Sporting Goods: 09/05/11

Monday, September 5, 2011

U.S. Open: Caroline Wozniacki wins in 3 hours, 2 minutes

In a match both mesmerizing and maddening, top-seeded and top-ranked Caroline Wozniacki beat 2004 champion Svetlana Kuznetsova, 6-7 (6), 7-5, 6-1, in the fourth round of the U.S. Open, a match that lasted 3 hours 2 minutes in Arthur Ashe Stadium.

Kuznetsova committed 78 unforced errors yet somehow led Wozniacki, the 21-year-old Dane who was a finalist here two years ago, by a set and 4-1. But Wozniacki, whose No. 1 ranking gets questioned because she has never won a major championship, said she had one mind-set.

"I had to keep playing, keep playing every point."

Kuznetsova was always the aggressor but the effort also cost the 26-year-old Russian, who took a long break after losing the second set.

"I think one of my strengths is that I never give up," Wozniacki said. "I felt like I could play another two or three sets."

-- Diane Pucin, reporting from New York

Photo: Caroline Wozniacki stretches to hit a backhand during her match against Svetlana Kuznetsova on Monday night at the U.S. Open. Credit: Andrew Gombert / EPA

Garrett Richards activated and moved to Angels bullpen

Garrett Richards, who made two starts in August before suffering a right groin strain, was activated off the disabled list Monday and moved to the bullpen, where the Angels believe the hard-throwing right-hander could have more impact than he would in the rotation.

With Fernando Rodney struggling to find the strike zone and fellow veteran Hisanori Takahashi unable to find much consistency, the list of relievers Manager Mike Scioscia trusts in the late innings of games in which the Angels have narrow leads has been reduced to three: Jordan Walden, Scott Downs and Bobby Cassevah.

But with a 95-mph fastball, sharp-breaking slider and changeup, and experience as a closer as a freshman at the University of Oklahoma, Richards could boost the bullpen over the final three weeks of the season if he is able to pitch aggressively and throw strikes.

"His future is obviously as a starter, but this month, we feel he could have more of an impact role in the bullpen if his stuff plays as well as we think it will," Scioscia said. "We'll see how it evolves."

It didn't sound as if Scioscia planned to "ease" Richards into a relief role.

"In a perfect world, we'd love to say, 'Hey, go out there and get loose and pitch,' " Scioscia said. "But we might not have that luxury."

Richards said he will not change his approach in the bullpen.

"The strike zone and the plate don't move," he said. "I need to keep my pitches down in the zone, get ahead of hitters and throw strikes. It's going to be weird at first, but I'll be able to make the adjustment."

With Texas losing to Tampa Bay on Monday, the Angels can cut the Rangers' American League West lead to 2 1/2 games with a victory over the Seattle Mariners on Monday night.

The Angels lineup: 3B Maicer Izturis, CF Peter Bourjos, 2B Howie Kendrick, RF Torii Hunter, 1B Mark Trumbo, DH Vernon Wells, LF Mike Trout, SS Erick Aybar, C Jeff Mathis, P Dan Haren.

The Mariners lineup: RF Ichiro Suzuki, SS Brendan Ryan, 2B Dustin Ackley, LF Mike Carp, DH Justin Smoak, 1B Adam Kennedy, 3B Kyle Seager, C Josh Bard, CF Trayvon Robinson, P Anthony Vasquez.

MORE:

Angels celebrate a veterans day in 4-1 win over Twins

Torii Hunter sees himself in prospect Jeremy Moore

Power surge for Howie Kendrick is a mystery

--Mike DiGiovanna

Photo: Garrett Richards delivers a pitch against the Texas Rangers last month at Angel Stadium. Credit: Kirby Lee / US Presswire

U.S. Open: Serena Williams beats wind, Ana Ivanovic

Even when the wind carried her ball toss into another part of the service box or when it blew the visor right off her opponents' head, when the gusts made Serena Williams wish she had Velcro to make her skirt stick to her compression shorts, it didn't matter.

When she needed to, Williams, seeded 28th, stayed true to her game Monday. She served nine aces and moved into the U.S. Open quarterfinals with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over 2008 French Open champion and former No. 1 Ana Ivanovic of Serbia in Arthur Ashe Stadium in a fourth-round U.S. Open match.

