Wimbledon prize money up 4.7 per cent

WIMBLEDON, England -- Prize money at Wimbledon is going up by 4.7 per cent.

The All England Club said Tuesday that the total prize fund for this summer's championships will be 11.8 million pounds (C$23.5 million).

French Open loses case with gambers

BRUSSELS, Belgium -- Major online gambling companies successfully fended off a legal challenge from French Open organizers who wanted to stop them from offering bets on their Grand Slam tournament.

Federer storms past Nalbandian

MONTE CARLO, Monaco -- Roger Federer rallied from a set down to beat sixth-seeded David Nalbandian 5-7, 6-2, 6-2 Friday and advanced to the semifinals of the Monte Carlo Masters.

Federer leads 9-8 against the Argentine after losing their previous two meetings last year. He remains on course for a third straight final against three-time defending champion Rafael Nadal, who beat No. 5 David Ferrer of Spain 6-1, 7-5.

Men, women combine for Rogers Cup

The Rogers Cup events are about to take on a drastically different look and feel as a result of major changes coming to the world's two major tennis tours.

Last year, the Associated Tennis Professionals (ATP) and the Sony Ericsson Women's Tennis Association (WTA) announced plans to host more joint events, including the Rogers Cup beginning in 2011.

Federer advances in Monte Carlo

Roger Federer beat Gael Monfils of France 6-3, 6-4 Thursday to advance to the quarter-finals of the Monte Carlo Masters.

The 12-time Grand Slam champion overcame an early break against Monfils and looked to have recovered a day after rallying from 5-1 down in the third set to beat 137th-ranked Ruben Ramirez Hidalgo.

The top-ranked Swiss set up match point with a perfectly weighted drop shot that Monfils didn't even chase, and won on his second match point with a service winner that curled away from the Frenchman.

Monfils threatened early on, breaking Federer in the third game. Federer broke straight back for 2-2 and took Monfils' serve again in the eighth game for a 5-3 lead after Monfils sent a big forehand wide.

Federer clinched the opening set when Monfils hit a service return long.

Federer broke his opponent in the third game of the second set and was leading 4-2 when Monfils saved three break points.

Also, three-time defending champion Rafael Nadal beat Juan Carlos Ferrero 6-4, 6-1.

"I think it was a good match," Nadal said. "It is never easy to play against Juan Carlos. He's a big player, especially here on clay. It is a very good start for me and that gives me confidence."

Nadal next plays fifth-seeded David Ferrer of Spain, who beat Janko Tipsarevic of Serbia 6-4, 6-0 to reach the last eight for the fourth straight year.

Nadal broke two-time champion Ferrero in the fourth game for a 3-1 lead. Ferrero pinned Nadal on the baseline in the seventh game and broke back, before holding for 4-4.

Ferrero saved three set points in the 10th game -- the first with a forehand winner and the next two when Nadal went long with attempted baseline winners.

Ferrero conceded the opener after a tense rally where Nadal was wrongfooted by a volley but managed to lob the ball back. Ferrero flicked the ball between his legs to continue the long exchange, which ended several strokes later when Nadal's booming forehand landed just in.

Nadal dominated the second set, opening up a 4-0 lead before Ferrero broke in the fifth game. Nadal broke straight back to lead 5-1 and clinched the match on serve with a crosscourt winner.

Ferrer broke Tipsarevic's serve six times. The Spaniard, a losing Masters Cup finalist last year to Federer, has never got past the last eight at Monte Carlo. He lost to Federer in the 2006 and '07 quarter-finals, and to Guillermo Coria in 2005.

Igor Andreev of Russia needed seven match points to finally overcome Nicolas Almagro of Spain 7-5, 4-6, 6-4.

Third-seeded Novak Djokovic of Serbia faced Andy Murray of Britain later Thursday.

Kuerten to sit out next week with injury

Brazil -- Three-time French Open champion Gustavo Kuerten will not play in next week's ATP event in Barcelona because of a muscle injury.

Kuerten, on his farewell tour, received a wild card to play in what would have been his penultimate event before ending his 14-year career at Roland Garros next month.

The popular Brazilian with the nickname "Guga" will be sidelined for about a week after injuring his left leg in the Monte Carlo Masters, where he lost in the first round on Monday.

"It's a shame, it would be very special to play in the Barcelona tournament," Kuerten said Wednesday in a statement.

Kuerten's best finishes in Barcelona were the quarter-finals in 2003 and '04. A former No. 1, Kuerten announced his retirement plans earlier this year because of a chronic hip injury that required surgery in 2002 and '04.

Djokovic moves on in Monte Carlo

Monaco -- Novak Djokovic advanced to the third round of the Monte Carlo Masters by beating Ivan Ljubicic of Croatia 6-3, 6-3 on Tuesday.

The Australian Open champion broke Ljubicic at love in the eighth game of the first set for a 5-3 lead and clinched the set with an ace.

Using a two-handed backhand to counter Ljubicic's booming serve, Djokovic saved two break points in the eighth game of the second set but was rarely troubled.

"I came up with a straight-set win, which is very important for me at the start of the clay-court season," Djokovic said. "I played my best tennis in the most important moments, and that's what actually matters most."

The third-seeded Serb will next meet No. 14 Andy Murray of Britain, who beat Filippo Volandri of Italy 6-4, 6-1.

In doubles action, the Spanish team of Rafael Nadal and Tommy Robredo beat the third-seeded tandem of Toronto's Daniel Nestor and Serbian partner Nenad Zimonjic. The Spaniards won a tiebreaker round 10-3 after the first two sets were split 5-7 and 6-3.

After missing the chance to even the score at 4-4, Ljubicic's serve withered in the next game and Djokovic won on his first match point when Ljubicic hit a forehand into the net from the back of the court.

Djokovic said he took more time than usual to find his rhythm before pulling away.

"That's why I got off to a nervous start," Djokovic said. "But then I played at a very good level."

Djokovic's best showing on clay so far was last year's title at Estoril, Portugal, and he is searching for a way to dominate on all surfaces.

"One of the things that I really try to have this year is patience," Djokovic said. "On the other hand, I'll try to be myself and be aggressive, the kind of style of game that I always have. So it's going to be a real test for me."

Djokovic leads the ATP race and has two tournament wins already this year, compared to one for top-ranked Roger Federer. Second-ranked Nadal, a clay specialist, is looking for his first.

"I don't want to push myself too much and focus on the points and rankings," Djokovic said. "I know I have enough potential to be top of the world. But I'm only 20 years old, I still have a lot of time ahead of me."

Robredo also won in singles action, beating Stanislas Wawrinka of Switzerland 6-4, 7-5 in the first round.

Neither player looked comfortable in an error-strewn match, but the 12th-seeded Robredo capitalized on more opportunities and broke Wawrinka's serve six times. He next faces Robin Soderling of Sweden in the second round of the clay-court tournament.

Ivo Karlovic of Croatia also advanced when Sebastien Grosjean retired with an injury while trailing 4-6, 6-4, 4-1. The Frenchman needed treatment on his thigh early in the third set.

Two-time Grand Slam champion Marat Safin and fellow Russian Igor Andreev won in straight sets. Safin beat Xavier Malisse of Belgium 6-3, 6-2, and Andreev defeated Dmitry Tursunov of Russia 7-5, 6-3.

