Serena wins women's singles title

MELBOURNE: Serena Williams thrashed Russia's Dinara Safina 6-0, 6-3 to win her fourth Australian Open title Saturday, bringing up her 10th Grand S

Serena Wiliams holds the winners trophy as Dinara Safina holds the runner-up trophy after their match in Melbourne. (AFP Photo)

lam and reclaiming the world number one ranking on the way.

In one of the most lop-sided deciders ever, the American utterly dominated third seed Safina, allowing her opponent to win only eight points in the first set on her way to claiming the championship in less than an hour.

"I'm so excited ... I clearly love playing here and I get great support here. I don't get that every place I go," she said after winning the first women's night final played in the Rod Laver Arena.

Williams, the second seed, emphatically backed up her pre-tournament comments that she was the best women's tennis player in the world and will now officially reclaim the top ranking from Serbia's Jelena Jankovic.

She also became the highest ever prize money winner in women's sport during the tournament and won the women's doubles title with her sister Venus on Friday.

Williams said she was thrilled to join the likes of Steffi Graf and Martina Navratilova in the elite group of women with 10 or more Grand Slams.

"I idolised Steffi Graf," she said. "When I played her I was like 'Oh My God, it's Steffi Graf' and Martina Navratilova was someone who was my role model, so when I think of these greats I don't really think of my name, I think of them.

"I think people are starting to think of me (in those terms), which is uber-cool, I can't even get my mind around that."

Safina, whose brother Marat Safin won the men's title in 2005, had aimed to enter the history books as the part of the only brother-sister combination to hold Grand Slam titles.

Instead, she narrowly avoided entering the record books as being on the wrong end of the worst drubbing in a final in the tournament's history.

"Serena was too good, I was only a ball boy on the court today," the 22-year-old Russian said.

"Sorry to the people who supported me, today I let you down a little bit but I'll come back next year and try and do better."

Only Graf in 1994 and Margaret Smith in 1962 have posted more comprehensive victories in the decider, both winning 6-0, 6-2.

Williams continued a sequence of winning the Australian Open title in odd-numbered years, with her previous wins coming in 2003, 2005 and 2007.

Safina also lost her only previous Grand Slam final at the French Open last year but Williams was full of praise after the match.

"Dinara has a good future," she said. "She's hitting the ball so hard I just had to go for broke.

"Thanks to her for putting on a great show for women's tennis."

The Russian may take some comfort from compatriot Maria Sharapova, who also managed to take just three games off Williams when she was humbled 6-1, 6-2 in the 2007 final but came back to take the title the following year.

Williams showed no signs of the service problems that dogged her early in the tournament and aggressively took the game to Safina from the outset.

It was Safina's serve, with its trademark high ball toss, which fell apart as she coughed up three double faults in her opening service game to gift Williams an easy break.

She continued to break Safina at will, while the Russian could only manage two points off Williams' serve in a first set that that was over in 22 minutes.

"I saw that it was so fast and I thought okay I've got to stay focussed," Williams said.

"I thought 'Safina, she's a warrior, she never gives up, she's been down a couple of match points already in the tournament, so I've got to stay focussed."

Safina desperately tried to regroup and broke Williams in the first game of the second set but could not stop the rout and conceded the match when she hit a drop shot wide after 59 minutes.

2nd ODI: Yuvraj departs, India five down

NEW DELHI: India lost their sixth wicket in the form of Irfan Pathan, who ran himself out in search of a cheeky single against Sri Lanka in the second One-Day International in Colombo on Saturday.

Pathan scored a quickfire 21 in just 28 deliveries which included four boundaries. Nuwan Kulasekara came back strongly in his second spell to dismiss Yuvraj Singh (66) as India lost half of their side at the score of 180.

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Yuvraj Singh was really unlucky as the ball took an inside edge before wrapping up on to the pads. Umpire Gamini Silva had a long look but he finally gave the decision in Sri Lanka's favour.

All-rounder Tilakratne Dilshan broke the crucial partnership between Suresh Raina (29) and Yuvraj Singh to get rid of well set Raina with a fine delivery that stopped a bit and held his line to deceive Raina. India lost their fourth wicket as Kapugedara held an easy catch at short cover.

