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INDIAN WELLS, Calif. Chris Conte Jersey . - Novak Djokovic beat John Isner 7-5, 6-7 (2), 6-1 on Saturday to reach the final of the BNP Paribas Open, where hell resume his longtime rivalry with Roger Federer. "Its always tense. Its always emotional. Its always close," Djokovic said of the looming match up. "I look forward to it." Federer had a much easier time in the semifinals, beating Alexandr Dolgopolov of Ukraine 6-3, 6-1 and putting himself in position to win a fifth career title at Indian Wells. Djokovic is a two-time winner here. Federer leads their rivalry 17-15, having beaten Djokovic two weeks ago in the semifinals at Dubai. Before that, Djokovic had won three straight times over the Swiss star. Second-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska will play Flavia Pennetta in the womens final Sunday before the mens title is decided. Djokovic struggled with the big-serving Isner, who beat him here in the semis two years ago before losing to Federer in the final. "With that serve, obviously, he can win against anybody on a good day," Djokovic said. "I thought I returned really well today and allowed myself to have a bunch of opportunities on his service games." Djokovic had a chance to win in two sets, breaking Isner to go up 5-4 and then again at 6-5. But the American broke back at love to level at 6-6, then and then dominated in the tiebreaker. Isner won four straight points and served his sixth ace to win it 7-2 and force the decisive third set. "When you get to the tiebreaker with John Isner, whoever you are, youre not a favourite," Djokovic said. "I just tried to hang in there, stay mentally tough when I lost the second set, and played a great third." Djokovic broke Isner for a 3-1 lead in the third. Djokovic survived a break point in the next game and held for a 4-1 lead. Isner called for the trainer a second time in the match to work on an area above his left knee before he got broken to trail 5-1, missing two straight forehands. Djokovic came up with his own big serve on match point that Isner couldnt return. "It prevented me from being able to go after my serve like I wanted to, but thats not the reason I lost," Isner said about having tightness in his knee. "I am disappointed, but at the same time, I had a good week here." Isner had eight aces to Djokovics seven, and the American managed 31 winners, just one more than Djokovic. While Djokovic had to sweat out his victory, Federer was coolly efficient on the hot day in the desert, firing seven aces and connecting on 72 per cent of his first serves in the match that lasted barely an hour. "Having the fire and wanting to win every single match and in the practice trying to improve as much as you can, Ive got the good balance right now, so its very encouraging," Federer said. Federer never faced a break point on his serve while breaking Dolgopolov four times, including a seven-deuce game to go up 4-1 in the second set. Dolgopolov had a chance to win that game four times, but each time his unforced error brought it back to deuce. Federer is aiming to make Indian Wells his second title of the year. Hes coming off a victory two weeks ago at Dubai, and has a 19-2 match record this year. He won titles here from 2004-06 and again in 2012. A year ago at Indian Wells, Federer injured his back during a match and took nearly a month to feel better. After Wimbledon, he re-injured his back and found himself questioning everything, leading to an uneven year for the sports once dominant player. Back here again, Federer feels like a new man. "Im just playing more freely overall and with more confidence because I can get to more balls without thinking," he said. "I can wake up without feeling sore. I can go to bed not feeling like I hope I feel better tomorrow. I dont have these thoughts going through my mind and Im not worried every single minute of the day." Martellus Bennett Authentic . The Vikings announced Saturday they downgraded Peterson from doubtful on the original injury report to out against Detroit Sunday, when the Vikings and Lions will play the last game at the Metrodome. Santonio Holmes Jersey . Ausmus says he realized his words were insensitive and in poor taste as soon as they left his mouth. The first-year manager was asked after Detroits 2-1 loss to Kansas City on Wednesday how his mood is when he heads home from the ballpark these days.This past Saturday at Canandaigua Motorsports Park in upstate New York, 20 year old Kevin Ward Jr. was killed after he was struck on the track by NASCAR star Tony Stewarts car. During the race, Wards car was spun out by Stewart. Ward then unbuckled, climbed out of his car and walked onto the track to express his displeasure to Stewart. At that point, he was struck by Stewarts car and killed. "I want to make it very clear: there are no criminal charges pending at this time" said Ontario County Sheriff Philp Povero after the incident. While that may be the case, this is far from over. Stewart faces the spectre of criminal charges and civil liability. For Stewart, this is going to be a long road. Criminal Charges On the criminal side, expect the District Attorney to take a very close look to determine whether Stewart committed a crime. The most likely charge that would be considered is second degree manslaughter. Also called involuntary manslaughter, this occurs when a person "recklessly" causes the death of another person. Reckless acts are generally deemed less serious or blameworthy than intentional acts. Second degree manslaughter can be distinguished from first degree manslaughter. With respect to the latter charge, a defendant may not have intended to kill the victim, but did intend to seriously physically injure the person and death resulted. At this point, there is insufficient evidence to determine whether criminal charges are appropriate. The evidence will be reviewed, including the video of the incident, witness statements and any data available from Stewarts car. Some witnesses have said that Stewart hit his throttle as he approached Ward. When you hit the throttle, the back end of the car kicks out. One theory is that Stewart may have hit the throttle to scare Ward. If Stewart intended to intimidate Ward by kicking his car out, or was otherwise reckless, he could be charged with manslaughter. Jordan Mills Jersey. Should it be determined that Stewart intended to kill Ward, then the charge could be elevated to murder or manslaughter in the first degree. However, intent in this case would be very difficult to ascertain, and accordingly, these charges seem unlikely to materialize. So the key question for the DA is this: did Stewart intentionally hit his throttle to merely put a scare in Ward? If so, Stewart is suddenly responsible for the death of Ward in the likely form of Man 2. Civil Lawsuit Apart from criminal charges, Stewart may also face a wrongful death civil lawsuit (for money) from Wards family. If a person is killed as a result of the negligence or misconduct of another person, the surviving members may sue for "wrongful death". While it is early and we dont have all the information, it would not be a surprise to see Wards family sue Stewart. It is not unusual for families to seek a certain level of accountability by way of a civil suit. The family may also argue that Stewart has a reputation for having a bad temper, and this incident is consistent with his temperament. Stewart would argue that Ward should not have exited his vehicle. By doing so, he put himself in harms way. As well, Stewart may say that he tried to avoid Ward rather than scare him. Finally, Ward was wearing black on a part of the track that was not well lit. As a result, Stewart may say he didnt see Ward until it was too late. The investigation is still at an early stage and it is premature to declare that Stewart is responsible for Wards death. We should allow the investigation to run its course, at which point a clearer determination can be made as to liability. ' ' ' |
