Roddick downs Hewitt, Murray coasts through

By Pritha Sarkar
LONDON (Reuters) - Andy Roddick won the shootout between former champions when he squeezed past Lleyton Hewitt 7-6 7-6 to reach the quarter-finals at Queen's Club on Thursday.
Britain's Andy Murray lived up to his top billing at the traditional warm-up event for Wimbledon when he produced a devastating display of speed and power to beat Spaniard Guillermo Garcia-Lopez 6-4 6-4.
The anticipated showdown between second seed Roddick and Hewitt, two former world number ones, was delayed by 10 minutes following a hoax bomb threat at the complex.
Both players, who have each won four singles titles at the west London club, stayed on court during the hold up and were seen exchanging friendly banter across the net.
Once play began, they dropped the laughter and stood toe-to-toe. With no quarter given, neither earned a break point and the contest headed into a tiebreak.
Roddick came into his own in the breaker with his thunderbolt deliveries helping him on his way. A dispute over a Hawkeye call refused to throw him off track and he clinched it 7-2 with a forehand winner.
The second set was almost a replay of the first and Roddick settled the score 7-4 in the tiebreak with his 18th ace.
"He's had just as much success as I've had here so was good to get the win," said Roddick, who will face another big server in Croatian Ivo Karlovic in the last eight.
"I wasn't feeling comfortable but had a little more success in the tiebreaks."
Top seed Murray made his intensions clear when he began his account with three aces and never allowed the clay-loving Spaniard to get close to a break point.
In fact, the only problem Murray faced was when he suffered a small gash in his right hand during the match but dismissed it saying: "It's fine, it's just a little cut."
Murray broke Garcia-Lopez for 5-4 in the first set with a whipped forehand crosscourt winner and kept up the momentum in the second.
The 52nd-ranked Spaniard was broken to love in the fifth game of the second and never recovered from the setback. He bowed out after slapping a service return into the tramlines.
"Today was good, I felt more comfortable today than in my first match," Murray, who will next face American eighth seed Mardy Fish, said courtside.
Former French Open champion Juan Carlos Ferrero appears to be enjoying his time out on grass and overcame 2002 Wimbledon semi-finalist Xavier Malisse 6-4 7-6.
(Editing by Justin Palmer)

Source: Reuters

Man United accept record Real bid for Ronaldo

By Martyn Herman
LONDON (Reuters) - Manchester United have accepted a world record bid of 80 million pounds ($131.7 million) from Real Madrid for Portuguese winger Cristiano Ronaldo, the English champions said on Thursday.
United, who fended off the Spanish club's interest in the World and European Player of the Year 12 months ago, have given the nine-times European champions the go-ahead to talk to him.
"Manchester United have received a world-record, unconditional offer of 80 million pounds for Cristiano Ronaldo from Real Madrid," the club said.
"At Cristiano's request -- who has again expressed his desire to leave -- and after discussion with the player's representatives, United have agreed to give Real Madrid permission to talk to the player.
"Matters are expected to be concluded by June 30."
Real Madrid confirmed they had made an offer for Ronaldo.
"The club expects to reach an agreement with the player in coming days," Real said in a statement.
Should Real complete the signing of the 24-year-old it would seal a remarkable double for the Spanish giants who snapped up Brazilian playmaker Kaka from Milan this week for a fee reported to be around 68 million euros.
Kaka was the first player to be signed since Florentino Perez returned to the presidency this month and Real Madrid appear intent on continuing their spending spree.
PRIZED ASSET
United have always rejected the advances of Real for their most prized asset, even threatening to report them to FIFA last year.
However, they now seemed resigned to losing Ronaldo, who has often said it would be his dream to play for Real, albeit for a staggering sum of money.
Ronaldo joined United from Sporting Lisbon in 2003 as an 18-year-old following David Beckham's move to Real Madrid and quickly established himself as arguably the most high-profile player in the Premier League.
His goals have helped United win three consecutive Premier League titles as well as last year's Champions League when he scored in the final against Chelsea.
In the 2007-08 season he scored 42 goals which topped the previous club record for a midfielder held by George Best. Last season he managed 26 goals, taking his tally for United to 118 in 292 appearances. Continued...
Source: Reuters

