h1 a:hover {background-color:#888;color:#fff ! important;}
div#emailbody table#itemcontentlist tr td div ul {
list-style-type:square; padding-left:1em; } div#emailbody
table#itemcontentlist tr td div blockquote { padding-left:6px;
border-left: 6px solid #dadada; margin-left:1em; } div#emailbody
table#itemcontentlist tr td div li { margin-bottom:1em;
margin-left:1em; } table#itemcontentlist tr td a:link,
table#itemcontentlist tr td a:visited, table#itemcontentlist tr td
a:active, ul#summarylist li a { color:#000033; font-weight:bold;
text-decoration:none; } img {border:none;} The Sport Review: “Painful
defeat for Rafael Nadal amid Australian fireworks” plus 4 more- Painful defeat for Rafael Nadal amid Australian fireworks - Liverpool move up to seventh after edging Fulham at Anfield - La Liga round-up: Karim Benzema answers his critics - Justine Henin retires from tennis due to elbow injury - Emmanuel Adebayor declared ‘ready to play’ for Real Madrid Painful defeat for Rafael Nadal amid Australian fireworks Posted: 26 Jan 2011 04:05 PM PST Against the backdrop of thrills and spills in the opening week of the Australian Open, some things have remained as predictable as the smiles that light up this joyful tournament. It was no surprise that Roger Federer's ballet captivated the Rod Laver crowds with every improving sweep of his racket. Nor was it a surprise that Novak Djokovic continued to enjoy near-perfect score-sheets and the sleekest of ground-strokes. No surprise either that Andy Murray has ridden the wave of his excellent autumn form and fitness at the scene of one his finest Major runs. Even the rain clouds drifted apart in celebration of Australia Day's flowering fireworks over the Melbourne skyline. So special is 26 January that even the tennis—whoever is playing—pauses to take breath at the allotted time. This year, the illuminated match was the quarter-final between world No1 Rafael Nadal—still on target to win a complete set of consecutive Majors—and No7 seed David Ferrer. And the watching crowds continued to hold their breath long after the fireworks were over. Nadal's friend and compatriot came into Melbourne with a new titled under his belt. Ferrer looked trim, eager and fast in beating David Nalbandian in Auckland and seemed to have found new enthusiasm for the game since he considered retirement this time last year. And yet… Nadal had won 11 of their 14 encounters and the last seven in a row. Only a sub-par Nadal could fail this time, and there was the rub. In Doha, Nadal fell ill with flu and lost in the semi-final. He was still not 100 per cent as the Australian rounds got under way yet he rocketed through in impressive fashion. He reached the third round for the loss of just four games and reached the quarters without losing a set nor facing a tie-breaker. When he also confirmed to the press that he was now fully healthy, it became an unspoken truth that Nadal would cruise past Ferrer. It was soon apparent, though, that Ferrer would not go quietly. He never does. Though small in stature he is big in heart and bursting to the brim with energy, and that showed when he held his opening serve and then set about the Nadal serve. He brought up his first break point, missed it, but persisted through eight deuces to win his reward: a 2-0 lead. Nadal hit back immediately and order was restored—but only for a second. For onto court came a trainer and off the court went Nadal. Was it the virus, returned to do its worst? As Ferrer broke again, the true problem was revealed: strapping on Nadal's left thigh. At the next change-over the trainer came again, Nadal shook a despondent head, and it seemed he was destined to repeat history: he had, in this very round and on this very court, retired against Murray last year. The spirit of the man shone through the bowed head, and he fought on. He broke back in the ninth game: perhaps the crisis had passed, the medication taking the edge off the pain. Ferrer, though, applied the thumbscrews to break and take the set. Nadal won an early break to love in the second set. But it was a false dawn: not the sun rising on a new start for Nadal but fireworks lighting up the night sky. The pyrotechnics done, Ferrer took to the court with some rockets of his own and took the second set 6-2. He then rushed ahead 3-0 in the third and it stayed that way to the bitter end: 6-3. The result put an entirely new complexion on the Murray semifinal, pitting him against a man with a three-to-two advantage over him—though all the wins came on clay. There is no doubt that Ferrer is enjoying a surge in form and a new sense of attack that may rock the Murray game plan. An unexpected quarter-final opponent with an unconventional game tested the Murray concentration more than any other match thus far. Alexandr Dolgopolov is a jumping bean of a man who can apply shocking amounts of spin, hit lunging and plunging ground-strokes and hit his serve almost before his ball toss is complete. The exciting Ukrainian took Murray's first set of the tournament, before conceding the match in four, but that was small recompense for removing Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Robin Soderling from Murray's draw. Now the untimely injury to a