Petrova rallies to take WTA title

NEW DELHI: Nagpur police said that extra security cover will be provided to the master blaster Sachin Tendulkar due to possible threat from Jash-e-Mohammed. India will be playing the final test on November 6 in Nagpur. Currently, Sachin Tendulkar is with the team in Nagpur. Nagpur Police Commissioner, Pravin Dixit said, "We have received information from the Centre on a possible threat to Sachin Tendulkar from Jaish-e-Mohammed. Following which we have tightened the security in and around the stadium and have provided extra cover for Sachin." Earlier, Sachin had clearly stated that he was relatively safe in India, which now stands questioned after the news of a possible threat. He had said, "I don't think, it bothers us. It is our home-land, in our homeland, no one can harm us. We've got full confidence that nothing bad and untoward will happen during the series. This is our home-land, so we should feel free to move wherever and whenever we want to." Sachin Tendulkar has already walked into the record books by overtaking another famous name -- West Indian Brian Lara -- as Test cricket's highest run-getter at Mohali in the second Test won handsomely by the hosts to go 1-0 up in the Border-Gavaskar series. The champion batsman is also set to complete 100 catches, having pouched 99 so far in 153 Tests, and has 90 scores of fifty and above, inclusive of 39 centuries, and is on par with Australian great Allan Border. Sachin has received terror threats earlier as well. In 2007, there were intelligence reports of terrorists planning to attack an India-West Indies One-Day International venue at Barabati Stadium in Cuttack where the teams played the second match on January 24.

Quebec City, : Russian top seed Nadia Petrova rallied to defeat American sixth seed Bethanie Mattek 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 here in the final of the 175,000-dollar WTA Quebec Challenge. Petrova took home the 28,000-dollar top prize on Sunday and her ninth career WTA title. It was the 11th-ranked Russian's second title of the year after a victory in Cincinnati in August. Petrova, 26, also was a finalist last month at Stuttgart. Mattek, ranked 43rd, settled for a runner-up finish after reaching her first WTA final. The 23-year-old American made semi-final runs as Los Angeles and Birmingham as she reached the top 50 in the rankings for the first time. The American offered the first real resistance that Petrova had faced all week. After pocketing the first set, Mattek went up a break in the second, but Petrova held her nerve and gradually asserted herself. "Bethanie made it so difficult for me today," Petrova said. "I really had to work hard.” "The four-all game in the second set was probably the key moment of the match. It was important I won it. I'm happy how I finished in the third set." The tournament was the last on the regular WTA schedule. The tour season ends next week with the 4.5 million-dollar Tour Championships at Doha.

Pakistan selectors included Shoaib Akhtar among five fast bowlers in its 15-man squad for this month's limited-overs cricket series against the West Indies. Pacemen Rao Iftikhar, Umar Gul, Abdul Rauf and Sohail Tanvir were named alongside Akhtar on Monday for the three one-day internationals to be played in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates from Nov. 12-16. Akhtar impressed the selectors with his fitness and form displayed during the on-going Pentangular Cup domestic competition, where he claimed four wickets for just 14 runs from 10 overs on Sunday against Pakistan captain Shoaib Malik's Punjab team. "It's an experienced side and we have kept India's tour to Pakistan in mind," chief selector and former test fast bowler Salim Jaffar told the Associated Press. India is scheduled to tour Pakistan for three test matches and five one-day internationals in January. Pakistan's middle-order will revolve around experienced batsman Mohammad Yousuf, who returns to the side after missing a four-nation Twenty20 tournament in Toronto last month due to delays in obtaining a visa. The team was selected after consultation with Malik and newly appointed coach Intikhab Alam, who replaced Australian Geoff Lawson. "The team was selected after giving due consideration to the opinions of both captain and the coach," Jaffar said. Pakistan has not played a test match in 2008 after Australia refused to tour in March due to security concerns. The scheduled Champions Trophy limited-overs tournament was also postponed for security reasons. "It's unfortunate that we didn't play a test match this year, but hopefully the players will be tuned up with this short series against the West Indies before we take on India," Jaffar said. Pakistan has a minor fitness scare with opening batsman Nasir Jamshed recovering from malaria, and Jaffar said Khalid Latif will replace the left-handed opener if needed. "Hopefully he will pass the fitness test and accompany the squad to Abu Dhabi," Jaffar said. Squad: Shoaib Malik (captain), Misbah-ul-Haq, Salman Butt, Nasir Jamshed, Younis Khan, Mohammad Yousuf, Shahid Afridi, Kamran Akmal, Sohail Tanvir, Shoaib Akhtar, Umar Gul, Rao Iftikhar, Fawad Alam, Abdul Rauf, Saeed Ajmal. Reserves: Sohail Khan, Yasir Arafat, Khalid Latif.

