said. "I served almost perfect, and I think that is why I won today.''

Nalbandian, the 2002 champion, will play in his fourth Swiss Indoors final Sunday against top-seeded Roger Federer or 39th-ranked Feliciano Lopez of Spain, who played later.

The 26-year-old Nalbandian dropped his first service game but didn't allow another breakpoint opportunity until serving for the match. He rallied to lead 4-2, breaking Del Potro at love and forcing his 20-year-old opponent to hit a backhand volley into the net.

The ninth-ranked Del Potro, who won four straight titles earlier this year, called for the trainer to bandage the big toe on his right foot in the first set.

Nalbandian won his second set-point chance with a serve that was returned long, causing Del Potro to slam his racket in frustration.

Nalbandian broke in the third game of the second set when Del Potro's running forehand went out. Facing a break point at 5-4 up, Nalbandian used a drop shot with backspin to bring Del Potro to the net, then passed him with a forehand.

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Zvonareva routs Bartoli to reach final in Linz

LINZ, Austria (AP) -Second-seeded Vera Zvonareva routed Marion Bartoli 6-0, 6-1 Saturday to the reach the final of the Generali Ladies.

The ninth-ranked Russian will play either top-seeded Ana Ivanovic or Agnieszka Radwanska in Sunday's final.

It will be Zvonareva's seventh final this season. She has won two titles this year and seven overall.

Zvonareva, who only dropped two games in her last match against Bartoli, improved to 6-1 against the Frenchwoman.

The sixth-seeded Bartoli failed to hold serve in the match. Zvonareva saved five of six breakpoints.

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Dementieva, Wozniacki, Li, Cirstea reach Fortis semis

LUXEMBOURG (AP) -Top-seeded Elena Dementieva beat former No. 1 Amelie Mauresmo 6-4, 6-0 in the Fortis Championships quarterfinals on Friday.

In a decade-long rivalry, Dementieva earned her easiest win over Mauresmo, only her sixth in 14 matchups.

The Russian won the last eight games, and limited the fifth-seeded Frenchwoman to only nine points in the second set.

Next up for the Olympic champion, chasing her third title of the year, will be eighth-seeded Sorana Cirstea of Romania.

Cirstea, the winner at Tashkent this month, upset third-seeded Daniela Hantuchova of Slovakia, last year's runner-up, 7-6 (2), 6-2.

The other semifinal on Saturday features a first-time meeting between fourth-seeded Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark against sixth-seeded Li Na of China.

Wozniacki beat seventh-seeded Anabel Medina Garrigues of Spain 6-1, 7-6 (7), and Li outlasted Iveta Benesova of the Czech Republic 6-4, 4-6, 6-2.

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Ivanovic, Zvonareva in GeneraliВ semis

LINZ, Austria (AP) -Ana Ivanovic led the top three seeds into the Generali Ladies semifinals on Friday with straight-sets victories.

Ivanovic beat seventh-seeded Flavia Pennetta of Italy 6-4, 6-4, second-seeded Vera Zvonareva defeated eighth-seeded Alize Cornet of France 7-5, 6-1, and third-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska stopped fifth-seeded Nadia Petrova of Russia 6-3, 6-2.

They were joined by sixth-seeded Marion Bartoli, who beat the only unseeded player to make the last eight, Alona Bondarenko of Ukraine, 6-3, 5-7, 6-1.

Ivanovic broke Pennetta, last week's runner-up in Zurich, at 4-4 and added three more breaks in the second set.

"It was a difficult match,'' Ivanovic said. "I was never sure if I did enough to beat her.''

In Zurich, the Serb had reached her first semifinals since winning the French Open, and her second last-four effort in two weeks showed she was past her thigh and thumb injuries. Ivanovic will play Radwanska on Saturday.

Radwanska stayed on course for a fourth WTA Tour title this season by routing 2005 champion Petrova.

The 10th-ranked Pole, who won only three games against Petrova in their previous meeting this season, broke the Russian four times.

Zvonareva used powerful serves and groundstrokes against Cornet, who won her first WTA title in Budapest in July.

The victory earned Zvonareva a berth in the season-ending WTA Championships for the third time, and first since 2005.

"It was a long road to Doha and I am very happy that I finally made it,'' Zvonareva said.

