LONDON: Five-time champion Venus Williams suffered a shock 6-2, 6-3 defeat against unseeded Bulgarian Tsvetana Pironkova in the quarter-finals at Wimbledon on Tuesday. Not since Jelena Jankovic defeated Williams in the third round in 2006 had Venus failed to reach the women`s singles

LONDON: Russia`s Vera Zvonareva is through to the semi-finals at Wimbledon for the first time after recording a 3-6, 6-4, 6-2 win over eighth seed Kim Clijsters here on Tuesday. Zvonareva, seeded 21st, came back from a set down to beat Clijsters for the first time in six attempts and

LONDON: Venus Williams crashed out of the Wimbledon quarter-finals Tuesday to the lowest-ranked player left in the draw as her sister Serena and Kim Clijsters went in search of semi-final spots. Venus, a five-time Wimbledon champion and the world number two, was knocked out 6-2, 6-3 by

BRIDGETOWN: West Indies left-hander Shivnarine Chanderpaul still believes his side can pull off a shock win in the the third and final Test against South Africa. Despite another inexplicable batting collapse that left them on the brink of defeat, Chanderpaul believes "anything" can

CINCINNATI: Top-seeded Jelena Jankovic and second-seeded Caroline Wozniacki were knocked out of the third-round Thursday at the Cincinnati Women`s Open.Qualifier Akgul Amanmuradova used a strong service game to topple world number two Jankovic 7-6 (7/2), 6-4, shortly after 16th-seeded

SHEBOYGAN: Tiger Woods wasted little time shaking off the most miserable performance of his career.The 14-time major championship winner shot a one-under 71 after starting his opening round of the 92nd PGA Championship with three birdies on the first four holes.Woods birdied his final

LONDON: England coach Fabio Capello insists the bond with his players will not be broken by the ham-fisted and controversial manner in which he ended David Beckham`s international career.The Italian was roundly criticised for using a TV interview to tell the former captain that he was too

TORONTO: Number three Roger Federer overcame old-school, attack-minded Michael Llodra 7-6 (7/2), 6-3 to advance at the Toronto Masters Thursday, while top seed Rafael Nadal showcased the modern style with a demolition of Kevin Anderson 6-2, 7-6 (8/6).Nadal, reigning French Open and

DUBLIN: Argentina`s 1-0 victory over Ireland has helped to get the "massive blow" of World Cup elimination out of their system, said coach Sergio Batista.The South Americans won 1-0 at the new-look Lansdowne Road thanks to a controversial first half goal from Angel Di Maria.Ireland,

LONDON: England are poised to appoint a homegrown coach when the reign of Italy`s Fabio Capello comes to an end.Sir Trevor Brooking, the Football Association`s director of development, said on Friday that the mood within the governing body is to have an English manager."I think longer

LAGOS: Nigeria`s anti-graft agency has quizzed and impounded the passports of the country`s former football administrators who are facing fraud charges, a spokesman said Saturday."We seized the passports of the former NFF (Nigerian Football Federation) officials on Thursday after they

LONDON: Salman Butt scored his second fifty of the match and remained unbeaten at the close of the third day here on Wednesday to give Pakistan hope of a record-breaking win in the first Test against Australia at Lord`s. Butt was 58 not out and Test debutant Azhar Ali 28 not out at the

JOHANNESBURG: Pitso Mosimane was named national coach of South Africa Thursday in succession to Brazilian Carlos Alberto Parreria. The announcment at a national football association news conference in Johannesburg was widely expected as Mosimane has been a Bafana Bafana (The Boys)

  MADRID: Polish goalkeeper Jerzy Dudek has signed a new one-year contract with Real Madrid, the Spanish club announced on Thursday. The 37-year-old has been the regular understudy to Spain`s number one keeper Iker Casillas since joining the club from Liverpool in 2007, playing just

MANCHESTER: Manchester United and England star Wayne Rooney will pay just nominal damages to his former agents Proactive after an attempt to sue him for 4.3 million pounds (6.6 million dollars). Rooney will have to pay only a "restitutional remedy" amounting to around 90,000 pounds

  JOHANNESBURG: Nearly 1,000 crimes, mainly thefts and muggings, took place in and around stadiums on match days during the World Cup, South Africa`s police minister said on Thursday. A total of 290 incidents were reported to police inside the 10 venues of the month-long tournament

ERASMIA: On the eve of his 100th cap, Germany striker Miroslav Klose admits he is eyeing Ronaldo`s all-time record for the most amount of goals at the World Cup finals.Klose will make his 100th appearance for Germany in Saturday`s World Cup quarter-final against Diego Maradona`s Argentina

JOHANNESBURG: Robinho celebrated his first goal at the World Cup and a man-of-the-match performance as Brazil cruised past Chile and into the quarter-finals on Monday. The five-time champions spanked their South American rivals 3-0 with defender Juan and striker Luis Fabiano also on the

JOHANNESBURG: Coach Dunga admitted Kaka`s flurry of yellow cards was giving him concern as five-time world champions Brazil charged into the quarter-finals at the World Cup at Ellis Park on Monday. The former world player of the year picked up his third booking of the tournament as

RUSTENBURG: Fabio Capello has given an insight into how he sees the future England as he picks over the ashes of his team`s miserable World Cup exit. The England manager, who says he wants to stay in the post, has been told he must wait two weeks before his employers, the Football