DOHA (AFP) ― World No. 1 Rafael Nadal showed his trademark grit and determination on Thursday as he reached the semifinals of the Qatar Open with a 7-5, 6-4 victory over Latvian Ernests Gulbis. The Spaniard has never previously won an ATP World Tour title in the first week of the season, but he is on course to do so this time after seeing off Gulbis, the only other seeded player left in the draw.Gulbis hit some startling winners, led 5-4 in the first set, and had three points to take a 4-1 lead

More SportsJan. 3, 2014

BENGHAZI, Libya (AFP) ― Security forces briefly detained on Thursday two Americans playing for a basketball team in Libya’s volatile eastern city of Benghazi, a security source said.The unidentified men, who play for Benghazi’s Al-Hilal, “were picked up while they were practicing near Garyounes University,” said one of the school’s security officials.“They were arrested in the company of two Libyans and were freed after being questioned,” the source said without explaining why they had been pick

More SportsJan. 3, 2014

CHENNAI, India (AFP) ― Third seed Fabio Fognini of Italy joined the growing injury list at the ATP Chennai Open on Thursday, leaving him uncertain of playing in the season’s first Grand Slam, the Australian Open, in mid-January.The Italian world number 16, who had on Monday withdrawn from the doubles due to a thigh injury, retired from his second-round match against Indian wildcard Yuki Bhambri after an hour’s play on the centre court.The 195th-ranked Bhambri won the first set 6-1, and the score

More SportsJan. 3, 2014

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) ― Indianapolis Colts linebacker Robert Mathis is the inaugural winner of the NFL’s Deacon Jones Award.The honor, which goes to the NFL sacks champion, was announced on Thursday.The perennial Pro Bowler set a franchise single-season record with 19 sacks, giving him half a sack more than St. Louis’ Robert Quinn. Mathis also surpassed Dwight Freeney’s franchise record for career sacks. Freeney finished his Colts career with 107 sacks. Mathis has 111.Jones, a Hall of Famer, died on

More SportsJan. 3, 2014

South Korean football club FC Seoul said Friday it has agreed to ship captain Ha Dae-sung to China.FC Seoul said it has reached terms with Beijing Guoan to deal its veteran midfielder to the Chinese Super League side.FC Seoul said Ha, 28, asked the team to grant him an opportunity to play in a new environment. FC Seoul added that it didn't want to lose one of the team's pillars in midfield but respected Ha's wish to challenge himself in a different league.According to FC Seoul, the hard-nosed ho

SoccerJan. 3, 2014

South Korean LPGA Tour star Park In-bee has been voted the top female golfer for 2013 by American golf journalists.The Golf Writers Association of America announced on Thursday, U.S. time, that Park received 91 percent of the vote to easily capture the Female Player of the Year honors.Park won the first three major championships of the LPGA Tour season in 2013 and led women's golf with six wins overall. The 25-year-old became the first LPGA golfer to win the first three majors of a season since

GolfJan. 3, 2014

BRISBANE (AP) ― Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova are set to renew their long and not-so-friendly rivalry after advancing to a semifinal match at the Brisbane International, a key warm up tournament for the Australian Open.The pair played back-to-back quarterfinals on center court Thursday, with third-seeded Sharapova needing two hours to beat 2012 Brisbane champion Kaia Kanepi of Estonia, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2. She dropped three service games in the first set and another to open the second before fin

More SportsJan. 2, 2014

TORONTO (AP) ― DeMar DeRozan scored 26 points, Kyle Lowry had 13 points and a season-high 14 assists and the Toronto Raptors extended their season-best winning streak to four games, beating the Indiana Pacers 95-82 on Wednesday night.Terrence Ross scored 18 points and Jonas Valanciunas had 13 points and nine rebounds as the Raptors (15-15) snapped Indiana’s five-game winning streak and improved to .500 after 30 games for the first time since Jan. 6, 2010.The Raptors have won eight of 10 games si

More SportsJan. 2, 2014

South Korea on Thursday named 23 footballers from the domestic and Japanese leagues who will participate in a training camp in Brazil and the United States ahead of this year’s FIFA World Cup.The Korea Football Association said 20 players from the K League Classic and three from the J. League will join the camp from Jan. 13 to Feb. 2.With European seasons in full swing, national team head coach Hong Myung-bo called up players from the Asian leagues, whose new seasons won’t begin until March. Tho

SoccerJan. 2, 2014

South Korean footballers plying their trade in the top-flight German league said Thursday they're excited about the upcoming FIFA World Cup in Brazil, adding they will try to build good momentum in the second half of their European season.Son Heung-min, a dynamic scorer for Bayer Leverkusen, and Park Joo-ho, a steady defensive back for Mainz 05, wrapped up their mid-season winter break from the Bundesliga and flew back to Germany on Thursday. The second half of the season there will begin on Jan

SoccerJan. 2, 2014

The Kia Tigers in the top domestic baseball league announced Thursday they've signed former Japanese league ace D.J. Houlton.The Korea Baseball Organization club said the 34-year-old American right-hander signed a one-year deal worth $250,000, along with a signing bonus of $50,000.Houlton pitched sparingly for the Los Angeles Dodgers in Major League Baseball, but he's best known for his success in Nippon Professional Baseball, first with the SoftBank Hawks in the Pacific League and later with th

BaseballJan. 2, 2014

Park Byung-ho, the two-time reigning most valuable player in South Korean baseball, still thinks he has room to improve in 2014.The slugging first baseman for the Nexen Heroes in the Korea Baseball Organization said on Thursday despite winning the past two MVP honors, he has long ways to go."I have to take the next step this year," Park told Yonhap News Agency in a phone interview. "I've come a long way to get to where I am, and I have to keep improving."The 27-year-old has indeed taken a long j

More SportsJan. 2, 2014

South Korean football club FC Seoul has offered its defensive back Adilson dos Santos a coaching position starting next season, officials said Thursday, asking the Brazilian veteran to contribute to the team in another capacity.The K League Classic club said it recommended the player, affectionately called Adi, retire and begin a new chapter in his football life as coach. Adi turns 38 in May, and FC Seoul said it believes he may no longer be the same player because of his declining stamina.A tea

SoccerJan. 2, 2014

BRISBANE, Australia (AP) -- Croatia's Marin Cilic beat fifth-seeded Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria 7-5, 7-5 Wednesday on a day dominated more by injury withdrawals in the women’s draw than completed match results at the Brisbane International.Fifth-seeded Angelique Kerber of Germany moved into the quarterfinals after Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova retired with a left leg injury. Kerber was leading 6-2, 4-3 against last year's tournament runner-up.Pavlyuchenkova’s withdrawal followed that of Wimbl

More SportsJan. 1, 2014