Her next opponent is Bartoli, who improved to 3-0 against Bondarenko.

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Federer, Nalbandian reach Swiss Indoors semis

BASEL, Switzerland (AP) -Roger Federer moved a step closer to a third consecutive Swiss Indoors hometown title when he beat Simone Bolelli of Italy 6-2, 6-3 in the quarterfinals on Friday.

The two-time defending champion delivered his most convincing performance of the week.

"I'm very satisfied by how it went,'' Federer said. "I tried to step up the pressure and so far that's worked well.''

In Saturday's semifinals, Federer faces Feliciano Lopez of Spain, who beat fourth-seeded James Blake of the United States 6-4, 7-6 (7).

Second-seeded David Nalbandian and third-seeded Juan Martin del Potro meet in the other all-Argentine semifinal.

Federer passed up three match points at 5-2 on Bolelli's serve, but served out a love game including two of his eight aces in the match.

Lopez finished the first set against Blake with an ace and, ended his first win against the American with a backhand crosscourt shot.

"This one hurt,'' Blake said. "I had break points in three or four different games. If I expect to beat a lot of the guys out there I need to play well on those points and I didn't do it today.''

Blake said he planned to "get right back on the horse and try to get ready'' for Paris next week in order to qualify for the eight-man Masters Cup in Shanghai.

Nalbandian, the 2002 champion, defeated German qualifier Benjamin Becker 7-6 (4), 6-4, while del Potro beat sixth-seeded Igor Andreev of Russia 6-4, 7-5.

Del Potro beat his Davis Cup teammate for the first time last week in Madrid, and tied their head-to-heads at 1-1.

"Last week I beat him in a great match, and tomorrow I've got to be in good shape if I want to do it again,'' del Potro said.

"My mind is good,'' he added. "I want to keep winning but my physique starts to feel tired. My tennis is going numb.''

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Ivanovic, Zvonareva, Radwanska reach semifinals

LINZ, Austria (AP) -The top three seeded players, Ana Ivanovic, Vera Zvonareva and Agnieszka Radwanska, had straight-sets victories Friday to advance to the semifinals of the Generali Ladies.

Top-seeded Ivanovic beat No. 7 Flavia Pennetta of Italy 6-4, 6-4; No. 2 Zvonareva defeated No. 8 Alize Cornet of France 7-5, 6-1; and No. 3 Radwanska beat No. 5 Nadia Petrova of Russia 6-3, 6-2.

Ivanovic broke Pennetta, who reached the final of the Zurich Open last week, at 4-4 in the opening set and added three more breaks in the second.

Ivanovic will play Radwanska on Saturday for a place in the final.

Radwanska stayed on course for a fourth WTA Tour title this season by routing former champion Petrova.

The 10th-ranked Pole, who won only three games against Petrova in their previous meeting this season, took four of her opponent's service games and missed 11 more break chances.

Zvonareva used powerful serves and groundstrokes against Cornet, who won her first WTA Tour event in Budapest, Hungary, in July.

The Russian next faces No. 5 Marion Bartoli or Alona Bondarenko in Saturday's semifinals.

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LYON, France (AP) -Robin Soderling of Sweden upset top-seeded Andy Roddick of the United States 7-6 (5), 7-6 (5) Friday to reach semifinals of the Lyon Grand Prix on Friday.

Soderling had 20 aces and Roddick had 22 in a match that had no breaks.

Roddick has been trying to qualify for next month's Masters Cup in Shanghai. Three of the eight berths are open.

Soderling will next face fourth-seeded Gilles Simon of France, who ousted Josselin Ouanna 6-3, 7-5.

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Dementieva, Wozniacki, Li, Cirstea reach quarters

LUXEMBOURG (AP) -Top-seeded Elena Dementieva beat former No. 1 Amelie Mauresmo 6-4, 6-0 in the Fortis Championships quarterfinals on Friday.

In a decade-long rivalry, Dementieva earned her easiest win over Mauresmo, only her sixth in 14 matchups.

The Russian won the last eight games, and limited the fifth-seeded Frenchwoman to only nine points in the second set.

Next up for the Olympic champion, chasing her third title of the year, will be eighth-seeded Sorana Cirstea of Romania.