Man United open way for Ronaldo move to Real

LONDON (Reuters) - Cristiano Ronaldo looks set to leave Manchester United after the Premier League club gave Real Madrid permission to speak to the winger after receiving a world record bid of 80 million pounds ($131.7 million).
After warding off the Spanish club's interest in the Portuguese World Player of the Year this time last year, United said in a statement on Thursday that talks could begin over a possible transfer to the nine-times European champions.
"Manchester United have received a world-record, unconditional offer of 80 million pounds for Cristiano Ronaldo from Real Madrid," the club said.
"At Cristiano's request -- who has again expressed his desire to leave -- and after discussion with the player's representatives, United have agreed to give Real Madrid permission to talk to the player.
"Matters are expected to be concluded by June 30."
Should Real complete the signing of the 24-year-old it would seal a remarkable double after the Spanish giants snapped up Brazilian playmaker Kaka from Milan this week for a fee reported to be around 68 million euros.
Kaka was the first player to be signed since Florentino Perez returned to the presidency this month and Real Madrid appear intent on continuing their summer spending spree with the purchase of Ronaldo.
United have always rejected the advances of Real for their most prized asset, even threatening to report them to FIFA last year over their pursuit of the player.
However, they now seemed resigned to losing Ronaldo, who has always said it would be his dream to play for Real, albeit for a staggering sum of money.
Ronaldo joined United from Sporting Lisbon in 2003 as an 18-year-old in the wake of David Beckham's move to Real Madrid and quickly established himself as arguably the most high-profile player in the Premier League.
His goals have helped United win three consecutive Premier League titles as well as the Champions League last year when he scored in the final against Chelsea.
In the 2007-08 season he scored 42 goals which topped the previous club record for a midfielder held by George Best. Last season he managed 26 goals, taking his tally for United to 118 in 292 appearances.
($1 = 0.607 pounds)
(Reporting by Martyn Herman; Editing by John O'Brien; To query or comment on this story email sportsfeedback@thomsonreuters.com)

Source: Reuters

Red Sox revel in 7-0 stretch over Yankees

BOSTON (Reuters) - The Boston Red Sox continued their mastery of fierce rivals New York Wednesday, stretching their unbeaten streak over the Yankees to seven games this season with a 6-5 win.
Tim Wakefield recorded the victory for the hosts (35-24), who replaced the Yankees (34-25) at the top of the American League East. Wakefield gave up three runs over six innings to improve to 5-0 at Fenway Park in 2009.
Boston reliever Hideki Okajima pitched a scoreless 1 1/3 innings and closer Jonathan Papelbon escaped the threat of a runner in scoring position in the ninth.
"I think that's what we pride ourselves on," Papelbon told reporters. "I think our bullpen -- we feed off of each other, and we use that momentum off each other."
The Red Sox scored two runs in the second inning, and Mike Lowell hit a solo home run in the third where the team took a 4-1 advantage. Kevin Youkilis blasted a two-run shot in the fourth to put the hosts 6-2 ahead.
The Yankees battled back, Johnny Damon and Mark Teixeira delivered solo shots in the seventh inning off Red Sox reliever Ramon Ramirez, but could not complete the comeback.
Teixeira, who has thrived since joining New York in the offseason, finished 4-for-5 with two runs scored.
Yankees starting pitcher Wang Chien-ming, who returned from a hip ailment last month, lasted less than three innings, giving up four runs with three walks.
New York will send prized acquisition CC Sabathia to the mound against Boston's Brad Penny Thursday as the Yankees try to avoid being swept by the Red Sox for a third successive series.
"Unfortunately we are 0-7 against them, but in the American League East we're down one," Damon said.
"Hopefully, tomorrow can be a different story, and we can try to get that win and start going from there."
(Editing by Peter Rutherford; To query or comment on this story email sportsfeedback@thomsonreuters.com)