Paris: -Jo-Wilfried Tsonga beat defending champion David Nalbandian to win the Paris Masters on Sunday. Tsonga produced a stunning display of serving and shot-making in the 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 win that made him the first Frenchman since Sebastien Grosjean in 2001 to win the indoor tournament. "I think on Monday I'll be in some pain, especially after the party I'm going to have," Tsonga said. The 23-year-old Tsonga's second career title gave him the eighth and final spot in the ATP race and a spot in the season-ending Masters Cup in Shanghai next week. "I think the Masters will be a very important moment for me," Tsonga said. "Maybe another great victory could replace this one. Why not? I'm going to give my best." Tsonga lost the Australian Open final to Novak Djokovic, but beat him in Paris, and in the final in Bangkok for his first career title last month. Nalbandian's form dipped at the wrong time against Tsonga. "I think he served better than me and that was pretty much the key of the match," Nalbandian said. "I didn't play badly, but I didn't play like the other days. I couldn't move naturally." The 13th-seeded Tsonga clinched victory when Nalbandian hit the ball into the net after having missed three break points to pull back to 5-5. "I was playing with 15,000 people. Everybody was behind me today. The crowd was magic," Tsonga said. "Sometimes I had to calm them down because I was perturbed. It was so fabulous." Tsonga broke Nalbandian's serve for a 2-1 lead in the deciding set, and saved a break point in the sixth game with an ace. Nalbandian's frustration showed in the eighth game when he slammed his racket to the ground. But he kept his composure to hold serve in the ninth game and then had Tsonga down 0-40. However, Tsonga saved all three break points, then hit an ace to set up match point and get the crowd on their feet. Tsonga's first serve flew into the net, but his second pinned Nalbandian to the back of the court and he went on to win the resulting rally. Tsonga will join seven other players in Shanghai, starting on November 9, while Nalbandian missed his chance to qualify. "He's a great player and has played brilliantly all week," Nalbandian said. "He deserves this title."

