Roger Federer opens strong at ATP Finals Experience prevailed over youth as Roger Federer tamed Milos Raonic 6-1, 7-6 (0) in his opening round-robin match at the ATP Finals on Sunday in London after Kei Nishikori started his first go-round at the season-ending tournament with a win. Federer, the most successful player at the elite championship, started brilliantly against Raonic — at 23, the youngest player of the eight-man field — then withstood his assaults in the second set. The 17-time Grand Slam champion, chasing a seventh title, saved all four break points he faced. Federer lost to the big-serving Canadian in the quarterfinals of the Paris Masters last week. Earlier, Nishikori grabbed a 6-4, 6-4 win over home favorite Andy Murray, who now faces an uphill task to reach the semifinals. After the round-robin stage, the top two finishers in each group will advance. Two-time defending champion Novak Djokovic will play his opening match in Group A against Marin Cilic on Monday after Stan Wawrinka takes on Tomas Berdych. •The Czech Republic claimed its third Fed Cup title in four years after Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova fought hard to overcome Angelique Kerber of Germany in the opening reverse singles match in Prague. Kvitova prevailed 7-6 (5), 4-6, 6-4 in nearly three hours to give the Czechs an unassailable 3-0 lead in the best-of-five series on the indoor hard court at Prague’s O2 Arena. •Julia Elbaba of Virginia defeated Cal’s Maegan Manasse 6-2, 7-5 to win the women’s singles titles at the USTA/ITA National Indoor Intercollegiate Championships at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. Brayden Schnur of North Carolina won the men’s title over Vanderbilt’s Gonzales Austin of Miami 6-4, 7-6 (2). ELSEWHEREYankees sign Chris Young The New York Yankees signed former A’s outfielder Chris Young to a one-year contract, rewarding him after his strong run in September. The 31-year-old started this year with the New York Mets and was released in early August after season-long struggles. He made his debut with the Yankees in early September and homered in three straight games, then stole home in another game. Young hit a combined .222 with 11 homers and 38 RBIs for the Yankees and Mets last season. Young has also played with Arizona and Oakland during nine seasons in the majors. He is a career .234 hitter with 155 homers, 486 RBIs and 130 steals. He was an NL All-Star in 2010.In his lone season (2013) with the A’s, Young hit .200 with 12 homers.College rugby: Cal won its third straight Pac 7s championship, beating Utah State 34-0 in the semifinals and Arizona State 45-5 in the final in Berkeley.
Posted on: Mon, 10 Nov 2014 09:08:44 +0000
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