Murray finds Gicquel win is no breeze January 20, 2010 BRITISH No1 Andy Murray admitted struggling with blustery conditions as he surged into the Australian Open third round with a straight-sets victory over Frenchman Marc Gicquel. Fifth seed Murray looked in ruthless form as he despatched the world No57 6-1, 6-4, 6-3 in less than two hours in Melbourne. The triumph means he will face [...]
No2 Safina awaits seed-slayer Baltacha January 20, 2010 BRITISH women’s No1 Elena Baltacha is confident of causing another upset after setting up an Australian Open third-round clash with world No2 Dinara Safina. World No83 Baltacha equalled her best ever performance at a Grand Slam by pulling off a shock triumph over 30th seed Kateryna Bondarenko in the second round in Melbourne. The 26-year-old’s [...]
Venter escapes matchday ban after referee apology January 20, 2010 SARACENS director of rugby Brendan Venter last night escaped a match-day coaching ban after making a public apology to Premiership referee David Rose for his comments after the recent match with Leicester. Venter was found guilty of misconduct by a Rugby Football Union disciplinary panel after questioning the integrity of Rose following his side’s 22-15 [...]
FOOTBALL | IN BRIEF January 20, 2010 Mutu linked with Man City MANCHESTER City boss Roberto Mancini wants ex-Chelsea forward Adrian Mutu to join his Eastlands revolution, according to his agent. The Romanian, sacked by the Blues in 2004 after testing positive for cocaine, is unsettled at Fiorentina. “Mancini strongly wants him at Man City and said that he would be ideal [...]
Rape quiz for Huddersfield Giants players January 20, 2010 SIX Huddersfield Giants players were yesterday bailed after being quizzed over allegations a 22-year-old woman was raped at their hotel in the early hours of Tuesday morning. The Super League stars were staying at the Gosforth Marriott Hotel in Newcastle as part of their squad’s pre-season tour. Giants managing director Richard Thewlis said: “The club [...]
SPORT | IN BRIEF January 20, 2010 Khan lined up for US title bout BOXING: WBA lightweight champion Amir Khan is being lined up to make his debut in the United States in April. The Bolton fighter is said to be in “tentative agreement” to defend his title against Argentine Marcos Maidana in Las Vegas. The contest could be on the undercard of [...]
Snow does not derail Eurostar January 20, 2010 TICKET sales and passenger numbers at Eurostar edged up to a new record last year despite a series of breakdowns which left thousands of passengers stranded in the Channel Tunnel. Sales at Eurostar reached £675.5m, up 1.7 per cent on 2008, while passenger numbers rose 1.2 per cent to 9.2m. Eurostar conceded that the economic [...]
Obama stays firm on health despite shock poll defeat January 20, 2010 THE victory of a Republican candidate in the race for a United States Senate seat in Massachusetts yesterday stunned President Obama’s Democratic Party and left the White House assessing the implications for its domestic policy agenda. His victory over the Democratic candidate, Martha Coakley, means the Republicans now have enough Senate votes to impede the [...]
Standard Life hit with FSA fine for pensions failures January 20, 2010 INSURANCE group Standard Life has been fined £2.45m by the City watchdog for misleading pension customers about underlying investment risks. The Financial Services Authority (FSA) said that between July 2006 and February last year, the insurer produced misleading marketing material for its pension sterling fund that put its 98,000 retail investors at risk of “unexpected [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS January 20, 2010 CABLE & WIRELESS Citigroup upgrades Cable & Wireless (C&W) to “buy” saying the shares, which underperformed in 2009, are due to be re-rated this year. It expects confidence to improve post the March demerger, which it believes will reveal “hidden value”. “Structural and macro recovery in 2010 should raise confidence that consensus is now at [...]