Safin next faces fifth-seeded David Ferrer of Spain, while Andreev plays eighth-seeded Mikhail Youzhny of Russia.

Also in the first round, Simone Bolelli of Italy beat Juan Ignacio Chela of Argentina 6-2, 6-2, and Jarkko Nieminen of Finland dominated Marc Gicquel of France 6-0, 6-4.

"The conditions were very slow today and he is a very difficult player to outrun," Gicquel said. "I was not patient enough."

No. 11 Juan Monaco of Argentina, Andreas Seppi of Italy and Ruben Ramirez Hidalgo of Spain also advanced in straight sets. Ramirez Hidalgo next plays Federer.

Ferrero into Round 2

Monaco -- Juan Carlos Ferrero beat Michael Llodra of France 6-7 (5), 6-1, 6-1 in the first round of the Monte Carlo Masters on Monday.

Llodra missed a chance to level at 2-2 in the third set, wasting two break points with unforced errors.

The 13th-seeded Ferrero never looked troubled after that. The Spaniard won the match with a lob after drawing Llodra to the net with a drop shot.

Ferrero won the Monte Carlo title in 2002 and 2003. He next plays Janko Tipsarevic of Serbia, who defeated ninth-seeded Paul-Henri Mathieu of France 6-4, 2-6, 6-3.

Sam Querrey of the United States advanced by upsetting 10th-seeded Carlos Moya 6-3, 1-6, 6-3. Moya won both the Monte Carlo and French Open titles in 1998.

The 20-year-old Querrey, who won his first career title at Las Vegas on hard courts last month, will play either Andreas Seppi or Agustin Calleri in the second round.

In his farewell tour, three-time French Open champion Gustavo Kuerten of Brazil lost to Ivan Ljubicic of Croatia 6-1, 6-2.

Kuerten saved two match points, but then hit a forehand long when retrieving a passing shot down the line.

"I wish I could play longer, but Ivan was playing really well," said Kuerten, who retires at the end of the season. "Now I can go home and rest and think back on my matches. It's nice to remember everything that happened in the past."

Ljubicic praised Kuerten's contribution to tennis.

"Most players play to win, but he did it for the love," said Ljubicic, who is 2-5 against Kuerten. "The passion he put into the sport was unbelievable."

No. 14 Andy Murray advanced by beating Feliciano Lopez of Spain 7-6 (5), 6-4 and next plays Filippo Volandri of Italy, who beat Nicolas Mahut of France 6-2, 6-3.

Murray hopes that having two-time French Open finalist Alex Corretja as a clay-court coach will improve his play on the surface. The French Open begins May 26.

"The first thing you need to work on is the patience, and I did that today," Murray said. "Today I didn't play all that aggressive. I was trying to keep the ball high and deep."

Also, No. 16 Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany beat Jose Acasuso of Argentina 7-6 (4), 6-3 to set up a match with Nicolas Kiefer, and Robin Soderling wasted three match points before outlasting Radek Stepanek of the Czech Republic 6-4, 6-7 (6), 6-3.

Mario Ancic of Croatia set up a match against second-ranked Rafael Nadal by beating Ivo Minar of the Czech Republic 6-3, 6-4.

Kristof Vliegen of Belgium, Olivier Rochus of Belgium, Nicolas Lapentti of Ecuador and Gael Monfils of France also won.

The third-seeded duo of Nenad Zimonjic of Serbia and Toronto's Daniel Nestor received a first-round bye in the doubles draw.

Serena wins first clay title since 2002

CHARLESTON, S.C. -- Serena Williams captured the Family Circle Cup title Sunday, defeating Vera Zvonareva 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 for her first clay court title since the 2002 French Open.

Williams' third title of the year was expected to lift her to No. 6 in the rankings. She won earlier in Bangalore and Miami. She is 19-1 in matches this year after winning her 31st career title on the green clay here on a breezy, overcast afternoon.

"I feel like I have some momentum behind me and I just want to keep going," said the fifth-seeded Williams, who won US$197,000 and a crystal cup at the $1.3 million tournament. "I definitely look at everyone as my clay court competition."

Unlike earlier matches at the Family Circle, Williams started strong, winning the first set and scattering 10 aces during the match.

"I just wanted to get that first set under my belt, and thank God I did because I lost the second," said Williams, who anticipated a long day against the ninth-seeded Russian. "I've played her a few times, so I really know her game and she's a real fighter and she never stops."

Williams improved to 5-1 against Zvonareva, who should rise to No. 14 in the rankings by making the finals.

In the third set, Zvonareva broke Williams in the third game -- the final point on Williams' second double-fault of the day.

But Williams broke back in the next game, then held serve at love in the next.

"She never made a mistake when I was up," Zvonareva said. "I think I could have done a little better job about holding my serve, which I wasn't able to do."

Williams then broke Zvonareva a second time, taking advantage of two consecutive double-faults.

"She always puts pressure on you, so you always have to go for a bigger serve and eventually your serve percentage goes down," said Zvonareva, who ended with eight double-faults. "I accepted I would have some double-faults today and I knew it was going to happen when I was coming into the match. It's just too bad to have two of them in a row."

It was Williams' fifth appearance in Charleston, but her first title. She was runner-up to Justine Henin in 2003.

Davydenko hands Federer Estoril title

OEIRAS, Portugal -- Top-ranked Roger Federer won the Estoril Open and his first title of the season when second-seeded Nikolay Davydenko retired with a leg injury while trailing 7-6 (5), 1-2 on Sunday.

Davydenko broke Federer to start the second set before pulling out of the match.

"I have a little injury and I can't finish the match," Davydenko told the court-side crowd. "I'm sorry guys." The Russian did not elaborate.

Federer returned to winning ways in his fifth tournament played this season. It had been eight years since Federer had needed so many events to reach a final.

"It's not the way you want to win a tournament but that's just the way it goes sometime," Federer said. "It's great to win a title again and to straightaway win my first clay court tournament of the season gives me great confidence going into Monte Carlo."

Federer evened his record in clay court finals to 7-7 on a windy day. Overall, he's won 54 of the 71 finals he's played.

Davydenko came in on the heels of a title victory over No. 2 Rafael Nadal at Miami. This defeat made it 0-12 against Federer.

Maria Kirilenko beat Iveta Benesova 6-4, 6-2 to win the women's crown -- her third career title.

The second-seeded Russian broke Benesova's serve five times, helped by the Czech's five double faults. It was the third straight tournament that Benesova lost in the final.

Neither woman held serve confidently in the first set with two breaks apiece going into the 10th game with Kirilenko leading 5-4.

But Kirilenko picked her spot for a forehand winner along the line for 30-30. Benesova then shot wide to set up a first set point before rain forced an interruption.

After the 41-minute delay, Benesova, who sits 100 spots below Kirilenko in the rankings, netted from a long rally to hand the 32nd-ranked Russian the first set.

Kirilenko exploited Benesova's lack of rhythm to serve and break to love for 2-0 in the second set. Kirilenko had won 10 straight points before the 25-year-old Benesova smacked a forehand inside the line to start the third game.

Kirilenko won with her last break in the eighth game when Benesova returned into the net.

Kirilenko, 21, had easily won their only previous meeting, also on clay, at Warsaw in 2005.

