Messi: I fear England threat

Argentina forward Lionel Messi believes England are among the leading contenders to lift the World Cup in South Africa.

Many people's favourites for the tournament are Spain and Brazil, but the 22-year-old puts Fabio Capello's side in the same category.

"I think that right now, the strongest sides going into the World Cup are Spain, England and Brazil," he told CNN International.

"They had a strong, easy qualifying and are very tough."

Messi was a little more coy about his own side's chances.

"Hopefully, it will be my World Cup, Argentina's World Cup and that we hit the ground running and play up to people's expectations and win the World Cup," he said.

Messi has had another stellar season with Barcelona, winning another Primera Division title under Pep Guardiola and playing at a consistently high level which has seen him hailed as one of the greatest players in history.

There is still a feeling in Argentina, however, that he does not reproduce that form at international level.

Messi tries not to pay too much attention to that.

"People have an opinion and I respect it," he said. "I'm the first person who wants to do well with my national team and perform like I do with Barcelona.

"I know that this is a really good opportunity for me and I'm going to try to do it."

He continued: "They are different systems and different styles and everything.

"At Barcelona, Guardiola decided to use me more in the middle and that's when I had more touches on the ball and played more around the front of the area.

"And well, I've had the luck to be able to score more goals."

Messi said he and his Argentina team-mates were getting used to being coached by Diego Maradona, someone they idolised as youngsters.

"At first, it was strange to have him as our coach," he said. "The truth is he was a little imposing.

"But afterwards, we started getting used to him and he's been our coach for a while, so now it's normal.

"Also, he's really close to the players, he's one of the guys, so there's no problem.

"Maradona has always been very nice to me.

"Even before he was our coach and I took my first steps as a professional.

"Now that I have him as a manager, he's even closer and gives me a lot more confidence than he did before."

Argentina are in Group B in South Africa, alongside Nigeria, South Korea and Greece.

They open their campaign against Nigeria in Johannesburg on June 12.

"Can't blame Gerrard for leaving Liverpool"

Former Liverpool captain Phil Thompson believes no-one could blame captain Steven Gerrard if he chose to leave the club this summer.

After a disappointing domestic season, the England midfielder has already been linked with Real Madrid, with their expected new manager Jose Mourinho already speaking highly of his talents.

Gerrard has been in this position before, having twice been on the verge of joining Chelsea - then led by Mourinho - only to turn down the Londoners.

But with the Liverpool captain about to turn 30 on Sunday, Thompson feels it should not be held against Gerrard if he seeks a new challenge elsewhere.

"I think it is an extremely difficult one. I hope he stays and I would love him to stay," the three-time European Cup winner and former assistant manager told Press Association Sport.

"He's 30 this week and it has been an extremely difficult time. Stevie Gerrard has done his utmost for Liverpool and if players want to leave Liverpool, the club will go on.

"Steven Gerrard has carried Liverpool on his shoulders for years, [he did it] when I was there with Gerard Houllier, he's carried them with Rafael Benitez.

"I think it would be difficult to begrudge him if he wants to move away with the way things have gone."

Liverpool slipped from runners-up to Manchester United 12 months ago to seventh place this season, their worst Premier League finish for 11 years.

Add to that early exits from the Champions League and FA Cup, and the likes of Gerrard and striker Fernando Torres have begun to question the club's ability to compete.

"We've gone from second to seventh. The team has gone down, the quality of the squad is not there," Thompson, 56, added.

"If he (Gerrard) was to see there was a move forwards in the signing of players - and I think Torres has come out and said a similar thing - I think we might see both committing their foreseeable future to Liverpool.

"Torres was exactly right when he said he wants to see investment in better players because he doesn't want to be challenging just for fourth place next season, and he has every right to say that.

"I don't want to see Liverpool challenging for fourth. We went into this season trying to win the title and next season we are talking about trying to finish fourth - it is not LFC."