Ivanovic, 23, fell behind, 3-0, in eight minutes, but the 6-foot-1 Ivanovic, who was seeded 16th, didn't let the conditions or her own frail serve keep her from being aggressive. Despite serving eight double faults, Ivanovic had more winners than Williams (20-16) and won three games of her own to even the first set. But it was one of those double faults, in the eighth game, that put Williams ahead, 5-3, and Williams served out the first set at love.

Williams also broke Ivanovic in the first game of the second set, an advantage she never lost. Williams, a 13-time major champion and three-time winner here, served a 101-mph ace to end the match and said, "I was just happy to get some balls in the court. It was really windy."

Up next for Williams in the quarterfinals will be 17th-seeded Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia who upset seventh-seeded Francesca Schiavone, 5-7, 6-3, 6-4.

Before she knew it would be Williams she would face in the quarters, the 20-year-old Pavlyuchenkova said, "I don't know what to say about her. She's just awesome and a great athlete and she's showing good tennis so far. So I don't know what to say, really.

"I'm just going to go out there and -- I'm going to say that I don't want to go out there and enjoy just being on the center court playing against Serena. I would like to do well, try to fight and with my effort I try to beat here. But of course I respect her a lot as well. She's just great."

ALSO:

Novak Djokovic dances way into fourth round

Samantha Stosur advances to fourth round at U.S. Open

Rafael Nadal wins; queasy Flavia Pennetta into quarterfinals

-- Diane Pucin

Photo: Serena Williams drives a forehand shot back at Ana Ivanovic during their U.S. Open match on Sunday. Credit: Nick Laham / Getty Images

Colts quarterback Peyton Manning told by doctors not to practice

The Indianapolis Colts said Monday that doctors have told quarterback Peyton Manning, who is recovering from off-season neck surgery, not to practice this week. Manning's status against the Houston Texans for Sunday's season opener "will likely be doubtful," the team said.

Manning and the team are awaiting further evaluations from doctors and neurosurgeons regarding his condition. They will follow NFL protocol and update his condition later in the week.

"As of now Peyton continues to deal with a complicated neurological recovery, the end date of which is unpredictable," the team said in the statement. "As was stated at the outset, it serves no useful purpose to speculate about hypothetical outcomes. When and if there are concrete medical facts to report we will do so."

Manning missed the entire preseason for only the second time in his career. The first time, in 2008, came after he needed surgery twice to remove an infected bursa sac in his left knee. He won his third MVP award that season.

Manning has made 227 consecutive starts, including playoff games, since Indy selected him with the No. 1 overall pick in 1998. His 208 consecutive regular-season starts are the most among active players. If Manning can't start Sunday, Tampa Bay Buccaneers cornerback Ronde Barber, who has started 179 straight games, would take over the top spot if he starts Sunday against the Detroit Lions.

-- Houston Mitchell

Photo: Peyton Manning. Credit: Associated Press

Jim Tressel suspended for six games by Colts

The Indianapolis Colts have suspended game-day consultant Jim Tressel for the first six games of the season.

The status of Tressel, who was the head coach at Ohio State through last season, became an issue because his last Ohio State quarterback, Terrelle Pryor, was forced to serve a suspension before being allowed to play in the NFL. Pryor was suspended by the NFL for the first five games as a condition of his inclusion in the supplemental draft.

After meeting with Tressel, team owner Jim Irsay and Coach Jim Caldwell, Colts vice chairman Bill Polian released a statement Monday stating the team's intentions.

"Over the weekend, Coach Tressel, Mr. Irsay, Coach Caldwell and I had a discussion of the issue. In addition, we had a conversation with league officials to apprise them of the details of Coach Tressel's employment and the issues we were reviewing.

"At Coach Tressel's suggestions, and with Mr. Irsay's concurrence and support, we have decided to begin Coach Tressel's employment effective with our seventh regular-season game. We have informed the league office of our decision and expect that they will be supportive of it."

