World No. 2 Maria Sharapova held off British qualifier Heather Watson in a three-set thriller to reach the third round of the Pan Pacific Open on Tuesday.Sharapova, the second seed who had a bye into the second round, came back from a set down to beat the 78th-ranked Watson 6-7 (7-9), 6-3, 6-4.Sharapova, winner of the Tokyo meet in 2005 and 2009, struggled early when she lost the first-set tiebreaker before rebounding on center court at Ariake Tennis Forest Park against the 20-year-old Watson, who was making her debut here.The career Grand Slam titleholder beat Watson in three sets in the first round at the 2011 U.S. Open in their only other meeting.Watson, who has three quarterfinal finishes but no WTA singles titles, showed great resolve to break Sharapova twice in the third set, but the Russian overpowered her diminutive opponent with nine aces to just one for the Brit.Sharapova won a challenge with the chair umpire on an ace that just stayed inbounds of the centerline to gain match-point at 40-15, and Watson thumped her racket on the court three times after hitting a forehand long to end the match after 3 hours, 9 minutes.Earlier, wildcard Ayumi Morita put up a valiant fight against No. 5 seed Angelique Kerber but lost 6-3, 6-4, failing to advance out of the second round for the second year in a row and leaving no Japanese players left in the singles' draw.Germany's Kerber, currently ranked sixth in the world, broke the 79th-ranked Morita at 3-1 en route to claiming the first set and twice more in the second. Morita fought off match-point at 40-15 in the eighth game and broke her opponent for the first time."The whole match was very close. I just tried to be focused on my own game," said Kerber. "She is very hard to play against, especially here in Tokyo. This is a big win for me."Morita, who had held a 2-1 career record against Kerber, was unable to rally on her opponent's serve in the 10th game and the match ended after 1 hour, 26 minutes when she hit her backhand volley wide."I was determined not to give up until the end. Whether I'm facing match-point or not, I am always trying for points," said Morita. "Today I played close to an ideal match. I just needed a little more push. I was charging the net and trying to create as many chances on my own as possible."In other key matches, Croatia's Petra Martic upset fourth-seed Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic 6-4, 6-4 while seventh-seeded Li Na of China defeated Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia 7-5, 4-6, 6-2."It was a difficult match today. I practiced very well. I was feeling healthy and things were going well, but it didn't show in the match," said Kvitova.
Showing posts with label triumphs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label triumphs. Show all posts
Wednesday, September 26, 2012
Tuesday, September 11, 2012
Manning triumphs in Broncos debut
DENVER — After 611 days away, Peyton Manning couldn't wait to get back on the field. Ben Roethlisberger seemed determined to keep him on the sideline.
Old dog, new tricks: Peyton Manning sheds a tackle during the Broncos' 31-19 victory over the Steelers on Sunday night in Denver. APManning overcame Pittsburgh's 10-minute advantage in time of possession and led a hurry-up offense that helped the Broncos beat the Steelers 31-19 on Sunday night in his Denver debut."It's just one game. I try to keep it in perspective," Manning said. "I know how hard I've worked to get to this point. I know how much help that I've gotten along the way, from a lot of people. I'm very grateful for that. It's special. I will definitely say it's special."The four-time MVP coming off four neck surgeries that wiped out his final season in Indianapolis last year completed 19 of 26 passes for 253 yards and two touchdowns. He was sacked twice and bounced up both times without trouble.Manning got a big assist from another big-time free agent, cornerback Tracy Porter, whose 43-yard interception return of Roethlisberger's pass with 2 minutes left and the Broncos clinging to a six-point lead sealed the victory."I should've called timeout," Roethlisberger said. "The play clock was running down, I hate to burn timeouts. I should've. We were kind of all over the place."There's no one to blame but myself. I already told my teammates and coaches that it's my fault. It's on me. It's disappointing. I hate to let my team down, my coaches, the fans. That loss is squarely on my shoulders. I'll take that and get better and learn from