benighted Nadal has now cleared Murray's route to the semi-final without facing a top-10 player. And he will fully expect to walk onto Rod Laver on final Sunday. But who will face him? The bottom half of the draw has followed two upward-sweeping trajectories to their predicted intersection: Federer with Djokovic. Djokovic arrived with three finals and two semi-finals from his last six ATP events, the Davis Cup and victory in all three of his Hopman Cup matches. He suffered an early aberration against Croation Ivan Dodig—a lost tie-breaker—but compensated with two final sets won to zero and two. On paper, and in practice, No6 seed Tomas Berdych looked dangerous but Djokovic turned on his forehand like a beacon to complement the oil-smooth point-winning backhand. He played off both wings with a now-familiar precision and power to both deep corners of the court. His serve, of such concern in the early stages of 2010, is now setting up his complex web of tactics to perfection—68 per cent against Berdych and 10 aces to his opponent's five. With a scattering of deft lobs and accurate volleys, Djokovic's tennis has become a formidable combination managed by an extrovert and maturing personality. It is a crowd-pleasing package. Even when distracted by rain, a closing roof and—in an inexplicable recurrence of a contact lens problem—a quick trip to the locker room, Djokovic did waver briefly in the second set, but recovered and edged out Berdych in a tie-break. That opened the floodgates and the Djokovic locomotive swept to its destination, 6-1 in the third. He is, not surprisingly, both realistic and confident about his next challenge: "Federer is…maybe the most aggressive there is on the tour. You have to be patient and get him out of his comfort zone…I have to be confident on the court, have the right attitude…there is no other way." It will be the 20th meeting of the No2 and 3 seeds and their seventh in a hard-court Major. Federer holds a 13-6 advantage and has won all three of their last matches, but they are a win apiece in Australia, and in their last Major meeting, Djokovic scored an important victory at Flushing Meadows. Federer's run in Melbourne was tested early by Gilles Simon in a fascinating five-setter. That win, followed by a distracted performance against Xavier Malisse in the third round, seemed to knock the rust off the Swiss racket and sharpen the concentration. By the time Federer took on the fearsome Stan Wawrinka—himself rolling over Gael Monfils and Andy Roddick like a steamroller—the Federer machinery was purring and the legs were flying. A serve percentage of 61 against Simon improved through 64 and 69 to 77 against Wawrinka. The unforced error count dropped from a peak of 53 to 24 against Wawrinka. In defence, too, Federer proved that he is one of the most adept in the game. Where Wawrinka scored 24 aces against Roddick, though only serving at 49 per cent, he managed just one against Federer, though he served at almost 60 per cent. Federer was, in fact, at his fluid best in all parts of his game. By the final set, it had turned into little short of exhibition tennis, with drop shots and touch volleys scattered through the match like falling leaves on an autumn day. Federer, it seems, is rising like cream to the surface in the final stages of this tournament. Djokovic, for his part, is maturing like a fine wine. The combination of the two promises to serve up a syllabub to tempt the taste buds. And whoever wins may well have his name etched on the trophy by Sunday evening. Liverpool move up to seventh after edging Fulham at Anfield Posted: 26 Jan 2011 03:16 PM PST BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE, 26 JANUARY 2011 Liverpool 1 Fulham 0 John Pantsil played the role of Villain for Fulham at Anfield on Wednesday night as he turned the ball in to his own net to gift Liverpool a valuable three points in their pursuit of European football. Early in the second-half Clint Dempsey gifted the ball to Fernando Torres, who fired a shot from just inside the area which struck the post before bouncing back into the box where Pantsil scuffed his clearance into the back of his own net. Liverpool may have felt they should have had the lead early in the first half when Torres latched on to a well-placed pass from Raul Meireles before slotting it past stand-in keeper David Stockdale only to find he had been wrongly adjudged to be offside. The Reds continued to put pressure on the visitors, with a header from the in-form Meireles forcing a brilliant save from Stockdale before the 25-year-old goalkeeper stopped efforts from both returning Liverpool skipper Steven Gerrard and full-back Glen Johnson. Fulham also threatened in the first period, with Dempsey seeing his driven shot saved by Pepe Reina before Andy Johnson played the ball into Moussa Dembele, who fired his effort straight at the Liverpool goalkeeper from point-blank range. In the second half the home side came out strong in the build-up to the goal, but after Pantsil turned it into his own net Fulham began to put pressure on their hosts, pushing forward and looking to test a seemingly nervous Liverpool back line. Young right-back Martin Kelly was beaten down the wing on a number of occasions