-- Houston Mitchell

Photo: Jim Tressel with Ohio State. Credit: Associated Press

US Open 2011 Diary: Rafael Nadal shows the strain that intense heat puts on players

Rafael Nadal has yet again been pushing his body

Sunday in New York

No rest for the wicked at Flushing Meadows…Sunday was another day of astonishing drama.

Testing the limits

Ever since day one, this US Open seems to have pushed players above and beyond what their bodies are capable of. Whether because they came in tired, or got sick, or have played too much, or not enough. The debate goes on. But there were two insane examples yesterday.

Flavia Pennetta, one of the most natural athletes around, did something quite indefatigable against Peng Shuai. Having won the first set, she was overcome by nausea. Hardly able to stand, and even dry-heaving at the back of the court, the Italian came back from 2-6 in the second set tie-break to win the match 6-4, 7-6. Literal guts.

“My body just need to breathe, and I starting maybe to have the sensation to throwing up,” she said, admitting it was the worst she has ever felt on a tennis court. She advances to her third US Open quarter-final, against Angelique Kerber.

The other was what befell Rafael Nadal. After a toasty three-set win over David Nalbandian, which required several shirt-changes on Rafa’s part, he had just concluded his English press conference when he was over-taken by what seemed to be an extreme cramp attack. Sliding back into his chair, and eventually off it to lie flat on the floor, it was astonishing to see him in so much pain in the docile surroundings of the interview room.

Andy Murray put it best. “Rafa’s human. I think some people forget that sometimes,” he said.

Somewhat bizarrely, although all press were ushered out of the room to allow Rafa to be treated, they left the tv feed on. Needless to say, all eyes were glued.

Yet another record

Not content with winning the longest women’s singles match in US Open history, Sam Stosur decided she wanted to break herself another record. She and Maria Kirilenko contested the longest women’s tie-break in Grand Slam history, a 32-point epic in the second set of what would be a victory for Stosur in three, 6-2, 6-7 (15), 6-3.

If you missed it, the 17-15 ridiculousness is well worth watching.

Asked if she had ever been involved in anything like that before, Sam said simply, “Uh…no.” Queensland simplicity.

Still, with two big wins on her racket, barring tiredness, the Aussie is shaping up nicely.

Bye, bye DelPo

Forehand fans will have to wait a little while to see Juan Martin Del Potro’s infamous stroke in full swing. The 2009 champion was handed his first loss at Flushing Meadows since losing to Andy Murray in the 2008 quarter-finals, bounced out by Gilles Simon in four sets.

Stars and stripes

The Americans are back in the game. Four men in the fourth round for the first time since 2003 is not a bad stat. Mardy Fish, John Isner, Andy Roddick and…Donald Young. who would have thunk?

Young plays Andy Murray next – a repeat of their second round in Indian Wells. The crowd reaction is going to be fascinating.

Darth Murray

Speaking of the British No.1, he was a joy to watch against Feliciano Lopez last night. Decked out in black and red (but without the black leggings from the presser the other day) Murray executed extremely well under Ashe’s night lights. More of the same please.

Caption fail

Whoever decided that Leon Smith, Britain’s Davis Cup captain, was actually Jamie Murray. I mean, really.

Brit-watch

The retirements have benefited some people…Colin Fleming and Ross Hutchins are into the men’s doubles quarter-finals after receiving a walk-over. Meanwhile in the juniors, Kyle Edmund won his first round. Liam Broady, George Morgan and Oliver Golding are still to play.

A big hand also to Peter Norfolk, the quadfather, who arrives in New York having one a singles and doubles title in a day in St Louis. Ominous.

Tweet of the day

Back to back gems from Boris Becker (@Becker_Boris). Correcting Serena Williams’ spelling of Kim Kardashian, and then labelling Feliciano Lopez ‘a pretty boy.’

Gold.

Coming up this evening…

Serena Williams v Ana Ivanovic

Can anyone stop Serena? And if so, is it really going to be Ana? The Serb showed glimpses of her 2008 self in an enthralling tussle against Sloane Stephens, her forehand, and celebrations, in particular reminiscent of Ivanovic model 2008.

But then, it’s Serena.