Cirstea, the winner at Tashkent this month, upset third-seeded Daniela Hantuchova of Slovakia, last year's runner-up, 7-6 (2), 6-2.

The other semifinal on Saturday features a first-time meeting between fourth-seeded Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark against sixth-seeded Li Na of China.

Wozniacki beat seventh-seeded Anabel Medina Garrigues of Spain 6-1, 7-6 (7), and Li outlasted Iveta Benesova of the Czech Republic 6-4, 4-6, 6-2.

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Zvonareva, Radwanska reach semifinals in Linz

LINZ, Austria (AP) -Vera Zvonareva and Agnieszka Radwanska had straight-sets victories Friday to advance to the semifinals of the Generali Ladies.

Second-seeded Zvonareva defeated No. 8 Alize Cornet of France 7-5, 6-1, and No. 3 Radwanska beat No. 5 Nadia Petrova of Russia 6-3, 6-2.

Zvonareva used powerful serves and groundstrokes against Cornet, who won her first WTA Tour event in Budapest, Hungary, in July.

The Russian next faces No. 5 Marion Bartoli or Alona Bondarenko in Saturday's semifinals.

Radwanska stayed on course for a fourth WTA Tour title this season by routing former champion Petrova.

The 10th-ranked Pole, who won only three games against Petrova in their previous meeting this season, took four of her opponent's service games and missed 11 more break chances.

In the semifinals, Radwanska will play either top-seeded Ana Ivanovic or Flavia Pennetta, who played later Friday.

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Cirstea upsets Hantuchova

LUXEMBOURG (AP) -Eighth-seeded Sorana Cirstea of Romania upset third-seeded Daniela Hantuchova of Slovakia 7-6 (2), 6-2 Friday to reach the quarterfinals of the Fortis Championships.

Sixth-seeded Li Na of China defeated Iveta Benesova of the Czech Republic, winning 6-4, 4-6, 6-2 to join Cirstea in Saturday's semifinals.

Top-seeded Elena Dementieva played former top-ranked Amelie Mauresmo later Friday.

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Nalbandian beats Vliegen at Swiss Indoors

BASEL, Switzerland (AP) -Second-seeded David Nalbandian beat Kristof Vliegen of Belgium 6-4, 5-7, 7-6 (4) Thursday to reach the quarterfinals of the Swiss Indoors.

The 26-year-old Argentine broke the 96th-ranked Vliegen to take the first set. Nalbandian, the 2002 champion and twice runner-up since, lost his first match point at 6-5 in the final set when Vliegen hit a running backhand winner from wide of the court.

He clinched when Vliegen failed to control a strong service return.

Juan Martin Del Potro, the No. 3 seed, made just four unforced errors as he cruised past Switzerland's Stephane Bohli 6-3, 6-3.

The Argentina Davis Cup teammates are on course to meet in a semifinal Saturday.

Fourth-seeded James Blake of the United States had 18 aces as he rallied from a set down to beat 76th-ranked Oscar Hernandez of Spain 6-7 (4), 6-2, 6-4.

"I was serving well and that got me out of a lot of trouble,'' Blake said.

Simone Bolelli of Italy beat Marcel Granollers of Spain 6-4, 6-2. In the quarterfinals he will face either top-seeded Roger Federer or Jarkko Nieminen of Finland, who play later Thursday.

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Ivanovic, Zvonareva reach quarterfinals in Linz

LINZ, Austria (AP) -Top-seeded Ana Ivanovic and No. 2 Vera Zvonareva eased into the Generali Ladies quarterfinals with straight-sets wins on Thursday.

Ivanovic downed Sybille Bammer of Austria 6-4, 6-2 in a second-round match, while Zvonareva routed Nuria Llagostera Vives of Spain 6-2, 6-0.

Ivanovic dropped serve twice in the opening set before settling after breaking Bammer for a third time at 4-4.

"I am happy with the way I played and beating her in straight sets is a good result,'' said Ivanovic, who improved to 2-1 against Bammer. "During the first set, I realized I had to take the ball earlier so I could put more pressure on her. That made things easier for me.''

Ivanovic will play seventh-seeded Flavia Pennetta of Italy, who defeated Dominika Cibulkova of Slovakia 6-3, 6-1. Pennetta reached the final of the Zurich Open last week.