while centre-backs Martin Skrtel and Daniel Agger both made silly mistakes in and around the box to further increase the pressure on the home side. Brede Hangeland saw his header cleared off the line by Meireles whilst Dembele once again was denied by Reina in the dying seconds to ensure Liverpool walked away with all three points after a shaky final 10 minutes. Speaking after the game, Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish said: “I think that type of victory we got tonight has been a long time coming because we worked hard, we got a little bit of good fortune. “We had some bad luck as well. Fernando’s goal was onside but we never got it, so we just kept going and I’m delighted with the way the players have gone about their work. “But we’re not getting carried away with the fact that we’re seventh. That’s not where this football club wants to be. “We want to be further up but to do that we’ve got to win more games and that’s what we’ll try and achieve, starting with Stoke next Wednesday.” Premier League table snapshot La Liga round-up: Karim Benzema answers his critics Posted: 26 Jan 2011 11:36 AM PST Karim Benzema answered his critics by scoring the winning goal at the Santiago Bernabeu on Sunday night to prevent Real Madrid from suffering another slip-up against Real Mallorca. Michael Laudrup's team were well organized, bold in attack and generally impressive, but the Madrilenos were in no mood to drop more points and their patience and superior quality paid off when Benzema struck in the second half to secure a 1-0 win. It was a narrow but well-deserved win for Jose Mourinho's men but it does not completely detract from the concurrent problems at the club, such as the lack of striking depth, the uncertainty surrounding Mourinho's future and perceived factions within the club's hierarchy. Barcelona didn't let their let their minor midweek cup blip affect their league form on Saturday. Pep Guardiola's men made light work of beating Racing Santander 3-0 at the Camp Nou, repeating the same result they achieved at the Sardinero on the opening day of the season. Pedro Rodriguez, Lionel Messi and Andres Iniesta scored the goals and, even though Racing created their share of chances, a three goal margin was a fair reflection of proceedings. A goal from Aritz Aduriz in the last minute of regulation time produced a 4-3 win for Valencia over an improved Malaga side at Mestalla. Manuel Pellegrini's side were superior in the first half and twice took the lead through Jose Rondon but first Juanma Mata and then Roberto Soldado cancelled out their lead. Fifteen minutes into the first half Martin Demichelis was sent off and just over fifteen minutes into the second half Helder Rosario followed, so Malaga played the last half an hour with nine men and it proved to much of them. Ever Banega put Unai Emery's team ahead and, although Julio Baptista scored his first Malaga goal to point the match in the direction of a draw, Aduriz's last gasp winner eventually settled the result in Valencia's favour. Levante fell to their fifth consecutive league defeat at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan on Saturday night as Luis Fabiano ran riot, scoring a hat-trick to lead his team to a 4-1 triumph in front of the home fans. Julien Escude scored the other Sevilla goal and Xisco Munoz grabbed Levante's solitary mark in response but Luis Garcia Plaza, who was watching on from the stands due to a touchline ban, will be hard pushed to extract any positives from his side's performance. Sporting de Gijon put together back to back victories for the first time this season, complementing last weekend's triumph over Hercules with a 1-0 win over Atletico Madrid at the Molinon on Sunday. After a total non-event of a first half, Sporting settled the tie in the second when David Barral exploited a dreadful defensive error by Atletico to score the only goal of the game. Getafe usually pride themselves on their home performances but they were beaten for the fourth consecutive match at the Coliseum Alfonso Perez this weekend by Espanyol. Mauricio Pochettino's men came from a goal behind to win 1-3 to keep themselves within three points of the top four. It was looking good for Michel's men at the break with a slim advantage provided by Miku's first half goal but Luis Garcia, Jose Callejon and Sergio Garcia struck in the second period to disappoint the few home fans who turned out for the game. Almeria's exceptional Copa del Rey form was finally in evidence in La Liga on matchday twenty as they beat Osasuna 3-2 at the Juegos Mediterraneos to drag themselves off the bottom of the table. Carlos Garcia opened the account for the Andalusians and Leandro Ulloa scored twice either side of a Carlos Aranda response for Osasuna. Jose Luis Oltra's side's first home league win of the season was more comfortable than the scoreline suggests as the Pamplonan's second goal, finished by Serbian giant Dejan Lekic, arrived in the very last minute of regulation time. Said Boutahar goal-bound free-kick, which beat Daniel Aranzubia to give Real Zaragoza a 1-0 win over Deportivo La Coruna at the Romareda, was a rare highlight in a very dull match between two underperforming clubs. 