The duo added much-needed 85 runs for the fourth wicket that helped India recover well after the loss of Sehwag. The spin duo of Mendis and Murali gave away 44 runs in 10 overs without picking up a single wicket.

Yuvraj Singh slammed his 38th ODI half-century to steady Indian innings after India got off to wobbly start against Sri Lanka in the second One-Day International.

India completed their 100 runs in just 104 balls despite losing their three top order batsmen at regular intervals. Virender Sehwag scored a brisk 42 of just 26 balls that included seven boundaries, before going for a suicidal third run but didn't make it to the crease.

Muralitharan gave the chase from mid-on and released the ball to Jayasuriya in time whose accurate throw to the non-striker's end got rid of Sehwag in the form of India's third wicket.

Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir was going along well when Farveez Maharoof struck to send back dangerous looking Gautam Gambhir (27) as India lost their second wicket just under 10 overs.

The duo stitched a 49-run second wicket partnership in 41 balls to give India a brisk start. India completed their 50 runs in just 46 balls despite losing Tendulkar early.

Nuwan Kulasekara gave India a denting blow early on as he trapped master blaster Sachin Tendulkar (2). Tendulkar, who survived a huge leg before appeal a delivery before, was not at all satisfied with the umpire's judgement.

Indian skipper MS Dhoni won the toss and elected to bat first against Sri Lanka after leading his side to a clinical all-round six-wicket win in the first ODI to take the 1-0 lead in the five match series.

Olympic boxing champ bares all

Posing naked for a glossy women's magazine was tougher than winning an Olympic boxing gold medal, Britain's James DeGale said on Friday.

DeGale stands bare.

London-based middleweight DeGale, who turned pro in December after topping the podium in Beijing, bared all in a centrefold shoot for Cosmopolitan to raise awareness about testicular cancer.

"I was pretty nervous at first and it was definitely tougher than winning my gold medal at the Olympics--but it is a really great and worthwhile charity to be supporting so stripping off wasn't a problem," the 22-year-old said.

He said he hoped the extra exposure will sell a few more tickets for his professional debut in Birmingham on Feb. 28. "As a boxer, your support base tends to be male, but after appearing in Cosmo, fingers crossed, there will be plenty of young ladies at my fight as well!" he said.

Ivanovic slumps out

Australian open Federer Floors Safin

slide showNOWHERE TO HIDE: Ana Ivanovic of Serbia shows her disappointment after losing against Alisa Kleybanova of Russia during their Australian Open match in Melbourne on Friday.Photo: AFPAfp, Melbourne

Pin-up Ana Ivanavic slumped out of the Australian Open Friday but a flawless Roger Federer powered towards a 14th Grand Slam title as ethnic violence again overshadowed the tournament.

The fifth seeded Serbian tumbled to Russian teenager Alisa Kleybanova 7-5, 6-7 (5/7), 6-2, continuing her miserable run of form since winning the French Open last year.

Her upset came hot on the heels of American sixth seed Venus Williams being dumped on Thursday, throwing the season-opening Grand Slam wide open.

"I gave 100 per cent but she was better and played some unbelievable shots," said the 21-year-old.

"It's disappointing. I'm very, very sad because I felt physically fit and felt I could do well here."

While Ivanovic flopped, fellow Serbs Novak Djokovic, the defending champion, and Jelena Jankovic, the women's number one, scrapped through.

Federer floored fellow former champion Marat Safin in straight sets, hitting sparkling form as he overwhelmed his old rival 6-3, 6-2, 7-6 (7/5) to stay on course for a semifinal match-up with Djokovic.

"It's special to play Marat, we go way back. I think we like playing each other. It doesn't matter who wins, it is always a good contest," said the Swiss great.

Safin's sister Dinara Safina continued to bulldozer through the draw while young guns Marin Cilic and Juan Martin del Potro set up an enticing fourth-round men's match.

Third seed Safina whipped Kaia Kanepi of Estonia 6-2, 6-2 and is in fine form after a breakthrough 2008, making good on her stated intention of playing a more aggressive game.