Zvonareva dropped serve in the opening set against Llagostera Vives and saved five more breakpoints, but was in control afterward.

The Russian is next up against No. 8 Alize Cornet.

Fifth-seeded Nadia Petrova defeated Katarina Srebotnik of Slovenia 6-4, 7-6 (7) to set up a quarterfinal match against No. 3 Agnieszka Radwanska.

Petrova, who won the tournament in 2005, was broken twice while serving for the match at 5-4 and 6-5, and the Russian missed four match points in the tiebreaker before finally converting.

Alona Bondarenko of Ukraine was the only unseeded player to make the quarterfinals by beating fourth-seeded Patty Schnyder of Switzerland 6-2, 2-6, 6-1.

Bondarenko lost only three points on serve in the opening set, but had many errors from the baseline in the second.

Schnyder, who reached the final last year, didn't win a service game in the decider.

Bondarenko's next opponent was sixth-seeded Marion Bartoli of France, who beat Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic 7-6 (4), 1-6, 6-3.

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Federer gets past Nieminen at Swiss Indoors

BASEL, Switzerland (AP) -Two-time defending champion Roger Federer endured a shaky first set before defeating Finland's Jarkko Nieminen 7-6 (6), 7-6 (1) in the Swiss Indoors second round on Thursday.

Federer had his hometown crowd in a state of anxiety as he mistimed several forehands, lost his serve three times, and volleyed below his usual standards.

He repeatedly got out of trouble with aces, including one of his 11 to save a first set point when trailing 5-3.

Nieminen, who hadn't taken a set off Federer in nine previous matchups, also was two points from claiming the first set at 5-4 and in the tiebreaker. Ultimately, Federer won the set on a wide forehand by the left-handed Finn.

Federer squandered an early break in the second set but dominated the tiebreaker, finally winning when Nieminen netted an attempted pass after 96 minutes.

In Friday's quarterfinals, the top-seeded Swiss will play Simone Bolelli of Italy, who beat Marcel Granollers of Spain 6-4, 6-2.

Second-seeded David Nalbandian, the 2002 champion and twice runner-up, beat Kristof Vliegen of Belgium 6-4, 5-7, 7-6 (4) to also reach the quarterfinals.

He and Argentine countryman Juan Martin del Potro, are on course to meet for the second time in two weeks, in the semifinals.

Third-seeded del Potro made just four unforced errors as he cruised past Switzerland's Stephane Bohli 6-3, 6-3.

Fourth-seeded James Blake hit 18 aces as he came from behind to beat Oscar Hernandez of Spain 6-7 (4), 6-2, 6-4 to reach the last eight for the first time in three visits.

"I was serving well and that got me out of a lot of trouble,'' Blake said.

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Roddick reaches Lyon GP quarterfinals

LYON, France (AP) -Top-seeded Andy Roddick beat fellow American Robby Ginepri 7-6 (5), 7-6 (3) on Thursday to set up a quarterfinal against big-serving Robin Soderling at the Lyon Grand Prix.

Roddick had 26 aces and won 80 percent of the points on his first serve, but the 2003 U.S. Open champion missed five chances to break Ginepri in the second set, including at 5-5.

In the tiebreaker, Roddick was able to convert his first match point.

The seventh-seeded Soderling advanced with a crushing 6-1, 6-2 win over Christophe Rochus of Belgium. Rochus failed to win a single point on the Swede's first serve in the opening set.

Soderling had 20 aces - compared to just one for Rochus - and broke him twice in each set. Soderling saved the only break point he faced in the second set.

Later, second-seeded Richard Gasquet of France plays Steve Darcis of Belgium, and No. 3 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga takes on Fabrice Santoro.

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Radwanska, Cornet reach quarterfinals in Linz

LINZ, Austria (AP) -Third-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska and eighth-seeded Alize Cornet reached the quarterfinals of the Generali Ladies Wednesday.

Radwanska beat Kaia Kanepi of Estonia 6-2, 6-4, and Cornet rallied to defeat Maria Kirilenko of Russia 1-6, 6-2, 6-1.

The 10th-ranked Radwanska has won three WTA Tour titles this season and is competing to qualify for the season-ending Sony Ericsson Championships.

The Pole broke Kanepi in the opening game of both sets and stayed in control throughout.