16th placed Zaragoza are now just two points behind Depor in 13th as the pool of potential relegation candidates continues to grow. Villarreal had to come from a goal behind to beat Real Sociedad at the weekend. Martin Lasarte's team's intention was to defend to the hilt but they snatched an early goal through Mikel Aranburu in the first half which gave them hope of victory. They were not counting on the attacking genius of Giuseppe Rossi, though, and the Americo-Italian popped up with a goal either side of the break to settle the tie 2-1 in Villarreal's favour. Juan Carlos Garrido's team remain unbeaten at the Madrigal this season. Athletic Bilbao were vastly superior to Hercules at San Mames on Monday night, where they ran out 3-0 victors in a strictly one-sided affair. Hercules' away day blues continue after another dreadful display far from the home comforts of Alicante. Javi Martinez was a powerhouse in central midfield and he put the Basques in front early on before Fernando Llorente and Iker Muniain chipped in with goals in the second half. Read more on Spanish football at Simon Jalie’s La Liga Blog Justine Henin retires from tennis due to elbow injury Posted: 26 Jan 2011 11:13 AM PST Former world No1 Justine Henin has announced her retirement from tennis after failing to overcome persistent elbow injury. The 28-year-old Belgian was knocked out in the third round of the Australian Open by Svetlana Kuznetsova last week after a successful run at the Hopman Cup earlier in the month, where she won four successive matches without dropping a set. However, the elbow complaint resurfaced in Melbourne and the seven-time grand slam champion has admitted defeated and called time on a glittering career. “In these recent months I have rarely been spared from the pain, those last months were very hard,” said Henin. “Time has passed, and the doubts have grown, and only returning to the courts would give me answers. “The doctors told me my elbow is too fragile and therefore I cannot continue my profession at this high level.” Henin, who returned to the sport in January 2010 having previously hung up her racquet in May 2008, added: “After my loss at Wimbledon in June, I knew it would be difficult to come back. But I had decided to keep playing and to give everything to overcome the injury. The Belgian has been described by tennis legend Billie Jean King as “pound for pound the best tennis player of her generation”. Henin won four French Open titles and two US Open crowns as well as triumphing at the Australian Open in 2004. Her rivalry with compatriot Kim Clijsters was one of the sport’s great rivalries in recent years. Henin continued: “I had hoped for a different return and dreamed of a different ending. “I’ll need some time to digest all of this but I remain convinced that with hindsight, even if in the sporting sense my return will not have been at the height of my hopes, I’ll realise that despite everything I will have learned and gained a lot in these past 15 months. “I’m turning an incredible page of my life. What a wonderful trip I have experienced during all these years. Today I’m calmer and I can create a positive and rewarding look back on this experience in my life.” Emmanuel Adebayor declared ‘ready to play’ for Real Madrid Posted: 26 Jan 2011 10:34 AM PST Emmanuel Adebayor could be thrown straight in to the Real Madrid team after he passed a medical ahead of his loan move to the Bernabéu. The Manchester striker, 26, travelled to Madrid to finalise a loan switch for the rest of the season and Real’s medical staff said he is ready for action after he underwent tests on Wednesday. “He is a physical marvel,” said Carlos Diez, Real Madrid’s chief of medical services. “He is in very good physical condition and will be able to immediately be incorporated into the team.” Real Madrid manager José Mourinho has been on the lookout for a striker to boost his attacking options after Gonzalo Higuaín was ruled out for at least three months following back surgery leaving Karim Benzema to lead the attack. The loan deal for Adebayor includes an option for the La Liga club to sign the striker on a permanent basis in the summer, and the Togolese forward is understood to have taken a pay cut in order to seal his move to Spain. He has scored 19 goals since moving to Eastlands from Arsenal in 2009 and despite enjoying a promising start to his City career, has fallen out of favour under Roberto Mancini. The Manchester City manager, however, is confident Adebayor will enjoy a fruitful spell in the Spanish capital. “He will be with Real Madrid for the next five months and I hope he plays often and scores a lot of goals,” said Mancini. “La Liga is a very good league to play in and I’m sure he will enjoy his time in Spain and playing alongside players such as Cristiano Ronaldo and Kaka.” You are subscribed to email updates from The Sport Review To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. Email delivery powered by Google Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610 -- Posted By Mas Item Arekjowo to The Sport Review at 1/26/2011 11:28:00 PM -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Gugukluhayat" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/gugukluhayat?hl=en.
