MELBOURNE, Australia - MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Top-seeded Juan Martin del Potro outclassed defending champion Bernard Tomic 6-3, 6-1 Saturday in a 53-minute final of the Sydney International. Del Potro finished the match with his eighth ace and made only four unforced errors in securing his 18th career title and first in Sydney. He lost only six points on his serve, and Tomic appeared dispirited after being broken to fall behind 4-1 in the second set. And its about to get more difficult for Tomic. His next match is against top-seeded Rafael Nadal in the first round of the Australian Open. Del Potro will also play his first-round match Tuesday — against a qualifier. In Auckland, New Zealand, John Isner had 23 aces in a match which had no service breaks to beat Lu Yen-hsun of Taiwan 7-6 (4), 7-6 (7) in the final of the Heineken Open. Isner, ranked No. 14, won his eighth career singles title and took the title in New Zealand for the second time after his victory in 2010. The third-seeded Isner, playing with a right ankle injury he picked up at the Hopman Cup the previous week, took a crucial minibreak to open the first set tiebreaker. In the second tiebreaker, he rallied from 3-0 down and closed with an ace on his third championship point. "This match was very tight as every match Ive played this week was very tight," Isner said. "I needed every bit of it to come out on top." Isner heads into the Australian Open with a question mark hanging over his fitness because of his injured ankle. He has drawn a qualifier in the first round. In the final of the Kooyong Classic exhibition event, Japans Kei Nishikori joined his coach Michael Chang as a tournament champion with a 6-4, 7-5 win over Tomas Berdych. Nishikori, seeded No. 16 at the Australian Open, was watched in the stands by Chang, a former French Open champion and a three-time winner at the Melbourne venue in 1995-97. Nishikori is drawn to face Australias Marinko Matosevic in the first round of the Australian Open. "It wont be an easy first match, and its not easy to play an Australian," Nishikori said. "But if I can play like I did today, I have a big chance to win." In the WTA event at Hobart, Spanish qualifier Garbine Muguruza defeated Klara Zakapalova of the Czech Republic 6-4, 6-0 to claim her first singles title. The 20-year-old Muguzura, who did not drop a set from the qualifiers to the final, joins 2012 champion Mona Barthel as the only qualifiers to win the Hobart event. Muguruza, ranked 58th, beat second-seeded and Wimbledon semifinalist Kirsten Flipkens in the quarterfinals, while Zakapalova defeated top-seeded and former U.S. Open champion Sam Stosur in the semis. Muguruza won the opening set when she broke Zakapalovas service in the 10th game. The 20-year-old Muguruza didnt play after Wimbledon last year because of right ankle surgery, and the recovery took longer than expected. "I started to play on a chair, and then it was a little bit more until I was like normal," she said. "I didnt expect to win a lot of matches in the second tournament of the year but I just know that Id worked so hard before. I was like a big bull." . The 29-year-old from Port Colborne, Ont., who trains out of San Diego, will fight bantamweight champion (Rowdy) Ronda Rousey on July 5 in the co-main event of UFC 175 in Las Vegas. . The 27th-ranked Austrian underwent surgery on a torn tendon in October and needs more time to recover, the Austria Press Agency reports on Saturday.
http://www.cheaplionsjerseyssale.com/?t ... sey-sale.Y. -- Dwane Casey admitted hed been concerned about his young Raptors team who had zero experience playing in close-out games -- what awaited them with the vastly-experienced Brooklyn Nets, and how theyd react. . -- Ben Bishop had a milestone game against one of the NHLs greatest goalies. . Charlottetown scored four times in the third period en route to a 5-2 win over the defending champion Halifax Mooseheads on Friday.CLEVELAND -- Johnny Manziel is back at work after a holiday weekend in Las Vegas. And when youre Johnny Football, what happens in Vegas doesnt necessarily stay in Vegas. The Browns celebrated rookie quarterback reported for organized team activities Tuesday following a few days in Vegas, where he kicked off his summer by hanging poolside with New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski, attended a UFC fight and was captured on video spraying champagne on patrons in a nightclub. And, according to Manziel, he found time to study his new playbook. Following his first practices with Clevelands veterans last week, Manziel took advantage of a break in the workouts to head to Las Vegas. On Saturday, a photo of him and Gronkowski, surrounded by other partiers, appeared on several social media sites. Later, Manziel posted a photo on his Twitter account of him standing with UFC President Dana White along with a thank-you note. Although this was all done on his free time, and Manziel didnt commit a crime or have any known issues, his actions raised eyebrows in some circles about his commitment to playing in the NFL. He seemed to fire back at any criticism by posting a photo on his Instagram account Monday night of his Browns playbook and iPad with the caption: "Guess its impossible to enjoy the weekend and study?" Manziel, who was selected with the No. 22 overall pick by the Browns after slidingg in the first round, is expected to challenge Brian Hoyer for the starting job.ddddddddddddLast week, first-year Browns coach Mike Pettine said Manziel was having typical problems for a young player. "Its like any other rookie, that hes just inconsistent," Pettine said. "I think a lot of its the mental part of it. Hes more worried about getting the formation right, making sure the motion is correct, and hes got the cadence. Then, hes got to worry about where guys are. Being good mechanically takes a back seat to learning the system first. I think you see over the maturation process, once all that stuff becomes second nature, that hell be a lot more comfortable." Manziel has made a favourable impression with the Browns in his first weeks as a pro. Hes said all the right things during two media availabilities, echoing the teams stance that hes only a backup and will have to earn his starting job. Pettine also said Manziel has shown humility, fitting in nicely with some teammate who may have expected Johnny Football to act differently. "Hes quiet actually," Pettine said. "Hes a good guy to be around. I think the guys in the locker room will be able to tell you that hes a fun guy. But you can tell, when its time to work he works, and hes very serious about this. You can tell hes very competitive." Clevelands practice Wednesday is open to the media. ' ' '