"Finally I played my game. Compared to my first two matches, I reached my level," said Safina, 22.

Top seed Jankovic was made to work against Japan's Ai Sugiyama, 10 years her senior, before grinding out a 6-4, 6-4 win.

"I have always had tough matches against her, she has a lot of experience and is a very solid player so I really had to work for every point," Jankovic said.

In other highlights, Australia's former world number four Jelena Dokic continued her fairytale comeback, beating Danish 11th seed Caroline Wozniacki 3-6, 6-1, 6-2.

But attention will inevitably focus on the violent clashes which followed Djokovic's four-set win over Bosnian-American Amer Delic.

Dozens of Bosnian and Serb youths hurled plastic chairs and other missiles at each other, leaving one woman with minor injuries. About 30 people were thrown out as skirmishes continued outside.

"A number of people got into a chair-throwing contest between two groups with the result that 30-odd people were ejected from Rod Laver," said Inspector Chris Duthie of Melbourne East Police.

"We're charging two on summons and one will be receiving an on-the-spot fine."

A male streaker also invaded one court and danced around, naked from the waist down, in another security lapse.

The Australian Open was first marred by violence in 2007, when Serbian and Croatian fans attacked each other with flagpoles, bottles and boots.

Then last year, police used pepper spray to subdue rowdy elements watching a match between Konstantinos Economidis of Greece and Chile's Fernando Gonzales.

Friday's incidents took the gloss off Djokovic's hard-fought 6-2, 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 (7/4) victory.

"I'm really sad to hear about it," said Delic when told of the violence.

"As I said a couple of days ago, there's absolutely no place for that here. This is a tennis match."

While Djokovic went through, Spain's 11th seed David Ferrer crashed out to Croatia's Cilic 7-6 (7/5), 6-3, 6-4.

Cilic will now meet dangerous Argentine eighth seed del Potro who came from a set down to beat Luxembourg's Gilles Muller 6-7 (5/7), 7-5, 6-3, 7-5.

Sania-Bhupathi advance in Australian Open

MELBOURNE: Sania Mirza and Mahesh Bhupathi cleared the first round hurdle in mixed doubles while Leander Paes and Rohan Bopanna advanced in men's doubles with their respective partners as India rounded off an all-win day at the Australian Open on Friday.

Bopanna-Nieminin in second round of men's doubles

The unseeded Sania-Bhupathi pair stunned sixth seeds Kveta Peschke and Pavel Vizner of Czech Republic 6-2, 6-4 to set up a clash with local favourites Anastasia Rodionova and Stephen Huss, who defeated compatriots Jessica Moore and Carsten Ball 7-5, 7-5.

In men's doubles, fourth seeds Paes and Czech Lukas Dlouhy sailed past unseeded Italian-Croat pairing of Fabio Fognini and Ivan Ljubcic 6-3, 6-4 in the second round.

In the third round, the Indo-Czech duo will be up against the winners of the match between the 14th seeded Czech-Slovak pair of Frantisek Cermak and Michal Mertinak and locals Paul Hanley and Jordan Kerr.

Sania, who has crashed out of the singles and women's doubles events, was the star of the show with her net play. Sania and Bhupathi, who had no trouble in pocketing the first set in 27 minutes, were given a tough fight by Peschke and Vizner in the second.

Benitez contract row overshadows crunch derby

LIVERPOOL: Rafael Benitez has attempted to reassure Liverpool fans that uncertainty over his future will not seep through to the dressing room a

Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez watches his players during a training session. (Reuters Photo)

head of Monday's crucial derby game with Everton at Anfield.

Benitez revealed on Friday that talks over a contract extension had stalled, sparking fears that the Spaniard is ready to quit the club he joined in 2004.

His current deal expires in the summer of 2010 yet negotiations between Benitez's agent and Liverpool's co-owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett have ended without the two parties being able to agree on the extent of the manager's remit.

Benitez is happy with the financial terms of the deal but has demanded more control over football matters, and is adamant that he should not have to answer to chief executive Rick Parry over the buying and selling of players.