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga v Mardy Fish

Someone announced on twitter than from now, Mardy Fish has to swim through a lot of sharks. Tsonga is the first. All the makings of a classic five-setter, but that also depends on both players executing. Tsonga seems to be the more likely to go off the boil, given Fish’s run of form, but you never know.

Caroline Wozniacki v Svetlana Kuznetsova

Possibly not the most exciting of matches as far as playing style goes, but the result of this could tell us a lot about both players’ futures. For Wozza, who apparently has the world No 1 ranking sewn up until mid September, it’s about credibility. For Kuzy, it’s about longevity. Who knows.

Novak Djokovic v Alexandr Dolgopolov

The pony-tailed Ukrainian has been one of the silent swimmers of this draw so far, probably because he hasn’t done a great deal since reaching the quarter-finals in Melbourne what seems like a lifetime ago. That match he played against Andy Murray was a real tactics-off, a cerebral affair that proved exhausting to watch.

Can he bring something similar to the table against Djokovic? He’ll have to keep up first though.

Also in action

Roger Federer v Juan Monaco, Francesca Schiavone v Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Janko Tipsarevic v Juan Carlos Ferrero, Andrea Petkovic v Carla Suarez Navarro.

The daily click

1. Whoops. Andy Roddick sits down in the wrong chair.

2. Photo-highlights (and captions) from the hilarious Beyond the Baseline.

US Open 2011 Diary: Physical extremes

Rafael Nadal has yet again been pushing his body

Sunday in New York

No rest for the wicked at Flushing Meadows…Sunday was another day of astonishing drama.

Andy Murray put it best. “Rafa’s human. I think some people forget that sometimes,” he said.

Somewhat bizarrely, although all press were ushered out of the room to allow Rafa to be treated, they left the tv feed on. Needless to say, all eyes were glued.

If you missed it, the 17-15 ridiculousness is well worth watching.

Asked if she had ever been involved in anything like that before, Sam said simply, “Uh…no.” Queensland simplicity.

Still, with two big wins on her racket, barring tiredness, the Aussie is shaping up nicely.

Young plays Andy Murray next – a repeat of their second round in Indian Wells. The crowd reaction is going to be fascinating.

Caption fail

Whoever decided that Leon Smith, Britain’s Davis Cup captain, was actually Jamie Murray. I mean, really.

A big hand also to Peter Norfolk, the quadfather, who arrives in New York having one a singles and doubles title in a day in St Louis. Ominous.

Tweet of the day

Back to back gems from Boris Becker (@Becker_Boris). Correcting Serena Williams’ spelling of Kim Kardashian, and then labelling Feliciano Lopez ‘a pretty boy.’

Gold.

But then, it’s Serena.

Can he bring something similar to the table against Djokovic? He’ll have to keep up first though.

Also in action

Roger Federer v Juan Monaco, Francesca Schiavone v Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Janko Tipsarevic v Juan Carlos Ferrero, Andrea Petkovic v Carla Suarez Navarro.

The daily click

1. Whoops. Andy Roddick sits down in the wrong chair.

2. Photo-highlights (and captions) from the hilarious Beyond the Baseline.

Confusion still swirls around BBC/Sky deal and what it will mean for viewers

There has been a lot of talk this morning – and, indeed, over the weekend – regarding the BBC/Sky deal and what will/will not be shown by the BBC from next year. With just 10 race weekends live on free to air, the focus of the speculation regards what the BBC plans to do with the other 10.

When the split-channel deal was announced in Hungary in July, there was immediately intrigue on this score with McLaren team principal Martin Whitmarsh saying he had been “assured” more than once by Bernie that the BBC would be broadcasting full re-runs of the races they do not show live (remember, this is extremely important to the teams given their business models/sponsors).

Bernie himself sounded less sure, saying the matter had yet to be decided although the joint BBC/Sky press release seemed pretty clear-cut, announcing “extensive BBC highlights on TV, Online and Mobile, of all races and qualifying sessions that BBC is not covering live.”

Could that still change? Could the BBC still broadcast full re-runs of the races as the fans/teams want?

It seems unlikely. You would imagine Sky have protected themselves against such a possibility, which would surely impact on the number of new subscribers who take up their subscription service. Then again, watching the race live may be enough of a pull for many F1 fans.

