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| tage begins. By then, Di Vaio should be integrated with his new team. "Its exciting to get him h |
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TORONTO -- Rogers Cup fans got a glimpse of whats been touted as the next big thing in American tennis for some time. Sloane Stephens debuted at the womens tournament Monday with a 6-2, 7-6(5) victory over Frances Kristina Mladenovic in the opening round. The world No. 17-ranked Stephens has been labelled the natural successor to Serena and Venus Williams in the American womens game. This year shes proving why, with a semifinal showing at the Australian Open and quarter-final appearance at Wimbledon. Stephens insists she doesnt let the hype affect her game. "Obviously most of the attention I get is pretty positive," said Stephens. "Its because people want to see me do well and Im American and thats awesome, but I mean theres a little downfall of that too. There is a lot of pressure ... and things like that. "You just have to deal with it and play hard and imagine what (Andy) Murray deals with in England and what Serena has dealt with for so many years. Its definitely tough but people have done it before." The 20-year-old Stephens battled back from down 5-3 in the second set to win the match in 90 minutes, 40 seconds. She looked strong from the first game as she broke Mladenovic twice to jump out to a 3-0 lead. The No. 39-ranked Frenchwoman tried to play aggressive by attacking the net, but Stephens blew a forehand by her to make it 4-0. "She comes in a lot and volleys really well," said Stephens. "I knew probably she was going to press a little and make me play more balls. But I tried to stay with it and hit a lot of angles and move her and it seemed to work." Mladenovic had a chance to break and make it 4-2 but returned the ball long, then wide before Stephens reversed momentum to win the game and pull ahead 5-1. Mladenovic appeared en route to forcing a third set with a 5-3 lead in the second, but Stephens won three straight games before closing out the match in a tiebreak. "She upped her game a lot in the second set," said Stephens. "Some nights its going to be up and down, but I thought I stayed pretty solid and got through it." Stephens will next face Germanys Mona Barthel, who advanced with a 6-7(3), 6-3, 7-6(1) win over Chinas Jie Zheng. Carol Zhao, meanwhile, became the first Canadian ousted from the tournaments main draw. The 18-year-old qualifier from nearby Richmond Hill, Ont., lost 6-1, 6-3 to Russias Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova. Zhao, making her first appearance in the Rogers Cup main draw, looked overpowered by the Russian in the first set but fought back for a 3-0 lead in the second. "I think I just tried to simplify my game plan (in the second set), and I think it rattled her a little bit," said Zhao. "I think the next step for me is trying to maintain that level of play for a longer period of time." Pavlyuchenkova rallied back to make it 4-3 before winning the match on serve. Shell meet four-seed Li Na of China in the second round. Zhao says the experience of playing her first Rogers Cup will be a lasting memory. "I think there is nothing really like coming to play the Rogers Cup. This is a tournament I grew up watching," said Zhao. "Getting an opportunity to play in the main draw is a dream come true." Most of the pre-tournament buzz has been around her fellow Canadian Eugenie Bouchard who lost in doubles on Monday with partner Kirsten Flipkens of Germany. The duo fell to Oksana Kalashnikova and Alicja Rosolska 4-6, 6-3, 10-7. Bouchard, a Westmount, Que., native who is the main draw on a wild card, will play her first singles match on Tuesday night against Russias Alisa Kleybanova. Bouchard turned heads at Wimbledon this year when she advanced to the third round with victory over former No. 1 Ana Ivanovic. Flavia Pennetta and Yanina Wickmayer were among the early winners in Mondays opening round. Pennetta of Italy became the first player through to the second round after she eliminated Urszula Radwanska 6-3, 3-6, 6-2, while Belgiums Wickmayer ousted American Bethanie Mattek-Sands 6-4, 2-6, 6-4. Mattek-Sands was called upon shortly before the match after Britains Laura Robson pulled out with a right wrist injury. Known for her eye-catching fashion sense, Mattek-Sands sported black socks and wrist bands with a streak of green in her blonde hair. The world No. 32-ranked Robson -- set to make her Rogers Cup debut -- joins a list of injured players who withdrew from the tournament, including top-5 seeds Maria Sharapova and Victoria Azarenka. Robson was coming off a strong performance at Wimbledon where she reached the fourth round -- the first British woman to do it since 1998. In other early results Monday, Dominika Cibulkova knocked off fellow Slovakian Jana Cepelova 7-5, 6-4; Romanias Sorana Cirstea moved on with a 6-2, 6-3 win over Ukrainian qualifier Olga Savchuk; 10-seed Roberta Vinci of Italy beat Germanys Julia Goerges 2-6, 6-4, 6-3; Kiki Bertens of the Netherlands defeated American Alison Riske 6-4, 1-6, 6-3; Varvara Lepchenko of the U.S. won 6-3, 6-1 over Ayumi Morita of Japan; and Klara Zakopalova was a 5-7, 6-3, 6-1 winner over fellow Czech Lucie Safarova. Nike Air Max 90 Dam Prisjakt . According to the Lithuanian Basketball official site LithuaniaBasketball.com, Valanciunas, who the Raptors took with the fifth pick in the 2011 NBA Draft will remain with his current team until the end of the season. Nike Air Max 90 Dam Online . Austin