Taiwan’s Hsieh, Britain’s Robson win in Shenzhen
SHENZHEN, China — Fourth-seeded Hsieh Su-wei of Taiwan and seventh-seeded Laura Robson of Britain won easily Sunday to reach the second round of the Shenzhen Open.
Hsieh beat Melina Czhink of Hungary 6-3, 6-2, breaking her opponent twice in the first set and four times in the second.
Robson defeated Edina Gallovits-Hall of Romania 6-2, 6-1 in her first match of the season. Annika Beck of Germany beat Garbine Muguruza of Spain 6-2, 6-7 (7), 6-4, and Monica Niculescu of Romania ousted Chinese wild-card entry Saisai Zheng 6-4, 7-5.
US defeats South Africa 2-1 at Hopman Cup
PERTH, Australia — Venus Williams and John Isner led the United States to a 2-1 victory over South Africa at the Hopman Cup mixed team competition Sunday.
Williams rallied to defeat 60th-ranked Chanelle Scheepers 4-6, 6-2, 6-3. After Kevin Anderson beat Isner 7-6 (0), 7-6 (5), the match came down to mixed doubles. Williams and Isner beat the South Africans 6-3, 6-2 to clinch victory.
Williams clinched the second set when Scheepers double-faulted. She then won the first four games of the third.
Serena Williams opens season with comfortable win
BRISBANE, Australia — Serena Williams opened her season with a 6-2, 6-1 win over fellow American Varvara Lepchenko in the first round of the Brisbane International on Sunday, showing glimpses of the game that made her the most dominant player on the women’s tennis tour in 2012.
After saving five break points as she adjusted to a strong breeze in the first game, Williams raced to a 4-0 lead and was rarely troubled by the 21st-ranked Lepchenko.
Williams won 31 of her 32 matches in the second half of last season, including titles at Wimbledon, the Olympics, the U.S. Open and the WTA Championships. She is coming off minor surgery on her big toes, which forced her to withdraw from an exhibition in Thailand.
Egypt’s Premier League football to resume Feb. 2
CAIRO — Egypt’s Premier League football will resume matches Feb. 2 after a yearlong suspension following deadly stadium riots, the Egyptian Football Association said Sunday.
A match in the city of Port Said between Egypt’s most popular team, Al-Ahly, and local team Al-Masry turned deadly when home fans attacked visiting fans. The Feb. 1, 2011, riot killed 74.
No spectators will be allowed into stadiums during the first season.
Spanish golfer Miguel
Angel Jimenez breaks leg
MADRID — Spanish golfer Miguel Angel Jimenez has broken his right shinbone and will be sidelined for up to five months.
Jimenez said in a statement Sunday that he had surgery on his leg after injuring it while skiing Saturday. Jimenez said, “I was playing well, but you have to take life as it comes.”
Jimenez was a vice captain on Europe’s Ryder Cup-winning team in September. In November, the 48-year-old Jimenez became the oldest European Tour winner by capturing his third Hong Kong Open title. He has 19 career European Tour titles.
By wire sources