Roddick sends U.S. into Davis Cup semifinals

Andy Roddick proved dominant again in the Davis Cup, sending the defending champion United States past France today and into the semifinals against Spain.

Behind a blistering serve, Roddick defeated Paul-Henri Mathieu, 6-2, 6-3, 6-2, for the clinching victory in the best-of-five quarterfinal. This was Roddick's second singles victory in three days.

A day after a loss by the No. 1 doubles team of Bob and Mike Bryan kept France's hopes alive, Roddick was never threatened in giving the Americans an insurmountable 3-1 lead. While he was held to 17 aces, he lost only 13 points on his serve to improve to 10-0 in clinching situations for the U.S.

Roddick, who had 30 aces in a straight sets win over Michael Llodra on Friday, never faced a break point against Mathieu. Roddick wasn't broken in two matches on the quick, indoor hard-court suited to his style.

He wrapped up the sixth straight Davis Cup victory for the U.S., including last year's win over Russia in the final, with an ace down the middle. He then made a lap around the court with the American flag and his teammates.

Next up for the U.S. is a road matchup against Rafael Nadal and Spain in the semifinals Sept. 19-21, which almost certainly will be on clay.

In other quarterfinals, Russia eliminated the Czech Republic 3-2, and Argentina ousted Sweden 3-1 with a match to play. Spain advanced Saturday by defeating Germany and led 4-0 on Sunday.

Roddick broke Mathieu five times and finished off the match in just more than 90 minutes, rendering meaningless the final match between James Blake and Richard Gasquet.

Roddick improved to 29-9 for the U.S. in Davis Cup matches, trailing only John McEnroe (41) and Andre Agassi (30). His win against the 12th-ranked Mathieu was part of a strong month in which he beat the tour's top three players -- Roger Federer, Nadal and Novak Djokovic.

France exited in the quarterfinals for the fourth straight year without its top lineup. Australian Open finalist Jo-Wilfried Tsonga flew back to Paris on Wednesday after an MRI exam revealed a cartilage tear in his right knee. Gasquet, the top-ranked Frenchmen at No. 10, was held out until the match against Blake.

Gasquet didn't play in Friday's singles with a blister on his right hand and a sore knee. And even though Gasquet shocked Roddick in last year's Wimbledon quarterfinals, captain Guy Forget went with Mathieu against Roddick.

Mathieu, who wasted two match points on Friday before falling to James Blake in five sets, was no match for the efficient Roddick. Mathieu double-faulted to give Roddick the first set, then was broken again in the second games of the second and third sets.

Bryan twins fail to close out victory for U.S.

Bob and Mike Bryan were struggling to describe how the so-called "automatic point" for the United States Davis Cup team had failed to close out France on Saturday when captain Patrick McEnroe chimed in.

"These guys are human. You see them? They're human," McEnroe said. "We count on them. Everybody always says, 'The doubles are a lock.' Well, they played a great team and they played well."

The joking and loose French pair of Michael Llodra and Arnaud Clement ended the Bryans' doubles dominance, rallying past the top-ranked twins, 6-7 (7), 7-5, 6-3, 6-4, to cut the Americans' lead to 2-1 in the best-of-five competition at Winston-Salem, N.C.

The Bryans had been 14-1 in Davis Cup play and 5-0 in clinching situations, but they couldn't secure a spot for the U.S. in the semifinals against Spain. Llodra and Clement, who said they were discussing wine between points, raised their record to 4-2 against the Bryans and kept the French alive for Sunday's reverse singles.

"We knew before the match when the Bryans lead they are very big on the court," Llodra said. "We knew we had to stay positive and have a good attitude. That's the key when you are down in the score. In the middle of the fourth set, I saw the Bryans were a little bit shorter."

In the other Davis Cup quarterfinals, Spain swept Germany, 3-0; Argentina leads Sweden, 2-1; and Russia is in front of the Czech Republic, 2-1.

A day after Andy Roddick and James Blake put the U.S. in command with singles wins, the Bryans wasted a chance to pass John McEnroe and Peter Fleming as the winningest U.S. Davis Cup doubles team.

"We wanted to shut it down so we could have a good time tonight," Mike Bryan said.

Instead the pressure shifts to Roddick, who will play the first match Sunday against Paul-Henri Mathieu or perhaps Richard Gasquet if he's recovered from a blister on his right hand and a sore knee. Blake plays the final match, tentatively against Llodra.

French captain Guy Forget was seen talking to Gasquet after the doubles match ended. Forget hinted his lineup will depend on whether Gasquet thinks he's healthy enough to play.

"I feel it should be an honor to play for your country. I feel it's a privilege when somebody asks you if you want to play," Forget said. "Richard felt like he couldn't play at a decent level (Friday). Now the question is how he really feels. But I'm not begging him. If he doesn't want to play he won't go out."

Similar to their win over the Bryans in last year's Wimbledon final, Llodra and Clement were the aggressors on the quick indoor hard court, coming to the net often in an entertaining match that included big serves, multiple volleys and quick reflexes.

Clement's forehand winner down the line broke Mike Bryan in the seventh game of the fourth set. Two games later, Llodra served it out on a day when the French never lost serve.

"They had chances, but you you've got to give the French credit," McEnroe said. "They played unbelievable tennis in big points. It wasn't like the guys choked and missed easy points."

Instead, Llodra, who lost to Roddick in straight sets on Friday, continued to frustrate -- if not irritate -- the Bryans.

After winning the Wimbledon title, Llodra and Clement whipped off their shirts and tossed them into the crowd. It was a toned-down version from the 2004 Australian Open final, when Llodra stripped to his underwear after he and Fabrice Santoro beat the Bryans.

Llodra kept his shirt on in the post-match celebration, but did hurdle the net after France evened the doubles match at a set apiece. He then told Clement that, win or lose, they were going to drink expensive Chateau Margaux wine after the match.

"He's crazy, this guy," Clement said.

The French team was in trouble early, after the Bryans staved off a set point in the first-set tiebreaker before closing it out, with Clement's missed volley the difference.

Clement made up for his mistake in the second set. His return down the line set up a set point, and he finished off the break of Mike Bryan with a backhand volley on the next point.

The French broke Bob Bryan early in the third set, racing to a 3-0 lead. They fought off two break points at 4-2, then served out the set, silencing the crowd.

Now the U.S. will turn to Roddick to close it out Sunday against an undetermined opponent.

"We're not really too concerned, to be honest," McEnroe said. "If Andy comes out and plays well, plays his game, I think we're in pretty good shape."

Elsewhere in Davis Cup doubles:

In Bremen, Germany, the Spanish team of Feliciano Lopez and Fernando Verdasco defeated Philipp Kohlschreiber and Philipp Petzschner, 6-7, (3), 7-6 (1), 6-4, 2-6, 12-10. The clinching match lasted 4 hours 45 minutes. Spain won the Davis Cup in 2004.

In Buenos Aires, Argentina, the Argentines went up 2-1 when David Nalbandian and Guillermo Canas beat Jonas Bjorkman and Robert Lindstedt 7-5, 6-4, 6-4. Argentina has won 11 straight Davis Cup series at home since 1998. The winner plays Russia or the Czech Republic in the semifinals.

