Djokovic to play Ferrer in Dubai final

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS DUBAI, United Arab Emirates -- Top-seeded Novak Djokovic rallied to beat third-seeded Gilles Simon of France 3-6, 7-5, 7-5 Friday in the semifinals of the Dubai Tennis Championships. The third-ranked Serb reached his first final of the season and will next face David Ferrer of Spain, who beat Richard Gasquet of France 6-2, 6-2. Djokovic was broken early in the deciding set, but he broke back in the sixth game and then closed out the match with another break in the final game. "I feel a bit lucky, but I think you have to work for luck," Djokovic said. "It doesn't just fall through the sky. I think I fought my way through in the match, really believed until the end, and mentally, this is a very important win for me." Djokovic won the Australian Open in 2008, and added the Masters Cup title at the end of last season. At this year's Australian Open, he retired against Andy Roddick in the quarter-finals. "If I want to stay on top of the men's game, I have to win these matches," Djokovic said. "I made a lot of unforced errors in the first set and at the start of the second set. He was playing kind of solid, but only one style of tennis throughout the whole match. "I needed to change something in my game so I could start winning the games and points, and that's what I did. I became more patient and played more from the baseline to give myself opportunities." Ferrer looked good throughout his win over Gasquet. "This was the best match of the season for me," the 26-year-old Spaniard said. "I was very consistent and very focused. But even though the score reads 6-2, 6-2, it was a tough match and I think I was a bit lucky as well, because I saved a few break points during the match." From his side of the court, Gasquet could do little. "He played really well. That's the worst guy for me to play against," Gasquet said. "His game is the worst for me because he has no faults in his game he has a big backhand, big forehand and he runs everywhere, so that's really hard for me."

Murray sick, withdraws from Dubai

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS DUBAI, United Arab Emirates -- Andy Murray withdrew from the Dubai Tennis Championships on Thursday because of a viral infection, just hours before a quarter-final match against Richard Gasquet. Murray, also bothered by an ankle injury, said he's been feeling poorly since the Australian Open last month. "I got it first down in Australia, and I haven't been the same really since," Murray said. "I woke up in the middle of the night sweating. I got some anti-viral (medication) from the doctor ... but it didn't help so much." Murray's withdrawal gave Gasquet a walkover into the semifinals, where he will face David Ferrer. On Wednesday, the second-seeded Murray defeated Arnaud Clement 6-2, 6-3. "In between the sets, I felt so tired, really weak," Murray said. "When the adrenaline sort of wore off, (I) felt just very cold and sort of shivery. So obviously, felt my temperature was up. My body was just aching a little bit. I need to take some time off." Murray is uncertain for Britain's Davis Cup match against Ukraine next week. His doctor advised him to rest for a week to 10 days. "I don't know. I obviously want to try and play," Murray said. "Ill see how I feel and give it my best shot to get ready." Murray's withdrawal is another blow for an event already hit by controversy and a spate of injury-related absences. Top-ranked Rafael Nadal and No. 2 Roger Federer pulled out with injuries. Andy Roddick declined to defend his title, saying he disagreed with the Emirates' decision to deny Israeli Shahar Peer a visa to play in the women's tournament.

Ram falls in Dubai doubles match

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates -- Protected by two bodyguards as he walked on the court Wednesday, Andy Ram became the first Israeli to play in this Gulf state. He lost a doubles match a week after Israel's Shahar Peer was denied a visa for the women's tournament.

Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray, meanwhile, led the top six seeds into the quarter-finals of the US$2.23 million Dubai Tennis Championships.

Second-seeded Murray, the winner of two titles this year in Doha and Rotterdam, scored a comfortable 6-2, 6-3 victory over Arnaud Clement of France, but top-seeded Djokovic had to fight hard to beat Jan Hernych of Czech Republic 6-3, 3-6, 6-4.

Murray will meet another Frenchman, Richard Gasquet, for a place in Friday's semifinals, while Djokovic faces Croatia's Marin Cilic, winner of this year's tournaments in Chennai and Zagreb.

Seeds three to six, Frenchman Gilles Simon, Spain's David Ferrer, Cilic and Russian Igor Andreev also were winners.

Ram appeared relaxed and focused once he and partner Kevin Ullyett of Zimbabwe began the first-round match against Marat Safin of Russia and Spain's David Ferrer. Ram and Ullyet, the fourth seeds, lost 6-3, 2-6, 10-8.

Spectators had to leave their belongings outside, and metal detectors were set up outside the court. There were no protests or incidents, with about 100 spectators watching the match on an outside court.

Ram did not hold a news conference afterward, but organizers issued a transcript of comments made to a pool reporter.

"It was obviously something big, history here, what's been done, the first Israeli coming to play sport in Dubai," Ram said. "I fought for something really, really big and coming here was something big because it showed that we should not involve sports with politics."