it."Manning, jettisoned by the Colts in March after missing all of last season with a nerve injury that weakened his throwing arm, took just two snaps in the third quarter. But one was a 71-yard touchdown throw to Demaryius Thomas, Manning's first as a Bronco and the 400th of his career.He reached the milestone in his 208th career game. Dan Marino did it in his 227th game and Brett Favre in his 228th."I love those guys," Manning said. "Brett and Dan are two of my favorite quarterbacks of all time. I don't feel like I belong in their category. But to be sort of mentioned among them is a true honor."Manning, however, didn't even keep the ball for his trophy case."I talked to him after the game and said, 'You're going to let me keep the ball right?' He got one of the game balls, so he gave me that ball," Thomas said. "That's great to be able to catch his 400th. Hopefully he'll sign it for me. I can go back and show my grandkids in the record book."Manning, who hadn't played in a game that counted since Jan. 8, 2011, spent much of his night on the sideline as Roethlisberger led a clock-chewing offense that had Denver's defenders gassed and Manning antsy as the Steelers converted 11 of 19 third downs."That's what Peyton kept saying to me: 'You guys killed us on third down.' We did," Roethlisberger said. "But at the end of the day it doesn't matter when you lose the game."At one point, Roethlisberger had taken 30 snaps to Manning's one — a kneel-down — during two monstrous drives that spanned halftime."Roethlisberger was awesome on third down," Manning said. "Wasn't much fun sitting on the bench there all night. Great job by our defense in the end, getting that turnover."Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said playing keep-away from Manning was the game plan."That was our intention," Tomlin said. "We need to possess the ball, we needed to get stops and time of possession is just that, though you look at the scoreboard, they got it done, we didn't. The plan didn't come to fruition."49ers 30, Packers 22: In Green Bay, showing the same brand of dominant defense that powered them to the NFC Championship Game last season, San Francisco smothered NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers and the Packers offense.Redskins 40, Saints 32: In New Orleans, Robert Griffin III began his NFL career by connecting on 19 of 26 passes for 320 yards and two touchdowns.Griffin completed his first eight passes, including an 88-yard touchdown pass to Pierre Garcon, tying for the second-longest scoring pass by a quarterback making his NFL debut.Vikings 26, Jaguars 23 (OT): In Minneapolis, rookie Blair Walsh kicked four field goals, including a 55-yarder as regulation expired and another in overtime.For the first time since the NFL's new overtime scoring rule was installed last season, the first team on the board didn't immediately run off the field a winner.After Walsh's 38-yard kick, the Vikings had to play defense again while the Jaguars had their chance to match. But Gabbert was hurried into a fourth-down overthrow.Bears 41, Colts 21: In Chicago, Jay Cutler threw for 333 yards and two touchdowns and Michael Bush added a pair of scoring runs to spoil the debut of quarterback Andrew Luck, who finished 23 of 45 for 309 yards with a TD, but also three interceptions.Eagles 17, Browns 16: In Cleveland, Michael Vick overcame four interceptions by throwing a 4-yard touchdown pass to Clay Harbor with 1:18 left.Lions 27, Rams 23: In Detroit, Matthew Stafford threw a 5-yard touchdown pass to Kevin Smith with 10 seconds left.Jets 48, Bills 28: In East Rutherford, New Jersey, Mark Sanchez threw three touchdown passes, including two to rookie Stephen Hill, and the Jets eased concerns about their offense.Texans 30, Dolphins 10: In Houston, Arian Foster had two touchdown runs, Matt Schaub threw a TD pass to Andre Johnson, and the Texans defense dominated rookie Ryan Tannehill and Miami.Patriots 34, Titans 13: In Nashville, Tennessee, Tom Brady threw for 236 yards and two touchdowns for New England.Falcons 40, Chiefs 24: In Kansas City, Matt Ryan threw for 299 yards and three touchdowns, one of them to Tony Gonzalez in his return to Kansas City.Buccaneers 16, Panthers 7: In Tampa, the Buccaneers' rejuvenated defense came up with two interceptions against Cam Newton.Cardinals 20, Seahawks 16: In Glendale, Arizona, Kevin Kolb replaced injured John Skelton and led Arizona on the deciding touchdown drive, throwing 6 yards to Andre Roberts with 4:59 to play.