In Moscow, Nikolay Davydenko and Igor Andreev rallied past Radek Stepanek and Pavel Vizner, 3-6, 6-3, 7-5, 6-4, to put Russia ahead of the Czechs, 2-1. Russia has not lost at home since the 1995 final, when Pete Sampras won three matches to lead the U.S. to victory. The Russians have since won 15 straight.

Blake's comeback, Roddick's 30 aces give U.S. 2-0 lead over France

James Blake's perseverance and Andy Roddick's power gave the United States a commanding lead over France in the Davis Cup quarterfinals.

Blake fought off two match points to beat Paul-Henri Mathieu, 7-6 (5), 6-7 (3), 6-3, 3-6, 7-5 on Friday to give the U.S. a 2-0 lead in the best-of-five series at Winston-Salem, N.C.

Roddick had 30 aces on the indoor hard-court in a 6-4, 7-6 (3), 7-6 (5) victory over Michael Llodra in the opening match.

The Americans' top-ranked doubles team of Bob and Mike Bryan can put the United States into the semifinals against Spain or Germany with a win today against Llodra and Arnaud Clement.

Rafael Nadal beat Nicolas Kiefer, 7-6 (5), 6-0, 6-3, and David Ferrer defeated Philipp Kohlschreiber, 6-7 (3), 6-3, 6-4, 6-2, to give Spain a 2-0 lead over Germany at Bremen, Germany.

In the other quarterfinal matches, Marat Safin defeated Tomas Berdych, 6-7 (5), 4-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4, to help Russia gain a 1-1 split against the Czech Republic at Moscow. Radek Stepanek beat Igor Andreev, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4.

Argentina's David Nalbandian beat Thomas Johansson, 6-2, 5-7, 6-4, 6-2, but Robin Soderling gave Sweden a 1-1 split at Buenos Aires by defeating Jose Acasuso, 6-0, 6-4, 6-1.

Maria Sharapova and Lindsay Davenport set up a semifinal showdown in the Bausch & Lomb Championships at Amelia Island, Fla., by winning quarterfinal matches.

The top-seeded Sharapova defeated 10trh-seeded Alona Bondarenko, 6-7 (9), 6-3, 6-2. Davenport, seeded 16th and a three-time Bausch & Lomb champion, advanced with a 6-4, 7-6 (3) victory over eighth-seeded Agnes Szavay.

Sharapova blanks Mattek at Family Circle

Maria Sharapova shut out American Bethanie Mattek 6-0, 6-0 in less than an hour Wednesday to advance to the third round of the Family Circle Cup.

The second-seeded Russian star, coming off her first clay-court title last week at Amelie Island, is looking for her fourth tournament victory of the year.

Earlier, defending champion Jelena Jankovic overcame a slow start to beat American Alexandra Stevenson 7-5, 6-0.

The Serb was broken at love in the first game and managed only two points in the second. Trailing 5-4 in the first set, she rattled off nine straight games to win the match.

"I'm just trying to get my timing," said Jankovic, who got her first Tier 1 victory here last year. "It's a different game. The points are longer. You really have to know how to move well.

"It's my first match on clay and I didn't know what to expect from myself," said Jankovic, who is ranked No. 5 in the world. "First matches are always tough, but I was able to play a little better in the second set. Hopefully, throughout the tournament I will play better."

In other matches at the US$1.3 million tournament, fourth-seeded Elena Dementieva defeated Jill Craybas 6-0, 6-2; No. 7 Patty Schnyder defeated Olga Govortsova 7-6 (2), 6-0, and No. 9 Vera Zvonareva eliminated Virginia Ruano Pascual 6-1, 6-0.

Conditions in Charleston were better following Tuesday's blustery matches. The temperatures climbed to around 20 degrees C, although still breezy at about 25 km/h, the wind was down from Tuesday's gusts of up to 48 km/h.

Knee keeps Henin out of Family Circle

Top-ranked Justine Henin pulled out of next week's Family Circle Cup because of a knee problem.

Henin said her right knee still felt too sore to compete in the WTA event in Charleston, South Carolina.

"She does not want to endanger her clay court season," the Belgian's website said.

Henin has won two events so far this season, but lost to Serena Williams 6-2, 6-0 in the quarter-finals of the Sony Ericsson Open in Key Biscayne, Florida, last week.

She is expected to resume her season at the May 5-11 German Open in Berlin.

Federer tries out new coach Higueras

Roger Federer says he will work with coach Jose Higueras at the Estoril Open in Portugal this week to see if the pair can "make a good team."

"I am excited as I have asked Jose Higueras, one of the most respected and accomplished coaches in the world of tennis, to join me," the top-ranked player said on his official website Monday.

Federer begins the European clay-court season at Estoril having failed to reach a final in four tournaments this year.

Higueras is a clay specialist who coached a teenage Michael Chang to the 1989 French Open title.

The Spaniard reached two semifinals at Roland Garros as a player and has also coached Americans Jim Courier, Pete Sampras and Robby Ginepri.

Federer's agent Tony Godsick said the partnership with Higueras could be for the long term.

"It is a test period but it is not just something for the clay-court season," Godsick told The Associated Press. "Roger is not looking to hire coaches just for specific surfaces. This is something he is testing out to replace the arrangement he had with Tony Roche."

Federer has worked without a coach since splitting with Roche, an Australian, last May. He is off to his worst start to a season since 2000. He has also suffered from a stomach virus and mononucleosis.

"I think Roger is back to 100 per cent and now he has just got to make sure he builds himself with all the time he has missed. He has got to play himself into shape and that is what he is doing," Godsick said.

The 26-year-old Swiss opens against 80th-ranked Olivier Rochus of Belgium on Tuesday.

Federer is scheduled to play Masters Series events on clay at Monte Carlo, Rome and Hamburg, Germany, before attempting to win his first French Open title.

Sharapova wins clay-court title

Maria Sharapova entered the Bausch & Lomb Championships with hopes of gaining some experience on clay.

She got a lot more than that -- her first title on the soft, slippery surface.

Sharapova overcame five double-faults and 33 unforced errors to beat Dominika Cibulkova 7-6 (7), 6-3 on Sunday. The top-seeded Russian became the first player on the WTA Tour to win three times in 2008. She also won the Australian Open and at Doha.

"I've been fortunate that I could start the clay season early and that I could get a win and my first title on clay, which is exciting," she said.

Sharapova improved to 22-1 this year, earned a crystal vase and US$95,500, and maybe more important, gained valuable experience in the first clay-court event of the season.

Sharapova played only one event on clay before last year's French Open, where she lost in the semifinals in straight sets to Ana Ivanovic. The loss prompted her to focus more attention on the fast, sometimes unpredictable surface this time around.

It started at Amelia Island, where she needed a combined six hours to win matches in the third and quarter-final rounds.

But all that time on the court helped her figure a few things out.

"Try to move in, look for short balls and come in more often," she said. "I sometimes hesitate doing that even on hard courts. On clay, it's just so much more important. ... Hopefully with experience, I can be able to move in a little bit more and take a few more balls out of the air."

Sharapova plans to practise the approach at next week's Family Circle Cup in South Carolina and again overseas before the French Open in late May. And with much more clay confidence.

"This is definitely a big plus," she said.