Worryingly for Reds fans, Benitez quit Valencia in June 2004 over a similar issue, famously saying: "I asked for a table and they bought me a lampshade." Benitez is negotiating from a position of strength with Liverpool mounting a serious challenge for their first title since 1990, and Hicks has insisted the outstanding contractual issues can be resolved.

Liverpool fans nevertheless will be concerned by the prospect that the coach who guided the club to Champions League glory in 2005 could decide to walk away if his demands are not accepted by the Anfield hierarchy.

Manchester United's last-gasp win over Bolton on Saturday knocked Liverpool off the top of the Premier League table and Benitez knows that his side cannot afford any lapses in concentration over in what is certain to be a tense finale to the season.

For that reason, the Spaniard was at pains to stress that he did not believe his own situation would prove to be a distraction. "We have finished the conversation about the contract and now we can talk about Everton," Benitez said.

"I think it is very clear because I have told the owners of my reasons and explained why. I already have an agreement with one club and that is Liverpool Football Club for one-and-a-half-years. Do I think our build-up to the Everton game has been disrupted by this? No. I don't think so. We had Friday off and I don't think we have any problems."

Benitez, who is poised to welcome back Xabi Alonso to the midfield after the Spain midfielder recovered from a foot injury, believes Liverpool are well placed to win the title even though they have dropped crucial points lately.

"No one can win the title in January. Everyone knows this," he said. "You have to keep calm and analyse the situation. If you want to win the title then it has to be in May. To have Chelsea, Arsenal, Aston Villa and Manchester United in the title race is normal."

Everton manager David Moyes has warned Liverpool that his side are confident of recording their first win at Anfield since 1999. Despite losing key strikers Louis Saha and Aiyegbeni Yakubu to injury, Moyes's side have been in terrific form.

"We've not played well in the last two Liverpool games so we're looking forward to this one," said Moyes, who has a fitness doubt over Nigeria defender Joseph Yobo.

"I'm quite relaxed about it because I see the players, how well they're doing and if they can show their potential and how they've played recently they'll have nothing to fear. They work hard together, they've got a great spirit but spirit comes from winning on the pitch, pushing each other hard and demanding from one another and they've done that very well."

Sania wins first round at Australian Open

MELBOURNE: Sania Mirza survived a late onslaught from world number 61 Marta Domachowska in her 6-1, 6-4 win in the first round of the ladies singl

Sania Mirza plays against Marta Domachowska on the opening day of the Australian Open. (AFP Photo) More Pictures

es of the Australian Open on Monday.
Sania raced away with the first set in just 25 minutes, breaking the Polish player thrice.

The Indian led 2-0 in the second set before Marta stepped on the gas, winning four games on the trot, breaking Sania in the third and fifth games.
From a comfortable 2-0, Sania found herself trailing 2-4 in no time.
Under pressure, the 22-year-old Hyderabadi got her act together and went on to win the next four games to seal the issue.

Sania broke Marta in the eighth and 10th games in the process.

Sania had lost to Marta in 2003 in their first meeting and now the face-to-face record stands 1-1.

Sania is making her return to singles competition on the WTA Tour, after being forced on the sidelines for four month with a wrist injury.
Sania suffered with injuries after a breakthrough 2005 when she reached the US Open fourth round.
Sania had a 2008 to forget with surgery on her right wrist in April ruining her season. She made brief comebacks before bowing out of the Beijing Olympics in tears.
But she is now hitting the ball harder than ever and hungry for success.

"It was a great way to begin after such a long break," Sania said after the match.

"I've not played a match in almost six months now ... I'm just happy to have come through."

Sri Lanka reach Pakistan for ODI series

KARACHI: The Sri Lanka cricket team reached Karachi on Sunday afternoon for a ODI series against Pakistan.

Tight security greeted the Sri Lankans as they touched down at the Quaid-e-Azam international airport with the touring side due to play back to back one-day games in Karachi on Tuesday and Wednesday and the third in Lahore on Saturday before flying home to take on India.

"It is a very good sign that finally a foreign team is in Pakistan to play an international series. Hopefully this will clear the way for other teams to also tour Pakistan," said Javed Miandad, the Pakistan Cricket Board's director general.