London,: Leading teams in England and Spain lost their unbeaten league records and places at the top at the weekend when Liverpool went down 2-1 at reborn Tottenham Hotspur and Valencia were upset 4-2 at home by Racing Santander. England Chelsea made it eight goals without reply since losing to Liverpool at home with a 5-0 thrashing of Sunderland on Saturday to reclaim top spot in the Premier League. The Blues were 5-0 up just eight minutes into the second half with Nicolas Anelka bagging a hat-trick. Liverpool could have returned to the top on Saturday evening but lost 2-1 at rejuvenated Tottenham Hotspur. Chelsea and Liverpool have 26 points with Manchester United third on 21, although with a game in hand, after a 4-3 defeat of Hull City in which Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice. Arsenal's stuttering league form continued with a 2-1 defeat at Stoke City following a 4-4 home draw with Tottenham. Aston Villa will knock Arsenal out of the top four if they avoid defeat away to bottom club Newcastle United on Monday. Spain Barcelona replaced Valencia at the top of the Primera Liga after they won 4-1 at a rain-soaked Malaga on Saturday and Unai Emery's side lost 4-2 at home to Racing Santander, slipping to fourth place after nine matches. Spain midfielder Xavi scored twice for the Catalans as they recorded a seventh consecutive league victory and their 11th successive win in all competitions. Real Madrid missed their chance to draw level with Barca on 22 points on Sunday when they were held 1-1 at Almeria. The champions are in third spot on 20 points, one behind Villarreal who won 4-1 at struggling Athletic Bilbao on Saturday. Sevilla suffered their second loss in a row on Sunday that leaves them stuck on 17 points in fifth. The Andalusians were leading 2-0 inside 30 minutes at Real Valladolid but then had Luis Fabiano sent off and crashed to a 3-2 defeat. Italy AC Milan clambered to the top of Serie A after a late own goal from German Denis secured a 1-0 win against 10-man Napoli, who lie two points behind in fourth. Champions Inter Milan, joint second with Udinese, needed a stoppage time goal from defender Ivan Cordoba to win 3-2 at bottom side Reggina. Udinese drew 2-2 at home with Genoa while Fiorentina dropped back after losing 1-0 at Siena in the Tuscan derby. Lazio are fifth following a 1-0 win over stuttering Catania while Juventus are up to sixth after Alessandro Del Piero inspired a 2-0 victory at home to AS Roma, who are one spot above the drop zone after a dreadful run. France A 2-0 home win over Le Mans featuring a superb goal from France striker Karim Benzema sent Olympique Lyon four points clear at the top of Ligue 1 on Sunday. Lyon, chasing an eighth successive title, move on to 27 points from 12 games, four points ahead of Olympique Marseille, who recovered from a lean spell to beat St Etienne 3-1 and climb to second on Saturday. Girondins Bordeaux dropped a place to third, two further points back, after slumping to a 1-0 defeat at strugglers Nancy on Saturday. They are level on points with fourth-placed Toulouse, who lost 1-0 at home to Caen. Germany Hoffenheim prolonged their stay at the top for at least another week thanks to a 4-1 win at home to Karlsruhe, while Bayern Munich kept up the chase by digging deep to beat Arminia Bielefeld 3-1. Hoffenheim, enjoying an incredible debut season in the Bundesliga, clinched their third win in a week with two goals apiece from Vedad Ibisevic, the league's leading marksman with 13, and Chinedu Obasi. Bayern had a familiar name to thank for their win at home to Bielefeld. They were being held 1-1 in the second half before Franck Ribery burst through to put them back in front. The Frenchman then won a debatable penalty, converted by Lukas Podolski, to seal victory. With 11 games played, Hoffenheim are on top with 25 points, followed by Bayer Leverkusen on 24 after their 2-0 win over Wolfsburg on Friday night. Bayern Munich are third on 21. Netherlands Leaders AZ Alkmaar were held to a 3-3 draw at Heerenveen, with Paolo Henrique scoring in injury time, allowing Ajax and NAC Breda to go level on points, 19 after nine matches. Ajax scored a goal in each half to beat Twente Enschede 2-0, while a late strike from Rob Penders earned NAC a 1-0 home win over Groningen. PSV Eindhoven, playing Olympique Marseille on Tuesday in the Champions League, are fourth one point behind the leaders after beating Willem II Tilburg 2-0. Strugglers Feyenoord hit four goals in 17 minutes to brush aside Roda JC Kerkrade for their first league win since Sept. 13. Portugal Champions Porto suffered their second successive defeat when they lost 1-0 at Naval on Saturday and dropped to seventh, five points off the pace. Brazilian defender Daniel Cruz scored the only goal in the 54th minute. Unfancied Leixoes, who beat Pacos Ferreira 2-1 at home, top the standings with 16 points, one ahead unbeaten Benfica after seven matches. Benfica won 2-1 at Vitoria Guimaraes on Sunday, playing the entire second half with 10 men after Spaniard Jose Antonio Reyes was sent off for a second bookable offence. Scotland Celtic returned to the top of the Premier League with a 2-0 win at Hearts on Sunday although Rangers can join them on 28 points with victory over Dundee United on Tuesday. Shaun Maloney and Gary Caldwell were both on target for Celtic as they recorded a seventh consecutive league victory. Motherwell are in third place, 12 points behind Celtic, after a 2-0 victory over bottom club Hamilton. Greece Demis Nikolaidis quit as president of AEK Athens on Sunday, moments after watching his team score two goals in added time to come back from a goal down to beat Asteras Tripolis 2-1. The former Greece striker said he was fed up with the fans who abused him, coach Giorgos Donis and the players while Asteras were in front. The win takes AEK up into fifth place on 13 points, six behind leaders Olympiakos who beat Ergotelis 2-0 thanks to first half goals from Darko Kovacevic and Dudu.

Sotogrande,: The sun was finally out ending the gloom at Club de Golf Valderrama but there was no end to the misery of Indian pro Jeev Milkha Singh, who capped a disastrous week with a final-round 82 that left him at the bottom of the leader-board at the Volvo Masters. The Indian golfer ended his campaign, that saw him struggle in the cold, windy and wet conditions throughout the tournament, with a total of 24-over 308 at tied 54th. The weather-gods finally relented on the final day and Jeev started his last round rather well with a birdie on the first hole but even as the sun became brighter, the Indian's day slipped into gloom. And the slide started with a bogey on the par-five fourth hole. A couple of double bogeys and a bogey left him five-over at the turn. If the front nine was bad, the back nine turned out to be even worse and he opened with back-to-back bogeys on the 11th and 12th before stumbling to another bogey and a double bogey to round off his most wretched day in the greens. At the top, Dane Soren Kjeldsen (71) clinched the title by two strokes with a total of eight-under 276. Germany's Martin Kaymer (68) and Englishman Anthony Wall (69) were tied for the second spot.