Source: Reuters

Bolt could be the best, eventually, says Johnson

By John McCrank
TORONTO (Reuters) - Jamaica's Usain Bolt has won three Olympic gold medals, smashed world records and drawn comparisons with Jesse Owens and Carl Lewis but he's not the greatest, yet, according to Michael Johnson.
"Every now and then comes an athlete for the times and I believe Usain Bolt is that athlete," the four-times Olympic champion Johnson said in recognizing Bolt as the Laureus World Sportsman of the Year.
"It happened for me in 1996, it happened with Carl Lewis in 1984 and Jesse Owens in 1936 and now it is happening for Usain.
"He doesn't just want to win races and medals, he wants to test the limits."
Bolt smashed both the 100 and 200 meters world records at the Beijing Olympics last year, running 9.69 seconds in the 100 and 19.30 seconds in the 200.
But Johnson, the 400 meters world record holder who lost his 200 meters record to Bolt, said he was not ready yet to proclaim the Jamaican the best sprinter of all-time.
"For him to be the greatest, he'll have to win gold at another Olympics or a world championship, show some consistency and longevity," Johnson said.
"But there's no reason for me to think he can't do it."
The 22-year-old Bolt pipped swimmer Michael Phelps, world tennis number one Rafael Nadal, soccer player Cristiano Ronaldo, Formula One world champion Louis Hamilton and MotoGP world champion Valentino Rossi for the Laureus award.
He will run his first major 100 meters of the year in Toronto Thursday and Bolt said the race would be a good gauge of his training.
Americans Shawn Crawford, who finished second in the 200 in Beijing, Bernard Williams and Ivory Williams also are in the field. All have run under 10 seconds.
Bolt shrugged when asked if he would move up to the 400 meters in the future.
"A lot of people are saying I should... I'm thinking about it, but I'm not sure yet," he said, adding he and his coach were still trying to decide if he should attempt to repeat the 100-200 double in London in 2012, or if he might try a 200-400 double.
Johnson said he thinks Bolt can better his 400 meters world record of 43.18 seconds.
He also said he wanted to see Bolt race Tyson Gay in the 200. The American recently ran the third fastest 200 of all-time, 19.58 seconds. Continued...
Source: Reuters

Magic look to tie finals series with the Lakers

By Steve Ginsburg
ORLANDO, Florida (Reuters) - The Orlando Magic's record-setting shooting in the third game of the NBA Finals was not a concern, Los Angeles Lakers' coach Phil Jackson said.
The Magic made nearly 63 percent of their shots during a 108-104 victory on Tuesday, trimming the Lakers' lead in the best-of-seven series to 2-1.
Their shooting percentage was a record for the NBA Finals, giving Jackson a little deja vu moment from when he played for the championship with the New York Knicks.
"The team I was on in '72 had the record for the best half in the game at 71 percent, versus the Lakers," he told reporters on Wednesday. "It was the first game of the series and the only game, by the way, that we won in that series."
Perhaps more worrying for Jackson was that for the majority of Tuesday's game, All Star guard Kobe Bryant appeared to be struggling with the weight of a grueling schedule.
After scoring 17 points in the first period, Bryant scored just 14 more on four-of-15 shooting in the rest of the match, and had a key turnover with 30 seconds remaining.
Bryant, however, denied he was fatigued, saying he was more concerned with Orlando's shooting.
The Magic, who made just 29.9 percent of their shots in Game One, rely on their outside shooting and was one of the reasons why they upset the heavily-favored Cleveland Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference finals.
"They're in this position because they shoot the ball well," said Bryant. "It's not something that is just a fluke or one game where they got hot.
"They can get hot and stay hot. When that happens, you're dealing with a monster."
Magic coach Stan Van Gundy the victory would mean little if they come out flat for the fourth game on Thursday.
"We were happy to win last night, but we're still down 2-1 with them having the home court advantage," he said.
"Our players understand all that.
"So as happy as we were to get the win, I didn't sense any celebration or anything like that. We know this is going to be a tough grind."
Orlando center Dwight Howard said the team had refused to get discouraged after the Lakers won the first two games. Continued...
Source: Reuters

