SHANGHAI, China -- Canadian Milos Raonic has advanced to the third round of the Shanghai Masters with a win over Fernando Verdasco of Spain.
Tim Johnson Blue Jays Jersey . The 10th seed from Thornhill, Ont., edged the Spaniard 7-6 (1), 3-6, 6-3 on Wednesday. Raonic is making a late-season run at qualifying for the ATP Finals, as well, reaching back-to-back finals in Bangkok and Tokyo the last two weeks. He won the title in Thailand but lost to Juan Martin del Potro in Japan. Hes 10th in the standings for the ATP Finals, trailing Richard Gasquet of France by less than 300 points. Raonic will play No. 8 Stanislas Wawrinka in the next round after the Swiss defeated South African Kevin Anderson 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (5). Fellow Canadian Vasek Pospisil of Vernon, B.C., was eliminated following a 7-5, 7-6 (4) loss to Gael Monfils of France. Meanwhile, Novak Djokovic survived a scare when he landed awkwardly on his right foot and recovered to beat Spains Marcel Granollers 6-2, 6-0. Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal had fewer problems in their second-round matches. Federer rebounded from an early break to defeat Andreas Seppi of Italy 6-4, 6-3, while Nadal, who reclaimed the No. 1 ranking this week, dispatched Alexandr Dolgopolov of Ukraine 6-3, 6-2. Djokovic hit a running backhand in the first game of the second set and then leaped in the air, wincing in pain. He called for a medical timeout after the game to have his foot wrapped and appeared slightly tentative after returning to the court, not bothering to chase after a couple of shots. The Serb dominated the rest of the match, however, closing it out in 70 minutes to set up a third-round match with Italian Fabio Fognini, who advanced when Tommy Robredo retired with a wrist injury while trailing 7-6 (3), 2-1. Djokovic said the problem wasnt serious, without elaborating about where specifically he felt the pain. "It was just an awkward movement," he said. "I was running and I made a quick movement that caused a sharp pain. Its all good now," he added succinctly when questioned further. Federer, the fifth seed, had more unforced errors (29) than winners (19) in his first match since a fourth-round loss at the U.S. Open, but he made quick work of the 22nd-ranked Seppi. "Even though it didnt feel like Ive been away for a long time, you kind of know it," Federer said. "Instead of just thinking point for point, what do I want to do, your mind starts to wander -- not in a bad way, but its just not that natural yet." Federer next plays Monfils, with a possible quarter-final with Djokovic looming. Two other top players, Tomas Berdych and Juan Martin del Potro, also came through with victories despite struggling with injury and illness. Fourth-seeded Berdych rebounded from a back injury sustained in the semifinals of the China Open last week to defeat Feliciano Lopez 7-6 (5), 6-2. He said after his last match he could barely stand or walk when he retired against Nadal. "I wouldnt say (my back is) 100 per cent, but I decided I was competitive enough to go on court and try to play," he said. "Looks like it was a smart decision." Del Potro, meanwhile, overcame a fever and 50 winners from big-hitting German Philipp Kohlschreiber to advance 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (4). After the match, del Potro said he started feeling sick on Tuesday night and relied on his serve to win the match since running was difficult. The Argentine withdrew from the doubles to rest for his next match against 11th-seeded Tommy Haas, a 6-4, 6-4 winner over German compatriot Daniel Brands. Like Raonic, del Potro and Berdych are also fighting for spots in the ATP Finals, a task made slightly easier by the withdrawal on Wednesday of Andy Murray, who is recovering from back surgery. Del Potro and Berdych would qualify for the eight-man field by making the final in Shanghai. Federer needs to do a bit more work -- hes in seventh place in the standings, with a number of players within striking distance. Two of them moved into the next round on Wednesday: No. 7 seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Wawrinka. American John Isner, an outside shot for London, however, was ousted by Argentine Carlos Berlocq 6-4, 7-6 (4).
Russell Martin Jersey . "Its amazing to do this coming from such a small island, where tennis isnt necessarily recognized as one of the main sports," Puig said. "Im just happy Im able to be here playing tennis not only for myself, but for my country too.
John Mayberry Blue Jays Jersey . - Skiing far more aggressively than in her season debut a day earlier, Lindsey Vonn was in provisional 10th place after the first 45 skiers in a World Cup downhill on Saturday.IRVING, Texas -- Suzann Pettersen was prepared for a much longer break from LPGA Tour when she started having more back problems. When she had similar pain a decade ago, she was out of action for about eight months. But Pettersen missed only a month this time, and the 33-year-old Norwegian is already on top of the leaderboard again after a bogey-free 5-under 66 on Thursday in the first round of the North Texas LPGA Shootout. "I feel good. I mean very patient. Just really just trying to enjoy being back," Pettersen said. "I got to kind of pace myself a little bit. I cant do too much early in the week. So I have a lot of spare time to fool around with. ... I really cant go hit balls on the range. I play whatever I need to play and then just try to give my body a little bit of break." Pettersen had a one-stroke lead over playing partner Cristie Kerr and Michelle Wie, Caroline Masson, Christina Kim, Cydney Clanton and Dori Carter. Pettersen is playing her second tournament since withdrawing before the Kia Classic in late March, and being told rest was the way to heal her back. The worlds fourth-ranked player tied for 28th in San Francisco last week. "Its been a little bit achy early this week. So taking it a little bit careful," she said. "But last week was nice to be back. Its always tough when you come back from something like that when youre so out of play. Youre not even close to be playing. And then next thing you know the pain is gone and you can start hitting balls, and to bring back the mentality straightaway." Pettersen took sole possession of the lead when she birdied Nos. 7 and 8, her 16th and 17th holes of the day at Las Colinas Country Club. Among the 35 players under par was Juli Inkster, the 53-year-old with eight major victories who shot 69. The last of Inksters 31 career victories came in 2006. Wie is playing with confidence and just trying to have fun, and had her 15th consecutive round of par or better.
Billy McKinney Blue Jays Jersey. All have come in a stretch when she was the runner-up in the seasons first major, won at home in Hawaii for his first LPGA Tour victory in nearly four years and then had another top-10 finish last week in San Francisco, not far from alma mater Stanford. "Definitely, my confidence level is up from last year, " said Wie, whose five top-10 finishes are already one more than she had in 26 tournaments all last season. Top-ranked Inbee Park, the defending champion, and Texas native Stacy Lewis, the highest-ranked American at No. 3, both shot 71. Park had four birdies, but the South Korean also had a bogey at the par-5 third hole, and made double bogey at the par-4 15th. "It was just one of those kind of days," Park said. "Nothing went really wrong, but just a couple of bad shots that really penalized me today." Lewis round included two three-putts and a one-stroke penalty when she unintentionally kicked her own ball in the No. 10 fairway. Kim hit 17 of 18 greens, while needing 31 putts in a bogey-free round that was her lowest score this season. The 30-year-old Kim hasnt won on the LPGA Tour since 2005, and her best finish last season was tying for 11th at North Texas. "Just played steady," Kim said. "I struck the ball really well and just kept the ball in front of me and was able to find it after every swing." Masson started the inaugural North Texas LPGA Shootout last year with a bogey-free 64, and the German also was the second-round leader. "On one hand I know I can go low here and shoot a good score. On the other hand, I kind of feel like I want to make up for the last round last year," said Masson, who finished 15th last year after a closing 75. "Its positive memories, though. I mean it was a great week for me last year, just to really get going. ... Its never nice to shoot a bad last round, but I dont have it in my head too much." ' ' '