London, : Europe's big guns have emerged largely unscathed from the early skirmishes in this season's Champions League group stages and several can virtually guarantee their places in the knockout round this week. Group C leaders Barcelona should make it four wins from four matches against pointless Basel on Tuesday, holders Manchester United can book their last 16 place with victory at Celtic while Chelsea know a win at Roma should be enough. Inter Milan, Bayern Munich and Arsenal are also in strong positions going into the fourth round of fixtures, but the likes of Porto and PSV Eindoven have plenty still to do. Porto, champions of Europe in 2004, will be eliminated if they lose in Kiev on Wednesday, while Dutch representatives PSV need a win in Marseille to keep on the coat tails of Group D leaders Liverpool and Atletico Madrid who meet at Anfield. Nine-times European champions Real Madrid still have their destiny in their own hands in Group H, although they trail Juventus by a point after defeat in Italy two weeks ago. The Spaniards will be eager for revenge and top spot in Wednesday's return in the Bernabeu. Roma look the most vulnerable of the fancied sides after an erratic opening to their Group A campaign that began with a shock home defeat by Romanian debutants CFR Cluj. That defeat, and a narrow loss to Chelsea two weeks ago, has left them with just three points so far and another reverse at home to Chelsea on Tuesday could spell the end of their hopes of reaching the final in the Eternal City. Their form of Luciano Spalletti's team hardly bodes well. A 2-0 defeat by Juventus on Saturday, their fourth consecutive loss in Serie A, left them perched just above the relegation zone and with their confidence in tatters. Chelsea, meanwhile, have recovered from losing to Liverpool last week to hit eight goals in two games without reply to reclaim top spot in the Premier League. Ashley Cole is unlikely to make the trip to Rome after injuring his calf in the 5-0 victory over Sunderland on Saturday although manager Luiz Felipe Scolari has an enviable decision to make regarding his strikers. Didier Drogba is fit again after a knee injury but Scolari said Nicolas Anelka will start after scoring a hat-trick against Sunderland. "My big decision against Roma is to start Anelka," Scolari told Chelsea's website. "He is in good condition now so I will play him." Defeat for Roma would also open the door for Cluj to get one foot in the door of the last 16 if they beat bottom club Bordeaux. Another unfancied club has the chance to continue ruffling feathers when Cypriots Anorthosis Famagusta host Italian champions Inter Milan still very much in the hunt for a place in the knockout phase. Famagusta are second to Inter with four points but Werder Bremen are just a point behind and the Germans will be confident of overhauling the islanders if they beat Panathinaikos at home. The top two from each of the eight groups go through to the second round with the third-placed team entering the UEFA Cup.

Sotogrande, : Swedish Ryder Cup star Robert Karlsson topped the European Order of Merit for 2008 following the rain-hit Volvo Masters won by Soren Kjeldsen while Lee Westwood narrowly failed to top this year's rankings. Denmark's Kjeldsen shot a final round 71 for a 276 total, finishing two shots ahead of England's Anthony Wall and Martin Kaymer of Germany, and four in front of both Spain's Sergio Garcia and England's Westwood who needed to win the Valderrama tournament to win the 2008 overall European title. Westwood was back among the top 10 in the world rankings for the first time for a number of years but his good form was not able to be turned into a winning performance in Spain which would have put him at the pinnacle of European golf. Kjeldsen was ahead from start to finish in this event, earning the first prize of 560,000 pounds. Ireland's Padraig Harrington - a two-time major winner this year adding a second Open and the US PGA crown to his title belt - finished with a two-over par, 286 total, finishing in equal 13th place. "It would have been fantastic to cap it off with a good week, but I'm not going to be ashamed about this week," said Karlsson. "In the last three and a half years I have taken myself to a new level and this is fantastic.”"But this has been the hardest week I've ever experienced in golf. It's one of those situations where you have it in your own hands, but not really, and your focus wanders quite a bit." Westwood, who also qualified for a play-off in the US Open, said: "It's been a year of nearlys and it was nearly again. I didn't feel I was hitting it great all week. I wasn't straight enough, but I've played well all year and I'm pleased about being back in the top 10." Karlsson was top of the European money list having started his professional career in 1989. He was runner-up to Nick Faldo in the European Open at Sunningdale in 1992 and even managed to finish in fifth spot at the British Open that same year. He qualified for the victorious European Ryder Cup team in 2006 in Ireland and a second appearance against the Americans came in September this year and either side of that he had wins in Germany and Scotland to move ahead of Harrington. Harrington could just not recover from his first round 76. "I know what this season is going to be remembered for in a week's time, a month's time and a year's time," said the Irishman, who like Westwood was off colour at the Ryder Cup complaining of fatigue. "I was not quite prepared going into this and I could see that. I need to prepare properly every week to perform at my best, but in the context of the season it's not that disappointing."