Old dog, new tricks: Peyton Manning sheds a tackle during the Broncos' 31-19 victory over the Steelers on Sunday night in Denver. APManning overcame Pittsburgh's 10-minute advantage in time of possession and led a hurry-up offense that helped the Broncos beat the Steelers 31-19 on Sunday night in his Denver debut."It's just one game. I try to keep it in perspective," Manning said. "I know how hard I've worked to get to this point. I know how much help that I've gotten along the way, from a lot of people. I'm very grateful for that. It's special. I will definitely say it's special."The four-time MVP coming off four neck surgeries that wiped out his final season in Indianapolis last year completed 19 of 26 passes for 253 yards and two touchdowns. He was sacked twice and bounced up both times without trouble.Manning got a big assist from another big-time free agent, cornerback Tracy Porter, whose 43-yard interception return of Roethlisberger's pass with 2 minutes left and the Broncos clinging to a six-point lead sealed the victory."I should've called timeout," Roethlisberger said. "The play clock was running down, I hate to burn timeouts. I should've. We were kind of all over the place."There's no one to blame but myself. I already told my teammates and coaches that it's my fault. It's on me. It's disappointing. I hate to let my team down, my coaches, the fans. That loss is squarely on my shoulders. I'll take that and get better and learn from it."Manning, jettisoned by the Colts in March after missing all of last season with a nerve injury that weakened his throwing arm, took just two snaps in the third quarter. But one was a 71-yard touchdown throw to Demaryius Thomas, Manning's first as a Bronco and the 400th of his career.He reached the milestone in his 208th career game. Dan Marino did it in his 227th game and Brett Favre in his 228th."I love those guys," Manning said. "Brett and Dan are two of my favorite quarterbacks of all time. I don't feel like I belong in their category. But to be sort of mentioned among them is a true honor."Manning, however, didn't even keep the ball for his trophy case."I talked to him after the game and said, 'You're going to let me keep the ball right?' He got one of the game balls, so he gave me that ball," Thomas said. "That's great to be able to catch his 400th. Hopefully he'll sign it for me. I can go back and show my grandkids in the record book."Manning, who hadn't played in a game that counted since Jan. 8, 2011, spent much of his night on the sideline as Roethlisberger led a clock-chewing offense that had Denver's defenders gassed and Manning antsy as the Steelers converted 11 of 19 third downs."That's what Peyton kept saying to me: 'You guys killed us on third down.' We did," Roethlisberger said. "But at the end of the day it doesn't matter when you lose the game."At one point, Roethlisberger had taken 30 snaps to Manning's one — a kneel-down — during two monstrous drives that spanned halftime."Roethlisberger was awesome on third down," Manning said. "Wasn't much fun sitting on the bench there all night. Great job by our defense in the end, getting that turnover."Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said playing keep-away from Manning was the game plan."That was our intention," Tomlin said. "We need to possess the ball, we needed to get stops and time of possession is just that, though you look at the scoreboard, they got it done, we didn't. The plan didn't come to fruition."49ers 30, Packers 22: In Green Bay, showing the same brand of dominant defense that powered them to the NFC Championship Game last season, San Francisco smothered NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers and the Packers offense.Redskins 40, Saints 32: In New Orleans, Robert Griffin III began his NFL career by connecting on 19 of 26 passes for 320 yards and two touchdowns.Griffin completed his first eight passes, including an 88-yard touchdown pass to Pierre Garcon, tying for the second-longest scoring pass by a quarterback making his NFL debut.Vikings 26, Jaguars 23 (OT): In Minneapolis, rookie Blair Walsh kicked four field goals, including a 55-yarder as regulation expired and another in overtime.For the first time since the NFL's new overtime scoring rule was installed last season, the first team on the board didn't immediately run off the field a winner.After Walsh's 38-yard kick, the Vikings had to play defense again while the Jaguars had their chance to match. But Gabbert was hurried into a fourth-down overthrow.Bears 41, Colts 21: In Chicago, Jay Cutler threw for 333 yards and two touchdowns and Michael Bush added a pair of scoring runs to spoil the debut of quarterback Andrew Luck, who finished 23 of 45 for 309 yards with a TD, but also three interceptions.Eagles 17, Browns 16: In Cleveland, Michael Vick overcame four interceptions by throwing a 4-yard touchdown pass to Clay Harbor with 1:18 left.Lions 27, Rams 23: In Detroit, Matthew Stafford threw a 5-yard touchdown pass to Kevin Smith with 10 seconds left.Jets 48, Bills 28: In East Rutherford, New Jersey, Mark Sanchez threw three touchdown passes, including two to rookie Stephen Hill, and the Jets eased concerns about their offense.Texans 30, Dolphins 10: In Houston, Arian Foster had two touchdown runs, Matt Schaub threw a TD pass to Andre Johnson, and the Texans defense dominated rookie Ryan Tannehill and Miami.Patriots 34, Titans 13: In Nashville, Tennessee, Tom Brady threw for 236 yards and two touchdowns for New England.Falcons 40, Chiefs 24: In Kansas City, Matt Ryan threw for 299 yards and three touchdowns, one of them to Tony Gonzalez in his return to Kansas City.Buccaneers 16, Panthers 7: In Tampa, the Buccaneers' rejuvenated defense came up with two interceptions against Cam Newton.Cardinals 20, Seahawks 16: In Glendale, Arizona, Kevin Kolb replaced injured John Skelton and led Arizona on the deciding touchdown drive, throwing 6 yards to Andre Roberts with 4:59 to play.Thursday, May 10, 2012
Hakuho triumphs again
His opening-day defeat seemingly a minor blip, Hakuho chased out top-ranked maegashira Takayasu to post his second straight win at the Summer Grand Sumo Tournament on Tuesday.The Mongolian yokozuna, who started a meet with a defeat for the first time since the 2008 Kyushu Basho in losing to Aminishiki on Sunday, was rarely in danger in the day's finale, thrusting a defensive Takayasu (0-3) back out of the dohyo at Ryogoku Kokugikan.Kisenosato and Kotoshogiku were among the early leaders at 3-0 at sumo's second rank of ozeki.Five out of six ozeki, including Kakuryu, won, with Bulgarian Kotooshu the day's only major casualty in a narrow defeat to third-ranked maegashira Toyohibiki.Baruto was never in any danger of failing to post his third win, the Estonian giant quickly chasing second-ranked maegashira Myogiryu (1-2) over the straw bales to keep a clean slate.Harumafuji (2-1), sporting a black eye after taking a poke on the opening day Sunday in his bout against Homasho, put on a clinical display to oust top-ranked Russian Aran (0-3) and Kakuryu (2-1) handed sekiwake Goeido his first loss of the tournament.