On Wednesday co-owner Tom Hicks said Benitez would have a "substantial" transfer budget this summer despite he and George Gillett trying to sell the club, a process which could take 18 months.

Thompson viewed that statement with some caution, pointing to other promises the Americans had broken when they took over in 2007.

"A lot of the things that have been said by the owners have not been true - no debt on the club and a stadium that should have been half-built by now - none of those things are anywhere near with the debt we are in," he added.

"I wouldn't, and couldn't, take any of those words as pointing the way forward."

England prepare for more hardwork

The hard work will not be over once they leave their altitude training base in Austria.

Fabio Capello and his players will have spent 12 days training at altitude by the time they jet home after Sunday's friendly with Japan in Graz.

The Italian's aim was to get the England squad acclimatised to the reduced air levels they will encounter at their World Cup training base in Rustenburg and, potentially, the final at Soccer City on July 11.

But the time has also been perfect for Capello to get over the ideas he wants to see put into action when England begin their quest to emulate the heroes of 1966 in their opening game against the United States on June 12.

Once back in England, Capello's players have been given a couple of days' break with their families, during which time Capello will unveil the 23 names that will carry the hopes of a nation.

However, skipper Rio Ferdinand is under no illusions that those on the flight out to Johannesburg on June 2 will get any chance to put their feet up.

There is plenty of hard graft left yet.

"There is still a lot of hard work and preparation to do," said Ferdinand.

"We still need to get the manager's ideas out on to the pitch when we are playing.

"We must continue to work hard and maintain our focus and hopefully when the matches start, we are in the right shape to get out there and do the job."

Capello could not have hoped for a better couple of weeks fitness wise.

Having delivered an optimistic bulletin on Gareth Barry, who is now favoured to recover from the ankle injury he suffered against Tottenham on May 5 and play some worthwhile part in the Group C action, Capello knows the remainder of his squad have come through their Austria expedition in good spirits.

Although pictures of Steven Gerrard receiving treatment on the training pitch at Irdning looked worrying, the FA played down the significance of those stretching exercises at the time and the Liverpool captain was able to train today.

Stephen Warnock and Glen Johnson, who reported minor problems yesterday, also took part, with the only absentee Ledley King, who was consigned to gym work as he nurses his delicate knees that will not be risked against Japan.

Capello seemed to feel King did all that was necessary to earn his squad place by completing the full 90 minutes against Mexico on Monday night, scoring the opener for good measure.

But Ferdinand thinks the wily Italian will have discovered a lot besides.

"You learn things with every game and I'm sure the manager learned a lot of good things on Monday," he said.

"There were also some negative things which will be talked about as well."

Capello has already committed himself to naming Chelsea trio John Terry, Frank Lampard and Ashley Cole in his side to face Japan, who were beaten on home soil by South Korea this week and do not seem equipped to make any kind of World Cup challenge.

Joe Cole should also play some part, along with David James, whilst Scott Parker would hope to be involved as he tries to prove he is capable of being Barry's stand-in given Michael Carrick has struggled for form recently.

Carrick's performance was part of a patchy England display against Mexico, which only improved when Gerrard was switched into central midfield.

However, Ferdinand believes the outstanding goal Glen Johnson contributed just after half-time was a good sign for what lies ahead.

"Glen is a talented player," observed Ferdinand.

"It was good to see the goals shared around. Hopefully that will bode well for the tournament."

Capello shortlisted for Inter role

Inter Milan president Massimo Moratti is seeking a coach with Champions League experience to replace Jose Mourinho.

Mourinho's departure from Inter to Real Madrid is currently at a stalemate as the Nerazzurri and the Portuguese continue to haggle over the financial terms of his release.

But Moratti has already started the process of finding a replacement and Fabio Capello is on the short-list.

Capello, who had great success at the city's other club AC Milan in the early 1990s, has already distanced himself from a return to the San Siro but that has not deterred Moratti.

When asked directly about 63-year-old Capello today, he said: "He is one of the candidates. But I have not made a decision.