Bylsma looks for picture perfect ending for Penguins

By Steve Keating
PITTSBURGH (Reuters) - As a player, Dan Bylsma's Stanley Cup Game Seven moment as a player has been captured in a photograph that he thinks lies buried in a box in his basement.
Now coach of the Pittsburgh Penguins, Bylsma is preparing for another Game Seven but hopes Friday's showdown with the Detroit Red Wings will this time produce a different picture.
Six years ago, Bylsma missed his chance to break open a scoreless Game Seven for the Anaheim Ducks when he failed to swat the puck past New Jersey Devils netminder Martin Brodeur.
The Devils won the game 3-0 and the next day Bylsma opened the newspaper to a picture that has burned into his memory.
"USA Today ...had a picture of me and Marty Brodeur with the puck in the air," recalled Bylsma on Wednesday. "That was my chance when it was 0-0 and I do remember it very vividly.
"I don't know if I saved the picture but I think it's probably somewhere. I don't look at it. It's pretty emblazoned in my memory.
"But that's the agony and the beautiful thing of sport, we play it for some great reasons to win a Cup, to be the best.
"When you don't get it, it's painful. When you get it, it's glorious, and you get a lot of good pictures.
"You take the bad ones if you don't win and you put them in a basement in a box somewhere.
"We're looking for one we can hang on the wall."
It is the second consecutive year Pittsburgh and Detroit have clashed for the Stanley Cup and there have been few photo album moments for the Penguins at Joe Louis Arena.
Last year, the Penguins were shutout in the opening two games of the finals while their only win in the Motor City required triple overtime. In three games in Detroit this year, they have scored just two goals and are without a victory.
Despite the long odds, Penguins' captain Sidney Crosby said Game Seven is a childhood dream come true.
"Like every kid growing up, you play street hockey, you play in the outdoor rinks, you always dream of that opportunity," said Crosby.
"I've watched Game Seven on TV and you dream of making it to the NHL but always something that sticks out is playing for the Cup in Game Seven. We've got an amazing opportunity here." Continued...
Source: Reuters

Leaner Daly hungry to resurrect career after PGA Tour ban

MEMPHIS (Reuters) - Back on the PGA Tour for this week's St. Jude Classic after serving a six-month suspension, a leaner and hungrier John Daly has set his sights on working much harder to salvage his career.
The big-hitting American has played on sponsor's exemptions since losing his past champion category after the 2007 season and he has not won on the U.S. circuit for five years.
"I've wasted a lot of years," Daly told reporters at the TPC Southwind on Wednesday. "I enjoyed doing it but I see these guys work and work and work, and that's what I need to do.
"Golf is my life. It's the only thing I've been able to do to provide for my family, for myself. I just want to be more serious about it. I want to prepare myself more.
"The good news is I can still salvage a great career. I think I'm giving myself a chance to be the best player that I can be, and to me that's all that matters."
The 43-year-old, a double major champion, has spent most of his adult life struggling with alcohol, anti-depressants, gambling, binge eating and divorces.
Dubbed the 'Wild Thing' early in his career, Daly was banned from his home circuit in November for bringing the PGA Tour into disrepute after he was accused of being found drunk outside a bar.
DALY DIET
Since then, he has worked hard on his game, played five events on the European Tour and lost 60 pounds (27 kg) in three months by way of a surgical implant and a strict diet.
"I weighed in last week at 219 and my goal is to get to 190," said the 1991 U.S. PGA champion and 1995 British Open winner, who had ballooned to nearly 280 pounds earlier this year.
"My swing got a little fast losing the weight, but that's okay because my biggest problem has always been my follow-through.
"I kind of lay back on it and I think a lot of it was the weight. Now I can get through the ball a lot better, which creates hopefully more consistent shots."
Asked if he felt his PGA Tour ban had been warranted, Daly replied: "All I can say is I'm so happy I prepared myself in a positive way during the suspension.
"I could have taken it to a negative extreme and blamed this and blamed that. But it was time to say: 'Hey, let's lose some weight. It was a chance to spend some more time with my children and go practice.
"I did everything in a positive way to be prepared to play on the European Tour and here," added Daly, who has not won on the PGA Tour since the 2004 Buick Invitational. "I think it was actually good for me."
(Writing by Mark Lamport-Stokes in Los Angeles; Editing by Clare Fallon)

