Tennis

Nadal steps down from Davis Cup final over knee injury

Nadal steps down from Davis Cup final over knee injuryBarcelona - Spain's Rafael Nadal, world number one, stepped down from the Davis Cup final against Argentina later this month, due to a knee injury.

Nadal himself explained his decision Monday in Barcelona, after undergoing several medical tests.

"I did everything I could to try to get to that final. I am used to playing on court with pain and I have stood it quite well. But this is a different kind of pain, a new pain. I cannot manage to control it," the tennis player said.

Nadal steps down from Davis Cup final over knee injury

Barcelona - Spain's Rafael Nadal, world number one, stepped down from the Davis Cup final against Argentina later this month, due to a knee injury.

Nadal himself explained his decision Monday in Barcelona, after undergoing several medical tests.

Spain is set to play Argentina in the Davis Cup final November 21- 23, on an indoor carpet court in the Argentine coastal city of Mar del Plata.

Argentina seeks its first-ever "salad bowl," as the tournament trophy is known, while Spain is seeking its third title.

Nadal, 22, quit his Paris Masters quarter-final 10 days ago, when he lost 6-1 to Russian Nikolay Davydenko. He was suffering from tendinitis in his right knee.

Federer falls short in shaky Shanghai start

Federer falls short in shaky Shanghai startShanghai - Roger Federer lived through a second opening-match loss in a shaky start on Monday at the Masters Cup as the top seed went down to Gilles Simon 4-6, 
6-4, 6-3.

The Red group upset was the second in three months for the unheralded Frenchman who only got into the elite field when Rafael Nadal withdrew with a knee injury.

Andy Murray joined his fellow year-end newcomer with a victory, taking down former number one Andy Roddick 6-4, 1-6, 6-1.

Lleyton Hewitt’s lavish waterfront mansion up for grabs

Melbourne, Nov. 10 : Australian tennis star Lleyton Hewitt has decided to sell his 3.2 million Australian dollar waterfront mansion, complete with an indoor waterfall, as he rarely lives in it.

The two-storied, 700sqm home features an indoor pool, spa, sauna, commercial cool room, home theatre, billiards room and sports bar and a interior moss rock waterfall. The house is located in prestigious Island Point and overlooks a boating lake. The only feature it lacks is a tennis court.

Jankovic leads "egalitarian phase" in women's tennis

Hamburg - Venus Williams' title at the WTA Championships on Sunday marked the end of a turbulent year in women's tennis which saw six changes at the number one position after Justine Henin's retirement.

The Belgian Henin was tipped to dominate 2008 after an amazing unbeaten second half of 2007, but her win streak came to an end at the Australian Open in January and she then retired from tennis on May 14 at the age of 26.

"I based my life on the relationships, the love and all that I could give to tennis. But I couldn't manage to express it anymore these past months," she said, naming retirement "a great day in my life."

Jankovic tops final WTA rankings - Williams sisters rise

Hamburg - Jelena Jankovic topped the year-ending women's tennis rankings issued on Monday by the WTA, with Venus Williams climbing into sixth place courtesy of her title at the 2008 finale in Doha.

Jankovic, who was stopped in the Doha semis by Williams, tops the final list with 4,710 points. She was assured of the 2008 top spot ahead of the final week of action.

US Open champion Serena Williams is second with 3,866 points, swapping positions with Dinara Safina, who has 3,817 points.

Venus Williams climbed from eighth to sixth place after her three-set win Sunday over Vera Zvonareva. The Russian finalist also rose two places, from nine to seven.

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