Bernie has also poured cold water on the possibility. He is being quoted this morning as saying that the BBC will be showing “75mins” highlights at “6pm” for the races which it does not have live.

Yet I understand from other sources that things are still “up in the air”. The 75mins, I am told, refers to the “minimum” amount of time which the BBC must show while the possibility of some races being shown ‘delayed live’ on the BBC and others covered by highlights is still being discussed.

I’m told this would depend on the timing of each individual grand prix due to the “hold back” clause in the deal with Sky which means the BBC cannot broadcast any footage until a certain amount of time has elapsed. During the European season that could fall during in the middle of the prime time evening slot, when a full re-run of a race is impossible.

Clearly there is still some confusion on the issue. And that is before we have even got to the question of whether all 20 races may be shown in full on the BBC Red Button or on iPlayer once the “hold back” time has elapsed.

With BBC Director General Mark Thompson due to face questioning from the Commons’ Culture, Media and Sport select committee next month – in the wake of some stinging letters from Lib Dem MP Don Foster who is scathing of the deal – there are lots of questions left unanswered, both about how the deal came about and what it will mean for TV viewers in this country going forward.

RWC 2011: a tournament too long? Predict the scores and win sports gear and products

At last! After waiting almost four years we can finally say: the Rugby World Cup starts this week! It seems like an eternity since the lights dimmed at Stade de France in 2007 with the announcer booming: “See you in New Zealand in 2011.”

Simply can’t wait for the action to start on Friday – and looking closely at the schedule, there’s not a week that doesn’t offer some cracking, intriguing match-ups. That said, there are also games that seem ideal to combine with doing the laundry or replacing expired light bulbs; some of them just leave me cold.

Which makes me wonder – just as in 2007 – is six weeks plus just too long for this tournament? Yes, I know it’s not tennis and teams can’t smash and bash the hell out of each other every second day. And yes, I agree with calls that the game must become truly global and that the minnows need exposure against the big teams to learn.

But we’re bound to see some of the minors conceding 80, 90 or even 100 ponts – and how much do they really learn from that? All while a ‘classic’ like Georgia v Romania is likely to appeal to people in, er, Georgia and Romania, but probably not to that many neutrals – especially not at 7.30am UK time.

So what’s the solution? Let only the top eight or 10-ranked teams contest the RWC? Or have a separate ‘world championship’ for the lower-ranked teams? Or what about a hybrid? The top 10 in the world qualify automatically, while teams ranked 11-20 – irrespective what continent they come from – play a tournament a month or two before the next RWC, with the top two progressing to the real deal. That way, if nothing else, you find two relatively in-form minnows on the big stage – more likely to be truly competitive than hopelessly weak teams who happened to be best of a bad lot in their region at the time of qualifying. Would really like to hear your suggestions on this problem.

And so on to this weekend – and your chance to win choice Maximuscle gear and products. Maximuscle fuel England’s Courtney Lawes and Joe Simpson, and the Welsh rugby team, and they’ll be sponsoring this blog during RWC 2011 to get me out to New Zealand, to report on some matches, drink beer with the fans (from both hemispheres!) and hopefully let readers who can’t make it out there, share more in the excitement.

The competition is simple: predict the scores in England v Argentina, and Wales v South Africa, by leaving a comment on this blog. Winner is person to correctly predict both outcomes with the smallest total points difference in the two matches. So get your thinking caps on. Entries close 9am UK time on Saturday, September 10.

Coming up on Thursday: I do what only a fool will do, predict how the pools will pan out and who the likely quarter-finalists will be. And I’ll be asking you to also get off the fence!

This blog is supported by Maximuscle, the sports nutrition choice of Courtney Lawes, Joe Simpson and the Welsh Rugby Team. For information on how Maximuscle is the Team Behind the Team, visit www.maximuscle.com/tbtt

London 2012 Olympics: work to be done to make Games accessible for cyclists

Access: mountain bikers riding on the Olympic Park, but will cyclists be able to get there? (Photo: AFP)

Spectators planning to cycle to the London 2012 Olympic Games might be in for a rude shock at the tail end of their journey: a major dedicated cycle lane stops about a mile from Stratford leaving cyclists exposed to cross four busy lanes of traffic to get to the Olympic stadium.