Source: Reuters

U.S. captain Daniel says push is on for Solheim Cup

By Larry Fine
HAVRE DE GRACE, Maryland (Reuters) - The LPGA Championship starting on Thursday kicks off a scintillating, seven-week stretch that will determine automatic berths on the Solheim Cup teams.
Europe and the United States square off in the women's match play equivalent of the Ryder Cup at Rich Harvest Farms in Illinois on August 21-23 and upcoming tournaments include three majors, where players receive added points for high finishes.
"These next seven weeks are huge and players are feeling it, too," U.S. captain Beth Daniel, an eight-times Solheim Cup player and member of the World Golf Hall of Fame, told Reuters on Wednesday.
"There are six tournaments left and three are majors, and majors this year count triple so it makes a big difference. A lot of things will move this week."
Only two of the 10 automatic U.S. places are already decided, with 2009 leading money winner Cristie Kerr and world number three Paula Creamer assured of making the team.
"I was thinking about Solheim Cup before we even teed it up this year in Hawaii," Kerr told reporters.
"We really enjoy playing this team competition and there's nothing else like it. It's an amazing feeling. It's a rush to play for your country and for your team mates."
Daniel said she expected a mix of veterans and rookies on the team and said established players had passed on their passion for the competition.
"Even Michelle Wie is talking about it as a goal for her," said Daniel.
Wie, gunning for her first LPGA title, stands 17th in the points table, 96 behind 10th-placed Brittany Lincicome, winner of the season's first major, the Kraft Nabisco.
Daniel and European captain Alison Nicholas will announce their wildcard picks in a joint news conference two hours after the British Open at Royal Lytham, which ends on August 2.
(Editing by Clare Fallon)

Source: Reuters

North American '09 sponsorship spending estimate cut

By Ben Klayman
CHICAGO (Reuters) - The U.S. recession has led a company that tracks North American sponsorship spending to halve its growth estimate for 2009, the first time the firm has ever updated its projection mid-year.
IEG, a unit of advertising giant WPP Plc, on Wednesday said in a report obtained by Reuters that it now expects spending this year by North American companies on sports, arts, cause and entertainment marketing and other sponsorships to rise 1.1 percent to $16.79 billion.
In January, the firm forecast growth of 2.2 percent, which was then the smallest projected increase since the firm started tracking such data 24 years ago. Last year, spending rose by 11.4 percent to $16.61 billion.
"There's so much conversation within the industry about how are we doing, people wanting to take the temperature," IEG senior vice president Jim Andrews said. "Is anybody seeing any green shoots in terms of sponsors willing to pay more or do more deals?
"If we look back over the last few months, there was not as much activity as we thought there would have been and certainly as people would have liked to have seen," he added.
IEG said in January no other downturn in the past 20 years has had such a negative impact. Spending even rose 3.7 percent in 2002 after the September 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.
The revised 2009 estimates show similar declines across all categories, including the largest: sports, where IEG now sees 2009 spending of $11.48 billion, down from the $11.61 billion it predicted in January.
The sports and entertainment tours categories also are expected to show the smallest rate of growth with an increase of 0.7 percent, according to IEG. In January, predicted growth rate for sports was 1.8 percent.
Major sports marketers like General Motors Corp and FedEx Corp have cut spending on such sponsorships, as well as advertising, due to the recession.
Other categories include causes, arts, festivals, and associations and membership organizations.
IEG expects a similar slowdown in sponsorship spending globally as it cut its 2009 estimate to $44.4 billion, or an increase of 3.1 percent. In January, the estimate was $44.8 billion, or an increase of 3.9 percent.
(Editing by Steve Orlofsky)

Source: Reuters