"Should Mourinho leave, my duty is to find a coach that is serious and has experience, for example, in the Champions League.

"I think many coaches have a desire to collaborate with Inter."

Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola and former Roma boss Luciano Spalletti, currently at Zenit St Petersburg, have also been linked by the Italian press with the Inter hotseat.

"We thought about Guardiola," added Moratti on Gazzetta TV. "But he is very much linked with Barcelona and I don't think he will move for money.

"Spalletti did very well at Roma and he has done well in Russia.

"But I think Spalletti's intentions are to stay there."

Button sets pace in Istanbul

Jenson Button attempted to put his Monaco pain behind him by finishing fastest in practice ahead of Sunday's Turkish Grand Prix.

McLaren team-mate Lewis Hamilton had led the way in the initial 90-minute session at the Istanbul Park before Button gave himself hope of a third win this season, and second in a row at this track.

Button set a time of one minute 28.280secs for the 5.338km track, a fraction quicker than last season's pole lap from Sebastian Vettel for Red Bull, and beating Hamilton's time by 0.4secs.

It is at least a step in the right direction for Button following his third-lap retirement in Monte Carlo 12 days ago due to an overheating engine caused by a foam bung mistakenly left in a sidepod covering the radiator.

Hamilton had to settle for fourth best in the afternoon run, only 0.019secs slower than his time in the morning, as the McLaren duo sandwiched the Red Bulls of Mark Webber and Vettel.

Webber has been the man of the moment of late, winning the last two races in Spain and Monaco at a canter to take over the lead in the championship standings for the first time in his career.

The 33-year-old Australian finished within 0.098secs of Button, but appeared to suffer an issue with his Renault engine in the closing moments.

Webber's Red Bull ground to a halt with wisps of smoke emerging from the engine cover, much to the consternation of team principal Christian Horner.

Behind the leading quartet, who appear certain to be the primary contenders for pole in tomorrow's qualifying, Ferrari's Fernando Alonso finished just under half a second off the pace in fifth.

Mercedes duo Nico Rosberg and Michael Schumacher were sixth and seventh respectively, followed by the Renault pairing of Robert Kubica and Vitaly Petrov, albeit the latter 1.2secs down.

Felipe Massa, a three-times winner of this race from 2006 to 2008, was again considerably in arrears in his Ferrari, finishing in the top 10 but 1.340secs behind Button.

Despite an accident at the formidable Turn Eight at the end of first practice, Force India's Adrian Sutil managed to complete 16 laps in the second session and with the 11th best time.

Lotus' Heikki Kovalainen continues to edge his team closer to the midfield with each race, the Finn 0.7secs behind the 18th-placed Toro Rosso of Jaime Alguersuari after finishing half a second down in the morning.

Hispania Racing's Karun Chandhok, who spun at one point, propped up the timesheets almost 5.5secs behind Button, and 0.3secs adrift of team-mate Bruno Senna who replaced reserve Sakon Yamamoto for the afternoon after the Japanese drove in the morning.

Lampard: I want to play in USA

Frank Lampard has revealed that he is interested in finishing his playing career in the USA.

Lampard has established himself as one of the finest midfielders in the business over the past few years and, at the age of 31, is not thinking about retirement just yet.

But he admits he is already preparing for the future and those plans do not include venturing into management.

"The first thing is after I finish I don't want to be involved with football, not as a manager, coach, agent or in the media. Not interested," Lampard told the Sabotage Times.

"I've been getting to know a lot about property, not just for me to live in, but as a business.

"I have a family to support. I know that might sound strange when you consider the money that's mentioned but I want to have a career after this, I don't want this to be everything.

"I don't want to spend the rest of my life just living in the past."

Lampard still has three years remaining on his Chelsea contract and speculation that he could soon leave the club has recently been dismissed by manager Carlo Ancelotti.

Jose Mourinho is a known admirer of Lampard and reports suggest he could try to take the England international to Real Madrid once his appointment at the Santiago Bernabeu is confirmed.