Radwanska, who had a bye in the first round, will next play either fifth-seeded former champion Nadia Petrova or Katarina Srebotnik of Slovenia.

Cornet struggled with her serve in the opening set and was broken twice by Kirilenko, before holding serve throughout the last two sets.

Flavia Pennetta continued her recent run of good results by beating Agnes Szavay of Hungary 6-1, 6-2 in a first-round match.

The seventh-seeded Italian, who reached the final of the Zurich Open last week, dropped only three points on serve in the opening set and broke Szavay on six occasions.

Sybille Bammer of Austria also advanced after beating Francesca Schiavone of Italy 7-5, 6-3 to set up a second-round match against top-seeded Ana Ivanovic.

Bammer was 5-4 down in the first set before winning five straight games. She added another break to close out the match.

Petra Kvitova of Czech Republic defeated Tamira Paszek 6-3, 6-3 to reach the second round.

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Benneteau, Ouanna in Lyon GP quarterfinals

LYON, France (AP) -Julien Benneteau upset fifth-seeded Tommy Robredo 6-2, 6-2 and was joined in the Lyon Grand Prix quarterfinals by fellow Frenchman Josselin Ouanna on Wednesday.

Ouanna, a wild card, defeated Nicolas Lapentti 6-3, 1-6, 6-3 for only his second ATP match win.

Also, fourth-seeded Gilles Simon, seventh-seeded Robin Soderling, and eighth-seeded Paul-Henri Mathieu won first-round matches.

After knocking out 2000 champion Arnaud Clement, Benneteau converted four of 13 break chances against Robredo.

"I knew there was a good opportunity,'' Benneteau said. "It's been a long time since I played like that. I've worked a lot on my backhand, which is my strong point. I'm also concentrating better.''

Benneteau will next face either second-seeded Richard Gasquet or Steve Darcis in his second consecutive Lyon quarterfinals. Ouanna, ranked 182nd, next meets either compatriot Simon or Andreas Seppi of Italy.

Simon, coming off the Madrid Masters final, was down a set and 4-2 before recovering to beat Juan Monaco of Argentina 2-6, 6-4, 6-1.

Sweden's Soderling beat Thierry Ascione of France 6-4, 6-1, and France's Mathieu defeated Guillermo Canas of Argentina 6-3, 6-4 at the indoor arena.

Mathieu, the 2002 champion, next meets Juan Carlos Ferrero of Spain, the 2003 French Open champion.

"Ferrero is solid. I know he's less at ease on this type of surface but you never know what to expect against him,'' Mathieu said. "I feel good here. It's the sixth time I've played, I have some great memories. I want to go all the way.''

Also, Christophe Rochus of Belgium beat Gilles Muller of Luxembourg 6-2, 6-4.

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Blake advances, Fish is upset at Swiss Indoors

BASEL, Switzerland (AP) -Fourth-seeded James Blake advanced to the second round of the Swiss Indoors on Wednesday, beating Germany's Nicolas Kiefer 3-6, 6-3, 6-4.

Fellow American Mardy Fish, the No. 8 seed, was upset by Feliciano Lopez of Spain, 7-6 (9), 6-4, in a second-round match.

In the first round, Marcos Baghdatis was again hampered by injuries, losing to Marcel Granollers of Spain 6-2, 4-6, 6-2.

Baghdatis needed treatment on his back during the match. The 23-year-old also missed matches due to a wrist injury. He was ranked as high as No. 14 in April and went into the match against Granollers ranked 43rd, but will drop even lower after the loss.

"Maybe I am going to be out of the (top) 100,'' Baghdatis said, adding that he expects to climb in the rankings soon again. "I did it before and I can do it again.''

The 22-year-old Granollers won his only tour title at Houston in April, beating Blake in the final.

Also in the first round, Jarkko Nieminen of Finland defeated Argentina's Eduardo Schwank 6-2, 6-4, and Belgian qualifier Kristof Vliegen beat wild card entry Philipp Petzschner of Germany 6-2, 6-3.

In other second-round matches, sixth-seeded Russian Igor Andreev needed more than 2 1/2 hours to overcome Germany's Philipp Kohlschreiber 7-6 (6), 6-7 (0), 7-5. Benjamin Becker beat his fellow German Andreas Beck 3-6, 6-3, 6-4.

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