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
Loeb triumphs in Rally of Argentina
BUENOS AIRES — World rally champion Sebastian Loeb won the Rally of Argentina for the seventh time in a row Sunday to increase his lead in the season standings.The Frenchman finished 15.2 seconds ahead of teammate Mikko Hirvonen to give Citroen a 1-2 finish. Mads Ostberg was third.Loeb has won three of the season's first five rallies — Monte Carlo, Mexico and Argentina — and has 91 points. Petter Solberg is second with 73 points, and Hirvonen has 70.
Nadal triumphs again in Barcelona
Hungry for more: Rafael Nadal bites his trophy after winning the Barcelona Open on Sunday. AFP-JIJIBARCELONA, Spain — Rafael Nadal became the first player in the Open Era to win two tournaments seven times after beating David Ferrer 7-6 (7-1), 7-5 in Sunday's Barcelona Open final.The second-ranked Nadal's 21st straight victory on clay followed up his eighth straight win in Monte Carlo, as Nadal won the 10th all-Spanish ATP final for a 48th career win.The sixth-ranked Ferrer lost his fourth Barcelona Open final to Nadal, who saved 12 of 15 break points for a 34th straight victory at Barcelona.Nadal skipped toward the net in celebration after hitting a backhand winner on match point. The six-time French Open champion displayed his normal resilience and steady play to overcome Ferrer in a match marked by grinding rallies and spectacular shotmaking more reminiscent of a major final."This is the hardest match I had on clay court this season, David always takes you to the limit," Nadal told Spanish state TV. "A bit of it was lottery, luck fell on my side today."With a warm sun bearing down, the players exchanged early breaks before settling into a slugfest of powerful groundstrokes with long rallies often won by magnificently struck winners to the line.Neither player let a shot go unchallenged with the rhythm only disrupted in the fourth game when both players stopped as medical staff helped a spectator in the stands.Nadal saved seven of eight break points in the first set, including five which were set points for Ferrer in the 12th game. He fired an ace to save the last before holding for the tiebreaker, and Ferrer's double fault allowed Nadal to get ahead 4-1 as he took the first set in a grueling 93 minutes.STUTTGART, Germany — Second-ranked Maria Sharapova cruised past top-ranked Victoria Azarenka 6-1, 6-4 on Sunday to win the Porsche Grand Prix for her first title of the year.Sharapova lost the finals of the Australian Open and Indian Wells this year to Azarenka, and the Russian had never beaten her rival from Belarus in four previous encounters in a final."I am really pleased to win such a tough tournament, against such tough opponents," said Sharapova, before collecting the white sports car donated by the sponsor. "Victoria could not perform at her best because of her injury."Azarenka, who fell to 29-2 this year but will keep the No. 1 spot, had her playing, right wrist taped after the first set. She was seeking her fifth title of the year."I am disappointed to lose, but still I had a good week," Azarenka said.Monday, December 5, 2011
Transcend triumphs in Japan Cup Dirt
TAKARAZUKA, Hyogo Pref. — Top favorite Transcend, second in the $10 million Dubai World Cup in March, successfully defended his title with a comfortable victory at the Japan Cup Dirt on Sunday.The five-year-old Transcend, ridden by Shinji Fujita for trainer Takayuki Yasuda, took up the early running and pulled away down the final stretch to finish two lengths ahead of Wonder Acute in a time of 1 minute, 50.6 seconds at Hanshin Racecourse.Wonder Acute finished a nose ahead of second favorite Espoir City, the 2009 Japan Cup Dirt winner.Fujita and Yasuda both won their second Japan Cup Dirt titles. Sunday's win was worth ?130 million."I'm relieved that we were able to live up to our top billing," said Fujita. "I raced so hard that if we had lost I would have just had to put my hands up and accept it. He is a very strong horse."
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