Cibulkova, an 18-year-old Slovakian playing in her first WTA final, had plenty of chances to pull off an upset. She was up 4-2 in the first-set tiebreaker before making two unforced errors that helped Sharapova battle back.

She also was ahead 2-1 in the second set before summoning a trainer and getting her left quadriceps muscle wrapped. Cibulkova felt she pulled the muscle, slowing her mobility and prompting her to try to end points early to avoid too much running.

Sharapova took advantage, working her opponent side to side and winning five of the final six games.

"I had a lot of chances," said Cibulkova, who finished with 22 unforced errors. "I missed so many easy shots. I made quite stupid mistakes today. If you want to beat (a player like Sharapova), you can't make this many mistakes."

It didn't help Cibulkova that she was coming off a three-set victory in the semifinals Saturday and facing someone who got a day off to rest.

Sharapova got a walkover against Lindsay Davenport in the other semifinal. Davenport withdrew after waking up with a fever and feeling sick.

"Obviously, a big advantage," Sharapova said. "It's a lot easier on the body just practising for an hour than going out and playing a match against a tough opponent."

The walkover was just one of many strange things that happened to Sharapova during the week. She got presented with a bag of popcorn during an on-court interview, then got denied permission to use the restroom by the chair umpire in one match.

"And on top of that, I was lucky and fortunate that I could scrap my way through those two tough matches," Sharapova said. "I was playing from behind in both of them. At the end of the day, I'm leaving this tournament as a champion. I guess that's a good thing. I can't complain."

Losing start for Canadian duo

Daniel Nestor and Frederic Niemeyer lost their first match as a doubles team in Davis Cup competition Saturday and Canada lost their tie 3-0 to Chile.

Nestor, from Toronto, and Niemeyer, of Deauville, Que., lost to defending Olympic gold medallists Fernando Gonzalez and Nicolas Massu 6-3, 7-6, 6-7, 7-5, 6-4 in the third match of the tie. Nestor and Niemeyer dropped to 9-1 in Davis Cup matches.

Earlier Saturday, Massu beat Niemeyer in five sets in a completion of a singles match that was suspended on Friday due to darkness.

In the fifth set, Massu jumped out to an early 3-0 lead but Niemeyer clawed back to even the set. But Massu closed out the match with three straight games to win 3-6, 6-4, 6-4, 5-7, 6-3, much to the delight of the home crowd.

Gonzalez beat Peter Polansky of Thornhill, Ont., on Friday.

The two countries will play the final two matches Sunday with nothing on the line.

Spain secures Davis Cup semis spot

Spain secured a place in the Davis Cup semifinals with victory Saturday in an epic doubles match against Germany and still must await the outcome of the United States-France tie to learn their opponent.

Russia and Argentina also won to take 2-1 leads into Sunday's final reverse singles matches.

Feliciano Lopez and Fernando Verdasco beat Philipp Kohlschreiber and Philipp Petzschner 6-7 (3), 7-6 (1), 6-4, 2-6, 12-10 for Spain to establish an unassailable 3-0 lead over Germany. The match lasted four hours 45 minutes.

The Spaniards saved match points at 6-6 and 8-8 in the final set, and clinched the best-of-five series when Kohlschreiber hit the ball long in front of 5,000 home fans.

Spain led 2-0 as second-ranked Rafael Nadal and No. 5 David Ferrer each won Friday's singles. Both players may now skip Sunday's meaningless reverse singles.

Kohlschreiber was taken to a hospital for a checkup late Friday after complaining of not feeling well following his four-set loss to Ferrer.

"It's enough to make you sick," Kohlschreiber said. "I was on the court three hours yesterday, 4:45 today and didn't win. We lost that last set rather unluckily."

Spain, the 2004 champion, now face either the United States or France in September's semifinals.

France kept its hopes alive with a doubles victory over the Americans in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

Michael Llodra and Arnaud Clement rallied past top-ranked twins Bob and Mike Bryan 6-7 (7), 7-5, 6-3, 6-4 to cut the Americans' lead to 2-1.

The Bryans had been 14-1 in Davis Cup play and 5-0 in clinching situations. Llodra and Clement raised their record to 4-2 against the Bryans to send the French with new hope heading into the reverse singles.

In Moscow, the Russian pair of Nikolay Davydenko and Igor Andreev rallied to beat Radek Stepanek and Pavel Vizner of the Czech Republic 3-6, 6-3, 7-5, 6-4.

Both team captains made substitutions for the originally drawn doubles pairings. Andreev came in for Mikhail Youzhny and Stepanek substituted for Lukas Dlouhy.

"We both do not play doubles that often," Andreev said. "It took us a while to remember what doubles are about. Unfortunately, it took us the whole first set -- but then we lit up."

Andreev was drawn to play Berdych in the opening reverse singles match Sunday, followed by Safin against Stepanek. The fourth-ranked Davydenko, who is fresh from winning in Key Biscayne, Florida, last week, is expected to substitute for Andreev.

Russia has not lost at home since the 1995 final, when Pete Sampras won all three of his matches to lead the United States to victory. Since then, the Russians have won 15 straight.

The winner of this matchup will play either Argentina or Sweden.

On the outdoor clay of Buenos Aires, David Nalbandian and Guillermo Canas defeated Jonas Bjorkman and Robert Lindstedt 7-5, 6-4, 6-4 to give Argentina a 2-1 lead.

"This was a crucial point. Without this doubles victory, things would have gotten very complicated," Argentina team captain Alberto Mancini said. "Our players entered the court playing very solidly, very confidently."

Argentina has won 11 straight ties at home since 1998. Nalbandian is scheduled to play Robin Soderling on Sunday, with Jose Acasuso to play Thomas Johansson.

Federer may switch coach to end slump

Roger Federer may looking to a new coach in a bid to break out of his 2008 funk.

Jose Higueras, who used to coach Jim Courier and Sergio Bruguera and also worked with Pete Sampras and Jennifer Capriati, is expected to join the top-ranked Swiss star at this week's Estoril Open tournament in Portugal, Spanish news agency Efe reported Saturday.

Higueras, who won 16 ATP titles and represented Spain in the Davis Cup as a player, coached Michael Chang to his 1989 French Open trophy. The 55-year-old Higueras is reportedly accredited with Federer's entourage.

Federer split with coach Tony Roche last May, but a poor start coming into the clay-court season may have swayed the Swiss player to look for help.

Federer, who is only two Grand Slam titles shy of tying Sampras' record of 14, needs a French Open title to complete a career Grand Slam.

The 26-year-old Federer is off to his worst start since 2000 _ the last time he went four tournaments without a victory. It is the first time Federer has failed to reached a tournament final in four consecutive tournaments since reaching No. 1 four years ago..

Ill health hasn't helped. He battled a stomach virus at the Australian Open and mononucleosis.

An employee at Higueras' tennis academy in Palm Springs, Florida, could not confirm Higueras' presence at Estoril to the AP, but did say that Higueras was travelling in Spain this week.

Venus Williams skipping Charleston

Venus Williams will miss another tournament next week in Charleston, S.C., as she undergoes tests for a medical issue that her agent said Wednesday isn't serious.

The six-time major champion and former No. 1-ranked woman plans to return to the tour at next month's Italian Open, then participate in the year's remaining Grand Slam tournaments.