Transfer talk involving such massive clubs is nothing new for Lampard, who has previously been linked with a move overseas.

But Lampard has hinted that if he does ever secure a move abroad, it could be to follow in the footsteps of David Beckham and play in the MLS at the end of his career.

Asked about Beckham, Lampard said: "It's his decision, isn't it? When he went, I thought, maybe he's gone too early, but the more I thought about it, I thought, if that's what he wants to do, let him do it.

"I'd like to go and play in America when I'm 36 or 35 but you can't take away someone's right to go and play where they want."

Lampard also declared that he thought international football was of a higher standard than the UEFA Champions League.

Lampard claims that it has the edge over European club football's premier competition because it is difficult to do homework on some international players and there are no weak links.

He explained: "With the Champions League you'll know who you are playing against and they'll have their key players, everyone knows about them whereas when you play for England against someone from somewhere like Eastern Europe, Croatia, or somewhere like that, they're all good.

"And you discover that as the games going on, there's not a lot of weaknesses in the international teams so I'd say the standard is definitely higher."

Venus powers her way into fourth round

Venus Williams progressed into the fourth round of the French Open with a straight-sets win over Slovakian Dominika Cibulkova.

The second seed had a comfortable 6-3 6-4 win over her 26th-seeded opponent and took just under 43 minutes to complete the job.

Cibulkova matched Williams in the opening set until a double fault gifted the American a 5-3 lead.

Williams served out the first set but the second was level at 3-3 when Williams broke Cibulkova once again to assert her authority upon the match.

But Williams did not have it all her own way in the next game even though she raced 40-0 ahead. Cibulkova hit back to claim deuce before her opponent took her first advantage point to lead 5-3.

Cibulkova held service in the next game but Williams then served out the match for victory.

Williams faces a fourth-round appointment with the winner of the match between France's 15th seed Aravane Rezai and Russia's 19th seed Nadia Petrova.

Federer marches into third round

Roger Federer produced a near-identical performance to his opening two wins to ease past Julian Reister in round three of the French Open.

Defending champion Federer did not have it all his own way in the first set on Suzanne Lenglen Court, wasting seven break points early on.

But he then reeled off nine games in a row on the way to a 6-4 6-0 6-4 win in just one hour 33 minutes, setting up a last-16 clash with 20th seed Stanislas Wawrinka or Fabio Fognini.

This match-up saw Federer face an opponent who was playing just his fourth event on the main tour, with the German's run to round three the first time he had won back-to-back matches.

The 24-year-old qualifier, who shocked 27th seed Feliciano Lopez in his opening match, made a nervy start to his first meeting with the world number one.

But he recovered from 0-40 and 15-40 down in his first two service games to hold and was 4-3 up on serve when it all went horribly wrong.

He won just one point in his next four service games as Federer took a stranglehold on proceedings, the German gifting his opponent each one of his breaks.

World number 165 Reister stopped the rot by holding his opening two service games in the third set, but Federer broke in game five and that ultimately proved enough.

Murray ready for renewed Baghdatis

Andy Murray is preparing to face Marcos Baghdatis for a place in week two of the French Open.

Murray and Baghdatis both beat the gloom to post second-round wins that ensured their last-32 clash could be scheduled for Suzanne Lenglen Court later.

The pair have not faced each other for three years, a period which has seen Murray soar into the world's top four and Baghdatis slide from a career-high eighth to outside the top 150.

He has since risen back up to 30th, winning a title in Sydney at the start of the year and reaching round three of the Australian Open before being forced to retire during his match.

It is not quite the heights he achieved in reaching the final in Melbourne in 2006 but the Cypriot does appear to be back on the way up.

Speaking after yesterday's French Open second-round win over Marcel Granollers, the 24-year-old said: "I think the last two years I suffered a bit with injuries, and with mind problems.

"I think I'm tougher than what I was before. I'm ready for any problem. I'm ready to find any solution."