Ram was granted special permission late last week to play in Dubai after Peer was barred from entering the country for her tournament.

At the time, organizers cited security concerns, prompting widespread protests and pressure to allow Ram to compete.

"It was different. It was an experience for me," Ram said. "They did everything possible to secure me ... Coming to the court, obviously with a couple of bodyguards, was nice. I felt like, OK, as soon as we start the match, hitting the first shot to warm up, I was thinking tactics and concentrating to win the match, but it did not happen today."

Ram said he was well received in Dubai, encountering no hostility.

United Arab Emirates has no diplomatic relationship with Israel, but Israelis with dual citizenship have entered for international sports and business events using second-country passports.

On some occasions, Israeli passport holders have been allowed entry for meetings held by the United Nations or other international agencies.

Dubai tournament organizers said Peer was denied an opportunity to play in the women's event because they feared fan anger over Israel's recent military offensive in Gaza. The WTA fined organizers a record $300,000 last week and the UAE granted a permit to Ram to play this week.

.Ram's next brush with politics is not far away. The Davis Cup series between Sweden and Israel next week will be played in Malmo without spectators. Swedish organizers said they anticipated anti-Israeli demonstrations.

"When I heard about the decision playing without crowd, that freaked me out," Ram said. "This is really something bad I think, and there's nothing I can do about it."

In other matches, Simon was a 6-1, 6-2 winner over Teimuraz Gabashvili of Russia, while Ferrer also scored a quick 6-4, 6-2 win over Germany's Philipp Kohlschreiber.

Cilic was stretched to three sets by Frenchman Julien Benneteau before winning 6-3, 4-6, 7-5 and Andreev also went the distance before beating fellow Russian Dmitry Tursunov 5-7, 6-4, 6-3.

Murray who had lost both his previous matches with Clement in 2006, including a final in Washington, broke early when Clement double faulted in the third game, and then again on the seventh to win the first set in just 39 minutes.

He then converted his third break point to go 2-1 up in the second and had three chances in the fifth, but Clement saved them all. In the ninth game, Clement saved one match point with an ace, but Murray had the advantage again after a stunning forehand cross-court return, before closing the match in just one hour 23 minutes.

"The last couple of times we played, I was very young and he was a very experienced player," said the 21 year-old Murray. "But I am happy that I played much better than my first round.

"I served a whole lot better and didn't give him any chance to break. I think I adjusted well tonight."

Djokovic into second round at Dubai

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS DUBAI, United Arab Emirates -- Top-seeded Novak Djokovic struggled with his serve before beating Italian qualifier Flavio Cipolla 6-3, 6-2 in the first round of the Dubai Tennis Championships on Tuesday. The 21-year-old Serb broke Cipolla in the second game of the first set, but the Italian broke back in the fifth game. Djokovic found his form after that, however, and was rarely troubled. "I'm happy that I'm through in straight sets, but certainly it wasn't the performance I was looking for," Djokovic said. "I didn't expect him to play so many short balls, and with a change of pace, and that's probably what didn't give me a lot of rhythm. But it's my first match here, and I didn't have a lot of practice and arrived just two days ago from Europe." Djokovic, who retired from the Australian Open quarter-finals because of the heat, reached the Open 13 semifinals in Marseille, France, last week. "I think it is difficult to adjust when you play outdoors after indoors, because outdoors, you have elements that affect most wind, heat, sun, things like that. Indoors, you can get more still conditions and get into rhythm much faster than outdoors," Djokovic said. "But as I said, you always need a couple of days, which I didn't have. That's probably the reason why I had a little weaker performance today." Third-seeded Gilles Simon of France also struggled before advancing, defeating Kuwaiti wild card Mohammed Ghareeb 5-7, 6-4, 6-4, and eighth-seeded Marat Safin of Russia lost to Richard Gasquet of France 6-3, 5-7, 6-3. Ghareeb is ranked 469th by the ATP, and his good play left the eighth-ranked Simon questioning his own abilities. "I have just been more consistent lately, but even this year, at the moment, there is not one match when I was feeling very good on the court. Even here, I win the first match and don't know if I can win more matches," Simon said. "I think it is mental. When you are playing a match like this, it's really not easy. The guy has a strange ranking, 400 or so, with his game, it's just unbelievable. "But you know that you are playing against the wild card, and you are losing, so you just have to fight. But it's hard to say, Come on, I am in the top 10 and I play a guy 400 and I don't know, and I have to give everything to win. ... I just have to accept that there is no easy match. Never, never. And every match can be really hard to win, even if you don't expect that." Safin, a former world No. 1 and two-time Grand Slam champion, played well but couldn't get by Gasquet. "I struggled in the beginning with the serve, especially, and returns from the baseline, but I started to get used to it and I started to get better and better," Safin said. "But unfortunately, it's a lack of confidence and I didn't play for a long time after Australia. I played in Marseille, and it's my second match." Israeli player Andy Ram, who was given a special permit to play after Shahar Peer was denied entry into the United Arab Emirates for last week's women's tournament, plays his first doubles match Wednesday. Ram and partner Kevin Ullyett of Zimbabwe will face Safin and David Ferrer of Spain.