"This (is) not a hiatus. This is not a break from the tour," her agent Carlos Fleming said in a telephone interview. "This was a limited window where she could get these evaluations before the three major tournaments and Olympics this summer."

Williams, currently ranked No. 6, already was sitting out this week's tournament at Amelia Island, Fla., and she withdrew from Charleston on Wednesday. She did not cite an injury in pulling out of those events, and is making off-court appearances at both.

Williams played last week at Key Biscayne, Fla., reaching the quarter-finals before losing to Svetlana Kuznetsova in straight sets.

"Venus has assured me that there's no serious medical problem," Fleming said. "But she did see this timing as a good opportunity to have these evaluations to make sure that her health is in order."

Neither Williams, who spoke to reporters at Amelia Island on Tuesday, nor Fleming would go into specifics about the nature of the medical issue.

After Williams lost to eventual champion Justine Henin in the U.S. Open semifinals in September, her mother and coach, Oracene Price, said Williams was taking medicine for anemia. Price said at the time that her daughter learned she had the condition after winning Wimbledon in July.

Fleming said Williams expects to be back on the court practising sometime by the end of next week and fully intends to compete in the French Open, Wimbledon and U.S. Open -- as well as the Beijing Olympics, where she aims to play in singles and in doubles with her younger sister Serena.

But Fleming said that an "ambitious" travel schedule so far in 2008, including stops in Doha, Qatar; Bangalore, India; and Melbourne, Australia, made the 27-year-old Williams want to "make sure that her health was 100 per cent on track."

The Italian Open, played in Rome, starts May 12. It is one of the key tuneup tournaments played on clay courts ahead of the French Open, which begins May 25.

Davenport survives upset day

Lindsay Davenport defeated Jill Craybas 6-1, 6-4 to reach the third round of the Bausch & Lomb Championships and escape a Wednesday filled with upsets.

Davenport is playing her first tournament on clay in nearly three years after missing time in 2006 with a back injury and 2007 due to the birth of her son. But she is very familiar with the green clay at the Bausch & Lomb, a tournament she won in 1997, 2004 and 2005.

Davenport won 89 per cent of the points on her first serve.

"Overall, I felt I actually hit the ball better than I did (Tuesday) and did a few things better," said the 16th-seeded Davenport, whose son, Jagger, turns 10 months old on Thursday. "Now, it's just about trying to get more consistent."

Seeded players Daniela Hantuchova, Patty Schnyder and Sybille Bammer were upset in earlier play.

Karolina Sprem knocked out the third-seeded Hantuchova 6-3, 1-6, 6-3. No. 5 Schnyder lost 6-2, 2-6, 6-2 to Elena Vesnina. No. 9 Bammer lost to Alize Cornet.

"I don't think I did too many things wrong," Hantuchova said. "(Sprem) was just playing incredible, going for every shot and almost everything going inside the court. Today she was just too good."

Sprem, who is coming back from a wrist injury, will face Davenport on Thursday.

No. 2 Anna Chakvetadze and former winner Amelie Mauresmo also advanced to the third round. No. 11 Mauresmo, the 2001 tournament champion, was a 7-5, 6-1 winner over wild-card entry Sorana Cirstea. Chakvetadze defeated Ayumi Morita 6-3, 6-1.

"I didn't really play that consistent and that well as I wanted to play," Chakvetadze said. "But I think for the first match in this tournament and the first match on green clay, it was OK. I could do worse."

Sixth-seeded Dinara Safina and No. 7 Agnieszka Radwanska also advanced.

Featured third-round matches Thursday include top-seeded Maria Sharapova against No. 15 Anabel Medina Garrigues and Mauresmo against Radwanska.

Sharapova cruises in debut

Top-seeded Maria Sharapova made a successful debut at the Bausch & Lomb Championships with a 6-1, 6-3 victory against Barbora Zahlavova Strycova on Tuesday night.

"Coming into the match, you really don't know what to expect because your opponent has already had a few matches on clay, and this is your first match," Sharapova said. "So the most important thing today was just to try to get used to the atmosphere and the court and the opponent."

Lindsay Davenport began her quest for a fourth Bausch & Lomb title with a 6-2, 6-3 win over Vania King, overcoming a lack of sleep caused by her nine-month-old son's nagging cold.

Olga Govortsova pulled off a 4-6, 6-2, 6-4 upset of No. 4 Marion Bartoli, who continued her struggles at Amelia Island Plantation. She is 0-4 on the green clay and the only seeded player to lose in the first two days of the tournament.

No. 8 Agnes Szavay, No. 13 Virginie Razzano and No. 15 Anabel Medina Garrigues won second-round matches. No. 10 Alona Bondarenko, No. 12 Katarina Srebotnik and No. 14 Victoria Azarenka were first-round winners.

Sharapova, who ran her 2008 record to 19-1, is playing this week to get an early start on her preparation for the French Open.

She forced Zahlavova Strycova into fits during the 70-minute match. The Czech qualifier threw her racket and slammed it against her shoe and the ground, yelled at herself and even yapped to the chair umpire.

Sharapova stayed cool on the other end and was only broken once on her serve.

"I started well and got a good advantage in the first set," Sharapova said. "There were obviously a lot of things that hopefully I will be improving from this match, but it was a good start."

Davenport played on clay for the first time since the 2005 French Open, but showed little rust.

"To be honest, it felt a little awkward," said Davenport, who had seven aces and only faced two break points. "Every day and every match that I can play on clay, I know I will keep getting better and better. So (I am) happy to start off on the right foot, but eager to try to improve."

Davenport next plays Jill Craybas in the second round Wednesday night, while Sharapova gets Medina Garrigues in the third round Thursday.

Venus Williams takes indefinite leave

AMELIA ISLAND, Fla. -- Six-time Grand Slam champion Venus Williams will be sidelined indefinitely, though she did not say why she will be out of action.

"I've just been having some issues that I need to resolve, so I'm working on that at the moment and I'm hoping to be back playing as soon as possible," Williams said Tuesday at the Bausch & Lomb Championships. "I'm not going to get any further into it, but of course I love the sport."

Williams said last week she was dealing with a medical issue when she announced her withdrawal from the Bausch & Lomb tournament. She played last week in the Sony Ericsson Open, losing to Svetlana Kuznetsova in the quarter-finals.

Williams will not play for the United States in the Fed Cup semifinal against Russia on April 26-27, but did not rule out any other tournaments and said she still wants to play in the French Open beginning in late May.

"Of course I want to be there (in France)," Williams said. "I don't want to be at home watching on TV. Watching this week will be enough on TV, so hopefully not too many more weeks."

USTA tries to strengthen U.S. tennis

KEY BISCAYNE, Fla. -- U.S. tennis was a formidable force at the Sony Ericsson Open, by today's standards at least.

Serena Williams won the women's title for the fifth time. Andy Roddick ended a streak of 11 consecutive losses to Roger Federer. James Blake matched his best Key Biscayne showing by reaching the quarter-finals. Lindsay Davenport scored her biggest victory since becoming a mother when she beat No. 2-ranked Ana Ivanovic.

None of those results alleviated concerns about the future of American tennis, because Williams is 26, Roddick is 25, Blake is 28 and Davenport is 31. The grooming of talent in the United States has stalled, while waves of precocious youngsters keep surfacing in Europe, Asia and South America.