Sri Lanka would return to Pakistan next month to play two Tests after the completion of their home series against India.

"With much difficulty we have arranged this tour as the Sri Lankans didn't want the one-day series because they were more keen to play additional matches against India. So hopefully this series will open a new chapter for Pakistan cricket," another official of the board said.

Pakistan cricket has suffered immensely because of the security situation with many teams refusing to tour last year and the International Cricket Council also postponing the prestigious Champions Trophy last September.

Miandad said efforts were on to get Australia to tour Pakistan in April and if this happened then the ICC would have no hesitation in holding the Champions Trophy as planned in September this year according to the revised schedule.

Phelps gears up for rich London haul

BEIJING: Four months after clinching a record eight gold medals at the Beijing Olympics, US swimmer Michael Phelps is set to return to training braced for pain but eager to douse any thoughts of retirement.

"My shape is non-existent right now," the 23-year-old said after emerging from the pool at Beijing's Olympic water polo venue, the Yingdong Natatorium.

"I'm far from being in shape, but I talked to my coach today, and Tuesday is the official day I start," said Phelps, who has set his sights on more glory at the London Olympics, four long, gruelling years down the line.

"Four months has been the longest time I've been away from the pool...I know it will be a lot of pain for the first few months," he said.

Phelps returned to Beijing this week to shoot a television advertisement for Mazda, the latest in a string of commercial endorsements he has signed since breaking fellow American Mark Spitz's record seven-gold haul at the 1972 Munich Games.

The shoot, part of a seven-figure deal which Phelps's representatives said was "the biggest for a Western celebrity" in China, saw the 14-times Olympic champion struggle after swimming butterfly for the first time in months.

UNSURPASSABLE FEAT?

But it also allowed a quick stop at the National "Water Cube" Aquatics centre in Beijing's Olympic Green, giving the American a chance to soak up the memories of what could turn out to be an unsurpassable feat.

"It was pretty cool, a pretty special feeling. I'm glad to have the opportunity to relive some of he moments that I had four months ago," Phelps said.

The long layoff, punctured by television appearances and charity events in between relaxing with friends and family, had not sapped the swimmer's motivation, nor had it completely banished thoughts of retirement.

"It's been fun but I really want to get back into a normal regime and get some kind of structure back into my life," Phelps said.

"There are times where I will wake up and say to myself 'I don't want to do this anymore.' But there are so many goals and times that I want to hit in events.

"I'm not going to retire until those are accomplished," he added.

He was cagey about the new goals, saying he was still working out a plan with his coach Bob Bowman, but he dashed any notions of striving to match or better his record Beijing haul.

"These four years are going to be much more relaxed than the last four years ... there will definitely be a lighter programme than what I did in Beijing," said Phelps, who is aiming to be fit for the world championships in Rome in July.

"I think some backstroke is definitely in the mix, hopefully I can master the 100 free. I'm gonna try a few different events I haven't tried before," he sai

Cristiano Ronaldo wins FIFA World Player award

ZURICH: Manchester United and Portugal star Cristiano Ronaldo was on Monday named FIFA World Footballer of the Year for 2008. Ronaldo, who is also

Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal holds the FIFA World Player 2008 award during the soccer awards ceremony in Zurich. (Reuters Photo) More Pictures

holder of the prestigious Ballon d'Or for the European Footballer of the Year, beat off competition from 2007 winner Kaka (Brazil), Lionel Messi (Argentina), Fernando Torres (Spain) and Xavi (Spain).

"It's an overwhelming moment in my career and I'd like to dedicate this award to my family, friends and colleagues," he said.

Ronaldo went out of his way to heap praise on United manager Sir Alex Ferguson, with whom relations became strained during last summer over whether he was going to leave the club for Real Madrid.

"It's also true that the manager always has an important role to play," said Ronaldo.

"It was a great season for me and for my club, and the coach was important for me because I learned a lot from him. His experience over so many years is of paramount importance - it's a privilege to have such a great club manager. This is the climax of a fantastic era for me. I'm happy and proud about what has been done by my team and what we have won. I am lucky to be part of the history of a club like Manchester United."

