Nadal, Federer easily advance at Qatar
(Tue, 06 Jan 2009 10:12:06 PST)
Rafael Nadal routed Fabrice Santoro 6-0, 6-1 Tuesday in his first ATP Tour match of the year, with Roger Federer and Andy Murray also breezing into the second round of the Qatar Open. The top-ranked Nadal needed only 46 minutes for the win, breaking Santoro three times in each set. "It was a quick start for me and that is good," Nadal said.

Venus has no plans to retire soon
(Tue, 06 Jan 2009 06:49:46 PST)
Despite watching some of her biggest rivals hang up their rackets in recent years, seven-time major champion Venus Williams says she still has plenty of goals in tennis. "I love my job. I love hitting balls, running, jumping, chasing after that ball. I love what I do, so that's what keeps me motivated," the 28-year-old Williams said Tuesday in Hong Kong ahead of a tuneup exhibition tournament for...

Dementieva into 2nd round in Auckland
(Tue, 06 Jan 2009 01:26:04 PST)
Top-seeded Elena Dementieva beat Taiwan's Chan Yung-jan 7-5, 6-3 Tuesday to advance to the second round of the ASB Classic. The fourth-ranked Russian struggled in the first set but settled down in the second, beating the unseeded Chan in 1 hour, 32 minutes. "She was on fire at the beginning and put a lot of pressure on me," Dementieva said.

Davydenko advances at Chennai Open
(Tue, 06 Jan 2009 11:24:46 PST)
Top-seeded Nikolay Davydenko defeated Daniel Koellerer 6-2, 6-3 Tuesday to advance to the second round of the Chennai Open. Second-seeded Stanislas Wawrinka of Switzerland didn't fare as well, losing 6-4, 6-1 to Flavio Cipolla. Ivo Karlovic and Carlos Moya, a two-time Chennai Open winner, also advanced.

Kim Clijsters' father Lei dies at 52
(Sun, 04 Jan 2009 10:03:23 PST)
Lei Clijsters, the father of tennis player Kim Clijsters and a former Belgium soccer international, died Sunday. He was 52. Derniere Heure newspaper in Belgium reported Clijsters died after a yearlong battle with lung cancer. He played 40 matches for Belgium's national team, participating in the 1986 and 1990 World Cups.