"We're seeing the emergence of players from all over the globe, countries that include Serbia, Croatia, Cyprus, China, India," said Arlen Kantarian, the U.S. Tennis Association's CEO for professional tennis. "We're feeling the impact. It's a new world. We recognize the reality, and we're committed to change."

The best news last week for American tennis might have come off the court. The USTA hired Davis Cup captain Patrick McEnroe to supervise player development as part of a greater commitment to grooming future champions.

In the past, the USTA defined its role as to help academies and parents develop players. Now the association wants to take the lead.

"I've been arguing this for 10 years -- if you're going to do it, why not do it all the way?" McEnroe said. "The USTA takes a lot of heat over the years for Where are the players?' So you might as well step up and be accountable."

The USTA is creating an advisory board and coaches commission to help scout and develop talent. McEnroe will co-ordinate the developmental program, serve as a super scout and reach out to academies and tennis parents. He'll also oversee a training centre for elite juniors in Boca Raton, Fla.

In short, the USTA and McEnroe are taking responsibility for getting Americans into the second week of Grand Slam tournaments.

"We had to get in the game," USTA president Jane Brown Grimes said. "The other Grand Slam countries are taking big steps in this direction."

Critics of the USTA may greet with skepticism the latest moves, which include a 50 per cent increase in spending on player development next year. The association wins praise for its marketing and promotional campaigns, but past pledges to improve the grooming of players have gone unfulfilled, resulting in a long, slow decline in U.S. results.

In 2007, for only the second time in 20 years, no American made the singles finals at the U.S. Open. American men went 0-9 at the French Open, their worst showing there in at least 40 years.

On the women's side, only one American younger than 26 -- Ashley Harkleroad -- is ranked in the top 100. Roddick is the youngest of the three Americans in the men's top 50.

By contrast, other countries with ambitious developmental programs have enjoyed a tennis boom.

"We see the young talent coming out of places like France and Spain," Blake said. "America has so much talent and resources that we should be competing in those juniors. I think it's time to take a step to fix that."

The hope is that McEnroe can succeed where others have failed. He has been popular with players in his eight years as Davis Cup captain, and he works well in tennis' alphabet soup of organizations -- among them the ATP, WTA, and ITF.

"What I'm bringing to the table is an ability to communicate," said McEnroe, a former top-30 player and the youngest brother of seven-time Grand Slam champion John McEnroe. "My goal with this role with the USTA is to bring everybody together to try to do this as a team."

The broad push by the USTA to improve the talent pool extends to grade-school youngsters, who often struggle at first with tennis.

"We find kids are picking and sticking with their favourite sport by the time they're 10 or 12 years old," Kantarian said. "Their introduction to tennis isn't as friendly as their introduction to soccer and other sports."

To address the problem, the USTA has been pushing a format for children 10 and under called QuickStart, with balls, rackets and court dimensions tailored to their age.

To groom elite juniors, the USTA has opened a centre at the Evert Academy in Boca Raton. The centre will provide free training for 20 boys ages 14 to 18, and 20 girls ages 12 to 18.

It's part of an effort to put a greater focus on top juniors and young pros. The payback will come a decade from now, Kantarian said.

"We're talking about the next generation of American champions," he said. "We've got a challenge in front of us. This is going to be a long haul."

Mauresmo cruises at Bausch & Lomb

AMELIA ISLAND, Fla. -- Amelie Mauresmo capped a perfect day for seeded players with a 6-0, 7-5 victory over Olga Savchuk in the first round of the Bausch & Lomb Championships on Monday night.

After Mauresmo breezed through the opening set, Savchuk failed to deliver on two set points serving with a 5-4 edge in the second, then foot faulted on a break point to even the set at 5-all.

Mauresmo regained control of the match and took the next two games for a satisfying straight-set win in her first match on clay this year.

"I was pretty happy to come back from 5-4 to 5-all because going into a third set is never easy," said Mauresmo, the 2001 Bausch & Lomb champion whose recent rankings slide has her seeded 11th this year. "It was important to get the momentum back because she was really rolling."

Other seeded winners on Monday included No. 9 Sybille Bammer, No. 13 Virginie Razzano and No. 15 Anabel Medina Garrigues.

No. 1 seed Maria Sharapova and the rest of the top eight seeds received byes into the second round.

Anna Chakvetadze, Daniela Hantuchova, Marion Bartoli and Patty Schnyder round out the top five in the field, which also includes three-time tournament champion Lindsay Davenport (No. 16).

The event lost lustre recently when Venus Williams, Elena Dementieva, Nicole Vaidisova, Nadia Petrova and defending champion Tatiana Golovin withdrew.

Davenport will play her first-round match against American wild card Vania King during the day. Sharapova starts at night against Czech qualifier Barbora Zahlavova Strycova, who defeated Timea Bacsinszky 6-2, 6-4 on Monday.

Mauresmo, who will play the winner of Tuesday's match between American Bethanie Mattek and Sorana Cirstea, showcased the talent that had once vaulted her to No. 1 in the world and a pair of grand slam titles in a dominating first set.

But Savchuk went up 3-0 to start the second and hung tough while both players struggled from the service line.

"I kind of let her come back into the match a little bit in that second set," Mauresmo said. "When you take confidence like she did in the beginning of the second set, then play gets a little more equal. I probably wanted to do too much in that second set instead of staying focused and playing a very simple and basic game."

Resting Sharapova skipping Fed Cup

Maria Sharapova will not play for Russia in the Fed Cup semifinals against the United States this month.

The Australian Open champion is resting ahead of the three remaining Grand Slams and the Beijing Olympics in August, Russian Tennis Federation vice-president Alexei Selivanenko said Tuesday.

Sharapova withdrew from the Sony Ericsson Open on March 22 because of a shoulder injury.

The fifth-ranked Sharapova, who played her first Fed Cup matches against Israel in February, is likely to be replaced by No. 4 Svetlana Kuznetsova.

The best-of-five semifinal series will be held in Moscow on April 26-27.

Dancevic to miss Chile Davis Cup tie

TORONTO -- Canada will be without its top-ranked singles player for a Davis Cup tie later this month in Chile.

Frank Dancevic of Niagara Falls, Ont., who at No. 94 is the lone Canadian in the top 100 of the ATP singles rankings, is still suffering from a back injury that caused him to miss the team's previous tie, a 4-1 win over Mexico in Calgary.

Veterans Daniel Nestor of Toronto and Frederic Niemeyer of Sherbrooke, Que., will lead the team at the April 11-13 Americas Zone Group I series in Santiago. The Canadian team also includes Peter Polansky of Thornhill, Ont., and Vasek Pospisil of Vernon, B.C.

The winning team will secure a World Group playoff to be played Sept. 19-21, 2008.

"We have a solid nucleus of veteran talent and young up and comers," Canadian captain Martin Laurendeau said Tuesday in a statement. "Davis Cup is a team event and the guys proved the depth of our team against Mexico."

Canada will be in tough on the red clay in Santiago. World No. 18 Fernando Gonzalez and Nicolas Massu, a former top-10 player on the ATP Tour, will lead the Chilean team.

Canada is 4-3 against Chile in Davis Cup play with three of its victories coming indoors on carpet and one coming outdoors on grass. Chile's three wins have all come on clay.

