Li retires with sore back in Paris
(Tue, 07 Feb 2012 13:24:26 PST)
French Open champion Li Na retired with a sore back against Tsvetana Pironkova in the second set of her opening match Tuesday at the Open GDF Suez. Third-seeded Li took a medical timeout while trailing 7-6 (5), 3-2 to have her lower back massaged and played a few more points before retiring. "It was so painful," Li said.

Zvonareva, King win Pattaya openers
(Tue, 07 Feb 2012 03:34:31 PST)
Vera Zvonareva began her quest for a third Pattaya Open title by putting away local qualifier Varatchaya Wongteanchai 6-2 7-5 Tuesday. The top-seeded Zvonareva faced three break points at 5-5 0-40, but the 2009 and 2010 champion summoned powerful serves to get off the hook and win the last two games.

Hewitt gets double duty at Davis Cup
(Mon, 06 Feb 2012 23:25:32 PST)
Former U.S. Open and Wimbledon champion Lleyton Hewitt has been selected to play Davis Cup singles and doubles against China this weekend, equaling an Australian record by making his 32nd appearance in the international competition. Australia captain Pat Rafter announced his combination Tuesday for the Asia-Oceania Group 1 match, with Hewitt and Bernard Tomic to play singles and Hewitt to combine...

Djokovic wins Laureus sportsman of year
(Mon, 06 Feb 2012 14:42:25 PST)
Novak Djokovic won the top individual honor at the 2012 Laureus Sports Awards on Monday, and Barcelona captured the team prize. The top-ranked Djokovic won sportsman of the year at the ceremony in London, one week after the Serbian triumphed at the Australian Open to become the fifth man in the Open era to win three Grand Slam titles in a row.

Sharapova: Olympics among top priorities
(Mon, 06 Feb 2012 12:04:29 PST)
Maria Sharapova is making the London Olympics one of her top priorities this year after missing the Beijing Games with an injury. The third-ranked Russian has won three Grand Slam titles but has never competed at the Olympics. "Representing my country there will be a huge honor for me," Sharapova said.

US routs Belarus, on to Fed Cup playoff
(Sun, 05 Feb 2012 16:23:23 PST)
After hitting her first competitive serve in five months just long, Venus Williams relaxed, recoiled and fired off another that was too much for Anastasiya Yakimova. Williams' comeback was off to a good start that just got better as she teamed with Liezel Huber for a 6-1, 6-2 doubles victory over Yakimova and Darya Kustova that capped a 5-0 Fed Cup shutout for the United States against Belarus...