Murray said: "Last year, I think, was a bad year for him. He started playing well towards the end of the year, but he was definitely struggling.

"He had a really good win over (David) Ferrer in Australia, and I think he won the tournament the week before as well.

"He's definitely doing a lot better this year.

"It does happen to athletes sometimes where they lose focus or there's other things going on in their life that are making it hard for them to concentrate.

"It's tough, because we're all pretty normal people."

Murray admitted struggling to focus each time he entered the court during his four-act second-round victory over Juan Ignacio Chela.

After play was halted overnight on Wednesday, the Scot survived the loss of the second set and two rain breaks yesterday to complete a 6-2 6-7 (5/7) 6-3 6-2 triumph on Court One at 8.56pm local time.

The 23-year-old said: "The rain delays, I felt slow right at the beginning.

"When you're waiting around a lot of the day, you just feel a little bit lethargic.

"But once we got into some long rallies and spent more time on the court, I felt like I moved really well."

Rain decimated yesterday's schedule, with only six men's singles matches completed - and two-thirds of those were carried over from the previous day.

Fabio Fognini finally completed an epic comeback against French number 13 seed Gael Monfils and John Isner took full advantage of some overnight thinking time to recover from a set down to beat Marco Chiudinelli.

Andy Roddick's four-set win over Blaz Kavcic was one of only two men's singles match to start and finish.

In the women's singles, 2008 champion Ana Ivanovic's miserable grand slam run continued as she was thrashed by number 28 seed Alisa Kleybanova.

Several second-round matches in the men's and women's draw were suspended as darkness fell, with others postponed altogether.

The backlog means Murray, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and the Williams sisters are all scheduled to play.

Sachin rubbishes Dhoni excuse

Contradicting MS Dhoni's views, senior batsman Sachin Tendulkar said IPL parties can not be blamed for India's debacle in the ICC World T20.

India could not reach the semifinals of the Twenty20 World Cup and skipper Dhoni said late night parties and continuous travelling during the Indian Premier League took a toll on the players' body.

Tendulkar, however, begged to differ and said every player should be aware of their responsibilities.

"Parties and performance are two different things that cannot be related and every player should know his responsibility," Tendulkar told reporters after laying foundation stone of an extension of Deenanath Mangeshkar hospital here.

Besides, Tendulkar said parties are not new in cricket.

"Parties used to be held even in the past," he said, laying stress on observing individual's discretion in the matter.

Tendulkar, who led Mumbai Indians to the final of IPL III, said he avoided the parties since he wanted to be fresh for the next day's match.

"I did not go for any of the IPL parties. I always wanted to be ready for the next match," he said.

Tendulkar said every player should know how his body reacts and follow certain things to carry out his duties and responsibilities.

Arguably the greatest batsman ever, Tendulkar said it was important to "understand your body" and strike a balance between play and rest.

Tendulkar also stressed on the importance of physical fitness and mental toughness which helped him to have a prolonged successful career in International cricket.

"Physical fitness helps you in being mentally tough, enhancing you confidence level," the 37-year-old said.

"When pressure builds up in the game I try to focus on the next ball with calmness without thinking of the future course of the match.

"My mood undergoes a change before every match as I start mentally preparing myself for the game," he added.

Asked if he would want his son Arjun to take up the sport, Tendulkar said he would never force him and it would be his own choice.

"It is love and passion for the game that counts. Arjun has a complete freedom to make his choices," Tendulkar said.

Tendulkar has been participating in various charity programmes of late and he said he was doing it for his own satisfaction.

"I have been supporting charities for the last 15 years.

I do it not for publicity but for my own satisfaction," he said.

Earlier, melody queen Lata Mangeshkar who has set up the hospital in the memory of her father, said Sachin deserved not just 'Bharatratna' but 'Vishwaratna' as he was a global icon.

Asked to comment on the remark, Tendulkar simply said, "Her blessings mean a lot for me".