"We will have our challenges as the Chilean crowd is very tough on the opponent and they have a team with tremendous depth and top-ranking players," said Laurendeau. "We are going to have to play to our strengths, and our players are fully committed to be as ready as they can be to get a win and a chance at the World Group."

Davydenko rules Key Biscayne

KEY BISCAYNE, Fla. -- Nikolay Davydenko began the Sony Ericsson Open in a supporting role, competing on smaller courts while the likes of Roger Federer and Andy Roddick slugged it out in the stadium.

But on Sunday, it was Davydenko holding the championship trophy to cheers from a sellout crowd. He beat Rafael Nadal 6-4, 6-2 and became the first Russian man to win Key Biscayne.

"For me it's mostly crazy," he said.

In recent months, Davydenko has been best known for an ATP investigation into heavy wagering on a match he lost last August at an obscure tournament in Poland. He retired in the third set, citing a foot injury, and says he did nothing wrong.

He has accused the ATP of dragging out the investigation, but it proved not to be a distraction at Key Biscayne.

"It's not every day in my mind," he said. "It's in my mind if you ask me about this. ... I don't think about the investigation. It should be my lawyer thinking, and my manager."

There was no question about his effort against Nadal. Davydenko broke at love to take the lead for good at 4-3 in the first set, and in the second set he lost only two of 19 points on his serve to pull away.

When the No. 4-seeded Davydenko belted one final forehand winner on championship point, he grinned and shook his fists, then punched the air.

Davydenko overcame a match point in each of his first two matches and became the fourth ATP player in 2008 to win a title after facing match point. He beat Roddick in the semifinals.

"He's playing unbelievable tennis," the No. 2-seeded Nadal said. "People like to write more about Roger, about me, about Andy. People outside tennis can think different about Nikolay, but we know he's a very, very good player."

Davydenko is ranked fourth and has finished each of the past three years in the top five. But he has yet to reach a Grand Slam final, and the Key Biscayne title was only his second in a Masters Series event.

He also won a U.S. tournament for only the second time, and he laughed when asked if the accomplishment will make him famous.

"Famous? Here? Yes, I would say if I would like to be famous, I need to win tournaments here," he said. "For beginning of tournaments I don't want to play on centre court. It was good for me to play on court one or grandstand, and to feeling little a bit more confidence."

Davydenko quickly became comfortable with a new racket model he tried for the first time at Key Biscayne. He used the same racket in all six matches.

"I have only one," he said. "Surprising I didn't break a string. Warm up and play match, warm up and play match, every match, and I finish with the racket. I'm going to keep forever this racket."

In the final, that racket delivered serves at up to 212 km/h, allowing the 5-foot-10 Davydenko to win five service games at love. He totalled 19 winners and had only 12 unforced errors, and his penetrating groundstrokes to the corners repeatedly made Nadal hit shots late and wide.

The speedy Davydenko also came forward to win 17 points at the net.

"I can't play better today, because he played at an unbelievable level," Nadal said.

Nadal has yet to win a title this year as the tour switches to clay, his favourite surface. He'll try for his fourth consecutive French Open title beginning next month.

"I think soon I am going to win a title," Nadal said. "I hope so."

Davydenko should be a factor on clay, too, as the race tightens atop the men's rankings.

"Maybe something changes with my tennis here in Miami," he said. "The clay court season's coming now, and for me it should be different tennis. Maybe I feel more confidence, because I beat very good guys here."

Davydenko improved to 12-3 in ATP finals, matching Thomas Muster (44-11) for the best winning percentage in the Open era. He also won US$590,000 to Nadal's $295,675.

Serena wins Key Biscayne title

KEY BISCAYNE, Fla. -- Serena Williams sat in her chair wearing a weary grin as tournament workers prepared the court for the postmatch ceremony.

"A word of warning," someone told Williams. "The trophies are really hot because they've been sitting in the sun."

It took a long time on a hot day for Williams to claim her fifth Key Biscayne title. She blew a big lead, battled jitters, threw a tantrum and finally finished off Jelena Jankovic 6-1, 5-7, 6-3 to win the Sony Ericsson Open.

The elusive victory tested Williams' temper in the 30 C sunshine. She broke her racket and screamed at herself before putting away an overhead slam on her eighth championship point.

"I thought I had like 15 match points. I'm glad to know it wasn't," Williams said. "I got tight. I guess you can classify that as nervous.

"It's me just feeling like, `I'm almost there. I would hate to lose this match after being up so much."'

She arrived trimmer at Key Biscayne, thanks to a recent rigorous training regimen, and needed to be in peak condition in the 2 1/2-hour final. Both players held up well in the heat, and some of their best rallies -- one lasting 26 shots -- came in the final few games.

But Williams also battled a bad case of butterflies down the stretch.

"Serena really had trouble closing out the match," Jankovic said. "She looked so nervous out there.

"I could never believe that a girl who has won so many Grand Slams, so many tournaments, could be that nervous closing out the match. It felt like it was her first time to win that tournament."

Instead, Williams won for the second year in a row and matched Steffi Graf's record of five women's titles at Key Biscayne.

"The Serena and Steffi Open," said Williams, who lives in nearby Palm Beach Gardens. "I love Steffi Graf. She's a great champion and was my role model.

"To even be compared to her is awesome."

Graf's husband, Andre Agassi, holds the men's record with six titles. Bidding for the men's championship Sunday will be Rafael Nadal and Nikolay Davydenko.

.Despite Williams' success at Key Biscayne and elsewhere, she has long been criticized for devoting too much time and energy to such interests as acting and fashion design. But tennis is now the No. 1 priority, she said.

"I wasn't making as much money, so I've got to go back to the bread and butter," she said with a laugh. "I feel like all I want to do is play tennis."

She's 14-1 this year, with her only loss to Jankovic in the quarter-finals at the Australian Open.

At first it appeared the rematch might not last an hour. Jankovic, battling a cold, was outplayed for a set and a half and was three points from defeat before she began to find her form.

Williams started to spray nervous shots, lost her serve at love for 5-5, then double-faulted to lose set point and force a third set.

"I was thinking, `Maybe she's going to be nice to me,"' Jankovic said.

Even the pro-Williams crowd applauded the dogged comeback by Jankovic, who had rallied from a 5-1 deficit in the third set to win her opening match. And there was more drama to come.

Angered by her lapse, Williams raced to a 5-0 lead in the third set but again wavered. She had her first championship point in the next game, another at 5-1 and three more at 5-2. Williams twice exhorted herself with screams but lost that game to make it 5-3, then slammed her racket against the hard court and sent the mangled remains skipping into the side wall.

"That was scary, to be honest," Jankovic said. "I told her after the match, `You really smashed that racket to pieces.'

"She's like, `I had to.' "

When asked about the tantrum at her postmatch news conference, Williams played coy.

"I smashed a racket?" she said. "My hand must have been really oily and sweaty. That's just not me."

Jankovic saved two more match points in the final game before Williams closed out the victory with her 51st winner. That total included 12 aces.

"She was just too strong," Jankovic said. "You know how I felt, to be honest?

"It's like a heavyweight champion, and I'm a feather champion, you know? That's how I felt. I cannot match up against her. Just too much power for me to handle."

Williams improved to 47-5 at Key Biscayne. Her reward: US$590,000 and one hot trophy.