The 23-year-old, scorer of 42 goals in all competitions in the 2007-8 season, was one of United's architects behind the club's English Premiership and Champions League double. It was not a perfectly scripted year for Ronaldo, however, as Portugal crashed out 3-2 to Germany in the quarter-final of Euro 2008 in June.

Ronaldo becomes the second Portuguese player to win the FIFA accolade after Luis Figo in 2001, and the first one playing for a British club. He reaped 935 points in the vote in which the coaches and captains of 155 national teams took part. Messi finished second (678 points) and was trailed by Torres (203), Kaka (183) and Xavi (155).

Brazilian midfielder Marta was unveiled as FIFA World Women's Footballer of the year for 2008, for the third year running.

Marta delivered an outstanding performance at the women's Olympic football tournament in Beijing 2008, and equalled the record set by Birgit Prinz by claiming her third consecutive title.

For the women's vote, 139 coaches and captains cast their vote and Marta won comfortably (1,002 points) ahead of Germany's Prinz (328), Brazil's Cristiane (275), Germany's Nadine Angerer (198) and England's Kelly Smith (150).

Lahore Badshah players waiting for ICL prize money

KARACHI: The Pakistani players of the Lahore Badshah team that won the Indian Cricket League (ICL) this season are still waiting for their prize money and other dues totalling around from Rs 40 million.

Some of the players who played for the Lahore team confirmed that they still have to get the payment for winning the ICL Twenty20 championship plus other individual bonuses.

"We had to leave India in an emergency in November due to the tense conditions after the Mumbai blasts and the league (ICL Twenty20 world series) was halted midway," a player said.

"There was no time for the organisers to distribute the money to us," he added.

According to the terms and conditions of the contracts, the Pakistani players will have to be available/play a minimum number of days in the league to get their contractual fees per annum.

"Even our participation in the ICL whenever it is held in India appears remote unless conditions between Pakistan and India improve soon. So we are not sure about our future in the ICL at the moment or when the payment would be made," one player said.

"The situation is unless we are able to make ourselves available for the ICL and play in the matches we can't expect any more payments from our contract for the moment," he added.

Sources said Badshah captain Inzamam-ul-Haq and coach Moin Khan had been in touch with the ICL organisers to ensure their players were not hit financially even if the ICL resumes and Pakistani players cannot go to India.

ECB forced me to step down: Pietersen

LONDON: In a new twist to English cricket controversy, Kevin Pietersen on Sunday alleged that he never resigned and the board did not provide him any reason as to why he was being asked to step down from captaincy.

Daily Telegraph quoted a close confidant of Pietersen as saying that England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) kept him in dark about sacking Peter Moores as coach.

Pietersen said that he had held meetings during the Test matches in India with ECB chairman Giles Clarke, ECB managing director Hugh Morris and ECB chief executive David Collier and had talked about "a few names as possible new coach" with Collier and Morris.

"The last words from David Collier and Hugh Morris during the last Test match in India were for me to do a strategy plan as to how I wanted to take the English cricket team forward," Pietersen was quoted as saying in the report.

"They said we would meet again on January 8 in London. I said I would come straight from the airport so we could have it in the morning but they said come in the afternoon. On New Year's Eve, I sent the strategy email. In my email I said that I can't lead this team forward and take it to the West Indies if Peter Moores is coach."

He said his email was taken as an offer of resignation and Morris rang him and the ECB emailed him to accept it.

"I have not had any reasons for why I was asked to stand down," he said. "I was not told in the telephone conversation or the email that Peter Moores was not coach. I was told that 'your resignation' was accepted yet I had not been told he had been sacked or asked to resign."

Pietersen returned to London early on Thursday morning, whisked through Heathrow airport under police guard, to face a barrage of criticism for his part in the affair.

He is known to have been deeply shocked and upset at the reaction, believing he had done nothing wrong and now he feels utterly let down by offers.

An ECB official last night said: "We are aware of discussions between ECB officials and Kevin Pietersen before he left on holiday, but we have no knowledge of any guarantees given to him."