Mourinho: I'll join Real no matter what

Jose Mourinho has vowed to complete his move to Real Madrid even if he has to do it "the hard way".

The Portuguese coach's switch from Inter Milan seemed a formality when he led the Nerazzurri to Champions League glory at Madrid's Bernabeu stadium.

But negotiations are dragging on longer than expected and Madrid's director general Jorge Valdano said there was little chance Mourinho would be presented until next week.

"I don't want to leave Inter on bad terms but I am sure that I will coach Real Madrid whether I have to do it the easy way or the hard way," Mourinho told AS.

"I am already part of the history of Inter and vice versa. They know how I am and know that a new contract or earning more money would not change my mind.

"They know it's not worth fighting for me."

Madrid sacked Manuel Pellegrini on Wednesday night and outlined their intention to replace him with Mourinho once both they and the former Chelsea boss had negotiated his release from Inter Milan.

Those talks are ongoing although the two clubs have yet to reach a compromise on compensation with Inter maintaining their desire to receive the full 16 million euros (just over £13.5million) due to them under the terms of Mourinho's contract.

Inter sporting director Marco Branca stated "Inter are in no hurry" and the club "will not yield on the payment of the clause".

The stalemate has resulted in a slight delay to Madrid's plans to unveil Mourinho with Valdano admitting: "Mourinho will arrive in Madrid, probably next week.

"He may arrive on Tuesday, Monday is almost impossible."

Mourinho does not seem overly concerned though.

"The situation with regards to negotiations with Inter is the normal process so that we end up reaching an agreement," he said.

"I want people to know that my desire is to go to Real Madrid and I think they have already realised that."

Mourinho's European success with Inter came playing a relatively defensive style - something which would be unlikely to please the Madrid fans.

Mourinho believes the style of play is dictated by the players available, though, not the manager.

"We have to know what we have and apply it in the best possible way to create damage," he said.

"Madrid has Cristiano Ronaldo and Kaka that are very good on one-on-ones.

"We have to find a style of play that allows them to do that.

"The principles of play depend on the players you have."

He continued: "I think Madrid have signed me because they know that they can demand aims in the short term but that I am also capable of leaving a base for the future.

"It's clear that I work for myself but also for clubs.

"At Chelsea you can see scouts and physical trainers that I left there. The same goes for Inter.

"I want to leave a mark at this club, not only with titles but with other things.

"I promise from my first day that I will bring out the best in the players, that I will take care of them.

"My idea is once I am unveiled to remain in Madrid for a week to work and put things into place before going on holiday with my family.

"I am tired but looking forward to start at Madrid."

It is widely anticipated that Mourinho will want to change the structure at Madrid, taking full control of transfer dealings.

That could spell bad news for sporting director Miguel Pardeza.

But Mourinho said: "There are people who think I'm a dictator, who doesn't like to work with a sporting director, but on the contrary, I like to work in a group, give responsibility to other people.

"I am loyal with those that work with me."

A Shabash for Shahbaaz Khan

After an impressive run at the Asian Juniors, Shahbaaz Khan wants to test his big serve on the Wimbledon greens.

By Mridubha Kumar & Bhagya L Ayyavoo

A giant-killer was on the prowl at the Asian Junior Tennis Championships in New Delhi. Shahbaaz Khan made headlines this week when he upset 10th-seeded Yuki Maramatsu of Japan in the opener and later Uzbekistan's Artem Tarasov.

The 17-year-old Mumbai lad's run was finally stopped by Ronit Bisht in the pre-quarterfinal at the RK Khanna Stadium on Thursday.

Shahbaaz' dream run began when be bounced back to knock out Yuki 1-6, 6-4, 6-4. Going back to the match against Yuki, who is close to 300 places above him, the big-serving Shahbaaz said: "There was no will to win initially. I was very lazy and I kept missing all the shots. But I knew I can win if I stop missing. In the second and third set I started concentrating more, got my big serves in and they worked. When my serve comes I am more confident and I try to be more aggressive."