Ongoing negotiations with the local Newham Council – which believes the cycle lanes will create a significant safety hazard, Transport for London and the Mayor’s office, which wants thousands of people to cycle to the Games, are still at a stalemate.

I rode my bike to the official Olympic basketball test event at Olympic Park last month and found the experience more topsy turvy than what the flattish road conditions warranted for most of the way.

Clearly the £11.5 million of bike lane improvements for cycling to the Olympic Park have made a big difference, but I don’t think families or inexperienced cyclists will find the journey pleasant.

I took the CS2 route from Aldgate, which took me fairly direct down Whitechapel High Street, Whitechapel Road, Mile End Road and Bow Road. It is dotted with traffic lights, I lost count after a while, but the widened lanes and clear directions made the route appear straightforward and feel relatively safe.

That is until I came to the Bow Road interchange. There is a large flyover above the Blackwall tunnel. Do I go over the flyover where the cars zoom past at accelerated speeds, or negotiate the traffic lights at the bottom of the hill? I took the safer, longer option but bizarrely the bike lane simply vanished. Visitors might be excused to think they took the wrong turn. Where to from here?

Still I proceeded through to High Street to Stratford, dodging trucks, cars, buses, taxis. Naively I thought this final section was a work in progress to be completed by the end of September deadline for the cycle improvements.

Sadly I was wrong. Newham Council has decided that this final part of the route will be finished after the Olympics.

They are worried that the road is too busy for cyclists and the implementation of the Olympic Route Network lane (for accredited VIP’s, athletes, media) will squeeze the space beyond making a bike lane available.

Yet this very congested nightmare section is one of the official cycle routes for the Olympics – as described by Transport for London executive Leon Daniels.

He says in a blog: “Head south on A11 through Stratford town centre gyratory, onto Stratford High Street, left onto Cam Road and onto Channelsea Path to Abbey Lane. Onto Rick Roberts Way and into the southern spectator transport mall.”

This southern mall will have space for 1,000 bikes. But the route as described means cyclists will have to negotiate across four lanes of traffic. This crossing is without any dedicated lane space or crossing points.

Apparently from the way I was going I will be able to get to the Olympics by the following route: Heading north-east along Cycle Super Highway 2 and turning right at Tomlins Grove (just south of Bow Church DLR) and following the route crossing the A12 via an underpass, going past through 3 Mills and heading north under the Greenway onto Abbey Road, Rick Roberts Way and into the southern spectator transport mall.

Olympic officials say cyclists can get to other cycling storage points, Victoria Park with its 4,000 spots for bikes, and the northern transport mall with about 2000 spots, in a far safer manner. They say there will be lots of information going out to spectators about how to get to the cycle parking areas.

Around 7,000 bike parking places will be made available altogether for the Games, with officials hoping two per cent of spectators every day will commute by bike. But don’t expect any luxuries at the arrival points, as no changing facilities are planned for the parking areas.

Clearly there is still a lot of work to be done if these Games are to encourage and promote cycling in the city.

Rugby World Cup 2011: No chance of All Black complacency this time around

Just arrived in Dunedin, 36 hours after leaving home in Brighton…

First impressions…

1 ) It’s a long way.. and will that put off the supposed thousands of overseas fans headed this way? I don’t know a single person bar colleagues coming to RWC.

2 ) It’s expensive. Three quid for a bottle of water.. five quid for a sandwich.. $90 dollars ( c £55 ) for airport to Dunedin city centre.. see above, perhaps another deterrent.

3 ) It’s not as brass monkeys as feared. In fact, it was a lovely day. Stunning scenery as ever on flight Auckland to Dunedin via poor old Christchurch.

4 ) RWC stuff everywhere so there’s a sense of a buzz building which is to the good.

5 ) But not if it’s all focussed on how well the All Blacks do. This is about the World Cup not about the All Blacks.

6) People as laid-back and friendly as ever.

7 ) But they’re edgy about the ABs doing well. And that could be the best thing for the Blacks. There will be no complacency this time around. They’re going to have to win it.

Five days and counting. I had my reservations about this tournament. I no longer do.

Sporting Goods