The Malaysian Insider :: Sports
The Malaysian Insider :: Sports |
| Serena eyeing Paris after second straight Madrid title Posted: 12 May 2013 08:47 AM PDT  Reuters file pic of tennis player Serena Williams.MADRID, May 12 — Serena Williams went from winning the Madrid Open to losing in the first round at Roland Garros last year and she is hoping history does not repeat itself after crushing Maria Sharapova to defend her title in Spain on Sunday. Williams has one more tournament to play - the clay event in Rome - before heading to Paris for the French Open, where the 31-year-old American has just the one singles title compared with five at Wimbledon, five at the Australian Open and four at the U.S. Open. Her 6-1 6-4 victory over Sharapova, the current French Open champion, was her 50th career title and her seventh on clay and Williams said she was hungry for a first Roland Garros crown since 2002, when she beat sister Venus in the final. The switch back to red clay from blue in Madrid and the construction of new courts had made the conditions much more similar to Paris, which would help in her preparations, she added. "It definitely plays more like Roland Garros, so I think that's a plus," Williams, who lost to China's Li Na in the semi-finals in Rome in 2012, told a news conference. "It's a little slower than it was last year and plays more like a true clay court. So I think it's great preparation." Williams crashed to a shock defeat to Virginie Razzano in the French Open first round last year and she said she would avoid raising her expectations too high this time. "It is the ultimate challenge. Whether I reach it, I don't know. I'm not going to put that pressure on myself. "I wanted it last year and I didn't get it. So this year I'm just looking forward to Rome and then after that Roland Garros and see what happens. "I feel pressure every day. I think it's a good thing a little bit because it means I'm still really hungry. If I didn't, then I would be like, oh, it doesn't matter." Williams was sidelined for 11 months between 2010 and 2011 with a right foot injury and lung problems and said the experience had made her more motivated. "Every time I play I really relish it more, every time I get out there," she said. "I feel like, honestly, Serena, when are you going to get tired? I don't know. "I don't know if it's because of what I went through. I just feel like I'm so fortunate to be out there and healthy and to have an opportunity to play something, a sport, and be really good at it." — Reuters |
| Ferrari’s Alonso wins Spanish Grand Prix Posted: 12 May 2013 07:06 AM PDT
The double world champion's second victory of the season, and 32nd of his career, made him the first driver in 23 years of racing at Barcelona's Circuit de Catalunya to win from outside the top three grid positions. The Spaniard, who started in fifth place with the Mercedes duo of Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton locking out the front row, seized third place through the third corner and had the crowd roaring him on as he led after 13 of the 66 laps. Alonso, who won in Barcelona with Renault in 2006 and also in Valencia last year at the European Grand Prix, took the chequered flag 9.3 seconds ahead of 2007 world champion Kimi Raikkonen in a Lotus. The Finn, in the points for a 22nd successive race and now just two short of Michael Schumacher's all-time record, denied Ferrari a one-two finish with Brazilian Felipe Massa taking a distant third. Red Bull's triple world champion Sebastian Vettel was fourth, 38.2 seconds behind Alonso, and saw his overall lead over Raikkonen cut to four points. After five of the 19 races, the German has 89 points to Raikkonen's 85 and Alonso's 72. Hamilton slipped to fourth overall with 50 points after spending the afternoon falling through the field as Mercedes - as expected - again failed to live up to their electrifying qualifying pace. The 2008 world champion ended up out of the points in 12th and was even heard exclaiming that he had been overtaken by a Williams - driven by last year's winner Pastor Maldonado - as a measure of how much he was struggling. Former champions Williams have failed to score a point in five races with a car lacking aerodynamic performance and Venezuelan Maldonado, who finished 14th after a drive-through penalty, had started way back in 17th place. In a race dictated by the quick-wearing tyres, Alonso pitted four times - the same as Vettel and Massa - while Raikkonen made only three trips to the pitlane. Rosberg, who had also been on pole at the previous race in Bahrain where he finished ninth, led for the first 10 laps before facing up to the inevitable. The German, sixth at the finish behind Red Bull's Mark Webber, was not to lead again as Mexican rookie Esteban Gutierrez took over at the front for two laps in a Sauber amid the pitstops before Alonso asserted himself. Britain's Paul Di Resta was seventh for Force India with McLaren's Jenson Button eighth after starting 14th. Mexican team mate Sergio Perez was ninth and Australian Daniel Ricciardo 10th for Toro Rosso. — Reuters |
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