ATP: Dancevic qualifies at Delray

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS DELRAY BEACH, Florida -- Austrian Stefan Koubek's return from injury continued to gain momentum as he beat American Bobby Reynolds 6-4, 6-3 in the first round of the Delray Beach International Tennis Championships on Monday. "In general, I'm very happy because it was quite easy," said Koubek, who was sidelined for six months after surgery to repair a spinal disk last May. "It was a very solid match." The 266th-ranked Koubek, who won the tournament in 2000, broke serve twice in the first set and once in the second set to secure the win. "I only won three tournaments in my career so if I come back to one of those it's always something special," Koubek said. "It feels kind of strange because it was nine years ago. "I must be an old guy on the tour." Meanwhile Frank Dancevic on Niagara Falls, Ont., qualified for the main draw with a 6-7, 6-4, 6-2 win over American Wayne Odesnik. Peter Polansky of Thornhill, Ont., failed to qualify after falling 6-4, 6-2 to Russia's Evgeny Korolev. In other first round matches, fifth-seeded Steve Darcis of Belgium was upset by Guillermo Garcia-Lopez of Spain, 6-3, 6-3, in the opening match of the day. Also, sixth-seeded Florent Serra of France beat Jarkko Nieminen of Finland 6-3, 7-6 (5). Taylor Dent, also on the comeback trail following two back surgeries in 2007, joined Dancevic, Korolev and American Ryan Sweeting for main draw spots on Monday. Dent, who thought he'd never play again and was out of action from February 2006 to May 2008, captured a 6-3, 6-3 win over Giovanni Lapentti of Ecuador to qualify. Dent will play Mischa Zverev of Germany in the first round on Tuesday.

Venus looking for more hardware

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

ACAPULCO, Mexico -- Venus Williams is ready to add to her collection of singles titles at the Acapulco Open.

The fifth-ranked American, who won her 40th title on Saturday at the Dubai Tennis Championships, is already feeling at home in Mexico.

"I have never been here before, but I grew up in California, so I got to know a lot from the Mexican culture and I kind of like it," Williams said.

"This is my first time here and I hope to keep the momentum from last week and get the 41st title. I'm excited to be here."

The seven-time Grand Slam champion is also looking forward to eating some Mexican food while in the country.

"I love spicy foods," Williams said. "Just today we were sitting thinking that is great to be here. I really enjoy Mexico. I have not even played yet, but it's great."

The 28-year-old Williams, the top-seeded player in Acapulco, opens against Nuria Llagostera of Spain on Tuesday. Defending champion Flavia Pennetta is also in the field.

"Flavia is a great player. I would love to play against her in Mexico," Williams said. "I know I'm the big favourite but I don't feel the pressure.

"I know I have to go out and do it well, for me, but also for the fans."

Murray wins opening match at Dubai

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS DUBAI, United Arab Emirates -- Andy Murray got off to a winning start Monday at the Dubai Tennis Championships, a tournament missing many top players who are either boycotting or injured. Andy Roddick, who won at Memphis on Sunday, withdrew to protest the Emirates' decision not to grant Israeli player Shahar Peer a visa to compete in last week's women's event. Israeli Andy Ram was granted a visa and is scheduled to play doubles this week. Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer, the top two players in the world, pulled out with injuries, and Nikolay Davydenko and Fernando Verdasco aren't playing, either. Murray advanced when Sergiy Stakhovsky retired while trailing 6-7 (3), 6-3, 5-3. Both players were bothered by ankle injuries, but Stakhovsky could not finish the match. He called it quits with the fourth-ranked Murray leading 30-0 in the ninth game. "It was a bit strange with both of us struggling with our ankles toward the end of the match, but he was aggressive, fought very well and hit some unbelievable volleys," Murray said. "I think I tweaked my ankle about an hour and a half into the match. I have got to see the physio now. The ankle was feeling a lot better during practice, but I was wearing braces then." Qualifier Marco Chiudenelli of Switzerland also advanced, beating seventh-seeded Ivo Karlovic of Croatia 7-6 (4), 6-4, 7-6 (7). Fourth-seeded David Ferrer of Spain defeated Ivan Ljubicic of Croatia 3-6, 6-2, 6-1, and fifth-seeded Marin Cilic of Croatia rallied to beat Janko Tipsarevic of Serbia 2-6, 7-6, 6-4.