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MADRID, Spain -- Serena Williams beat Elena Vesnina 6-3, 6-1 to reach the Madrid Opens second round, however older sister Venus lost 6-4, 6-1 to Angelique Kerber on Monday. Mens White Giovani Bernard Elite Jersey . The ninth-seeded Williams fired 13 aces and 40 winners against Vesnina, who was struggling with her game on the slippery blue clay court. The Russian lost her balance in the sixth game and set up a break point for Williams, who pulled ahead to lead 4-2. Williams ninth ace of the match provided a set point for the ninth-ranked American to take the first set and wrap up the match against the 68th-ranked Russian in just over an hour. "Im feeling good but I wasnt thrilled," said Williams, who will face Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia. "This is my first tournament in Europe so hopefully I will just keep my good form and just keep going," she added. Venus third tournament since being sidelined by illness is over after being broken six times by the 12th-seeded German. The seven-time major champion reached the quarterfinals at Miami and Charleston, North Carolina, earlier this season. Fifth-seeded Samantha Stosur rallied to beat Christina McHale 2-6, 6-4, 6-0 to reach the third round, as did French Open champion Li Na after winning 6-3, 6-1 against Silvia Soler-Espinosa. Petra Cetkovska also advanced, beating Lourdes Dominguez Lino 6-4, 7-5. Defending champion Petra Kvitova beat Marina Erakovic 6-2, 6-3 in her first round match. Kvitova needed over an hour to beat Erakovic, with the Czech player saving all three break points against her while converting four herself. Also on Monday, Andrea Hlavackova, Ekaterina Makarova, Lucie Hradecka, Lucie Safarova and Sara Errani won their first round matches at Madrid Open. Local favourite Carla Suarez Navarro rallied to beat 15th-seeded Jelena Jankovic 4-6, 7-6 (5), 6-4 to reach the second round. In the mens tournament, Spains Nicolas Almagro rallied to beat Santiago Giraldo of Colombia 6-7 (5), 6-3, 6-3. Almagro saved four set points before hitting long to lose the first set in a tiebreaker. The thirteen-ranked Spanish player broke his opponent in the opening game of the second after adjusting his game to the new court surface to win the match in three sets. "The court isnt very good, its very slippery," Almagro said of the unorthodox blue clay court that has been criticized by players after it was introduced for the first time in this years tournament. Other winners Monday included Serbias Victor Troicki, Mikhail Youzhny of Russia and American Ryan Harrison who beat Sergiy Stakhovsky of Ukraine, 7-6 (3), 7-6 (5). Guillermo Garcia-Lopez of Spain ousted 2006 Australian Open finalist Marcos Baghdatis of Cyprus 6-4, 3-6, 6-4. Top-ranked Novak Djokovic begins his title defence Tuesday against Daniel Gimeno-Traver, who beat Victor Hanescu 7-6 (3), 4-6, 6-3. Adam Jones Bengals Jersey . A Swiss Federal Tribunal ruling published Friday said that FIFAs disputes panel and the Court of Arbitration for Sport correctly imposed the sanction for Nantes enticing Guinea forward Ismael Bangoura to break his contract with Dubai club Al Nasr in January 2012. Emmanuel Lamur . -- Ernie Els hardly ever catches a break at the Match Play Championship.There were several obvious storylines after Vancouver defeated Houston Saturday to keep the Whitecaps unbeaten early in the 2014 MLS season. There was the audacious 50-yard swerving, fizzing turf-trimming ball played from Pedro Morales to Gershon Koffie in the first half. There was another solid Darren Mattocks performance where, despite not finding the scoresheet, the young Jamaican played a huge role in both Whitecap goals. And there was goalkeeper David Ousted, who faced 26 Dynamo crosses, but staved off a big, physical Houston team with strong hands and a commanding presence. But none of those moments generated the kind of reaction that Kenny Miller garnered after the game was over. It was a moment that went viral, appeared on local newscasts, and revealed an aspect of sporting culture not often witnessed in North American arenas. The "Humba" begin in the German carnival town of Mainz, and gained momentum when Lucas Podolski grabbed the bullhorn and led his nations supporters in song after Germany dispatched Portugal during the quarter-final round of the 08 European Championship. Its rare in sport to see supporters and players share the kind of moment that occurred Saturday afternoon. Its even more intriguing when a Gerrman tradition, led by a former Scottish international, takes place in a Canadian stadium. Andy Dalton Bengals Jersey. Seeing a shirtless Kenny Miller, the game-winning penalty hero, asking his adoring throng to "give him an H" was as symbolic as it was enamoring. He was in fact naked among the paying public. Stripped down of his past achievements, his fame, his designated player status. At that moment, Kenny Miller was among them, celebrating a hard earned victory. It was a scene more reminiscent of a concert, with the lead singer joining the crowd, before being surfed back to the stage. Apart from the "Lambeau Leap", what other sporting circumstance brings the fans, and the stars so close together? Creating a bond, and appreciating the sporting customer is a rare occurrence in North America where the economic divide between pro athlete and paying public seems to be getting wider with every collective bargaining agreement. The big corporate nature of sport doesnt often inspire brand to mix with consumer so spontaneously. If the Humba tradition catches on in Vancouver, lets hope the spirit of humility and genuine fan appreciation that Kenny Miller showed on Saturday is merely the beginning of something much bigger. ' ' ' |