Kearns had three hits for the Indians, while starter Fausto Carmona gave up an unearned run in five innings. He also allowed five hits, walked one, and fanned three. http://www.airmaxreaonline.com/nike-free-run.html . What he didnt know was who led them to the win. "Any night could be anybody. I dont know who it was tonight. Nike Air Max Skor Dam . But the heptathlete plans to move out of her Calgary home while shes competing. Zelinka wants to avoid distractions and concentrate on her seven events over two days. Nike Air Max 90 Dam Rea .D. -- A University of North Dakota spokesman says the school still plans to drop its Fighting Sioux nickname despite the Legislature voting to order the school to keep it.MONTREAL -- Marco Di Vaio had one practice with the Montreal Impact on Tuesday and then headed back to Italy, but its not because the teams first designated player is unhappy. The 36-year-old former Bologna star was called back to attend a hearing into allegations of match-fixing in Italian soccer and is due back on Friday to begin preparations for his Major League Soccer debut. Di Vaio is not suspected of participating in match-fixing, but he said investigators want to question Bologna players about a few matches they played in 2011 against clubs that are under suspicion. "There were a few games in particular they want to ask about," he said through an interpreter. "The whole team has been called in." Di Vaio may have thought he was putting the turmoil in Serie-A behind him when he left Italy three weeks ago to join the Impact, an MLS expansion team with a strong Italian presence. Montreal (3-7-3) made the quick forward its first designated player in a bid to add punch to an attack that has produced only 15 goals in 13 games. A designated player is one who is paid more than the league maximum but counts for less against the salary cap. He isnt able to play until the summer transfer period officials opens, which puts the target date for his Impact debut at June 27 when Toronto FC visits Saputo Stadium. Di Vaio took a short vacation with his family in Florida before he began working out with his new team, which includes former Serie-A players Matteo Ferrari, Bernardo Corradi and Nelson Rivas. "Im ready to get to work, and get to know my teammates," he said. "Unfortunately I have to return to Italy to take care of some business, but Im looking forward to getting back. Im excited for the first game, but its not too long to wait." He is to return to Montreal in time for the reopening on Saturday of Saputo Stadium, which has been expanded from 13,000 to 20,000 seats. Montreal will play host to the Seattle Sounders under the stars and on a grass pitch after playing its first five home games indoors at Olympic Stadium. "Weve got to make it our home, so from the first second we have to set the tempo and show people that itll be tough to come in here and get a point," said midfielder Patrice Bernier. "Were lucky to get two home openers in a year." Bernier was impressed by his new teammate Di Vaio, who reminds him of former Canadian national tteam striker Tomasz Radzinski, who had a productive career as a tricky, smaller striker with Everton and some European clubs.dddddddddddd "They have the same body structure and they move the same way," said Bernier. "Its nice to have someone with something new to bring and maybe we can feed off that. "We know hell be a valuable addition. Hes smaller, more mobile. Hes got some speed. In this league, which is speed or strength, hell bring something. And hes crafty. Itll be nice to see a guy who can score not just from the box but maybe from creating plays outside." Di Vaio is expected to partner with Corradi, a tall, lumbering forward who brings a physical presence. Coach Jesse Marsch has also tried to boost the attack by using five midfielders instead of the 4-4-2 formation from earlier in the season. He said that allows him to use the talented Bernier, who sat out several games, along with Collen Warner and Felipe Martins in the centre of the field, to control the ball more from the midfield instead of playing a lot of long balls up to the strikers. The Impact are coming off a three-week break since a 3-2 loss in Colorado and are entering the second of what Marsch calls three stages of the season. They opened the campaign playing eight of 13 games on the road, but will play six of 10 at home leading up to the July 25 all-star game, when the final stage begins. By then, Di Vaio should be integrated with his new team. "Its exciting to get him here and get him going," said Marsch. "It was a good first day just to get him on the field and get assimilated to this. "I think the adjustment will be smooth because of his familiarity with some players on our team, the discussions weve had about soccer and, above all, that hes an intelligent player. Guys like that fit in with any team." It wont be pleasant business in Italy for Di Vaio dealing with a problem that has put a negative spotlight on all of Italian soccer. "But maybe its a chance to start from zero and do things properly this time," he said. "Find out the problems and try to fix them." When asked if the match-fixing may cause more Italian players to leave home, he said it was possible. "Italian soccer doesnt have the same respect it once had with problems like this and players might be looking to go to Spain or France or other countries to play." cheap nfl jerseys ' ' '
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| Beitrag vom 15.12.2014 - 08:04 |
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