On Day 2, the big-serving Tarasov fell to Shahbaaz's new-found appetite. "Win over Yuki boosted my confidence. But I was trying to whack everything in the first game. And that helped him (Tarasov). He liked it coming with a lot of pace. And, I lost my first game 0-40. Tarasov's serves are big and he went up 2-0 in no time."

Soon Shahbaaz figured out that the trick was to "keep rallying and not give him any pace". It worked, as he accounted for the youngster from Uzbekistan 7-6 (6), 6-4.

Fifth-seeded Ronit, however, ended the Khan show the following day. The Mumbaikar managed to seal the first set in the tiebreak, but 14-year-old Ronit, having never lost a match to Shahbaaz in recent times, registered a marvelous turnaround to triumph 6-7(4), 6-0, 6-2.

"In the second set, my legs were too sore and I was just trying to finish off the points too early and started missing," said a dejected Shahbaaz after the match.

Shahbaaz now has his sights set on the Wimbledon junior event. "This tournament was important for me. I was trying to win this. Unfortunately it didn't happen. I have to at least win a Grade 1 tournament abroad to boost my ranking. This is my last year in the junior circuit. If I do well there I can play the Grand Slams (junior)," concluded Shahbaaz, who is ranked No.546.

Serena wastes no time in sunshine

Serena Williams now has plenty of recovery time for the third round of the French Open by sweeping past Julia Goerges.

Williams' second-round meeting with Goerges fell victim to the weather, meaning the world number one will be back on court again.

The outing in glorious sunshine proved little more than a practice match, the 28-year-old spending just 55 minutes on Suzanne Lenglen Court in winning 6-1 6-1.

Williams, who will play either 29th seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova or Jill Craybas next, could not have wished for a more straightforward first set.

Unlike her opening win over Stefanie Voegele, she was almost never troubled by her German opponent, ominously breaking to love in game four before securing a double-break at the third attempt two games later.

Facing Williams for the first time, world number 77 Goerges' serve disintegrated at the start of the second set, the 21-year-old double-faulting four times to gift the American a double break.

She ended a nine-game losing streak by saving break point in game five but she was just delaying the inevitable, dropping serve again to Williams, who has only once failed to reach the last 32 of a grand slam.

Nadal smashes into third round

Rafael Nadal made short work of Argentinian Horacio Zeballas to reach the third round of the French Open at Roland Garros.

Nadal enjoyed a straight-sets win over an opponent ranked 44th in the world, taking the first set 6-2 on Philippe Chatrier Court.

Nadal won the second set by the same score when his opponent hit a backhand cross-court shot wide and then wrapped up the match by winning the third set, but only after a spirited fightback from Zeballas.

Nadal broke his opponent twice to lead 4-0 but lost his own serve in the fifth game.

Zeballas made the most of the break by holding his own service game to trail 4-2 in the set and then broke Nadal once more to trail by one game.

But Nadal broke back and then served out the set to win 6-2 6-2 6-3.

Nadal's match had been postponed yesterday because of delays caused by the rain and he is scheduled to play again tomorrow when he will take on the winner of the the clash between Lleyton Hewitt and Denis Istomin.

Roddick wins despite serve trouble

Andy Roddick lost his famous serve seven times but was still able to post a four-set win to reach the last 32 of the French Open.

The American, who holds the world record for service speed at 155mph, emerged a 6-3 5-7 6-4 6-2 winner from his clash with unheralded Slovenian Blaz Kavcic.

On a damp day in Paris, conditions were heavy and Roddick admitted afterwards it was a struggle.

"It was brutal for me out there," he said. "I couldn't get my serve to go anywhere and the ball was just sitting up.

"I woke up this morning, looked out my window, and knew that it was going to be a long one.''

The clay shows little respect to Roddick's fearsome delivery at the best of times and the man who held serve for 37 consecutive games in last year's Wimbledon final was broken in only his third service game of this match.

However, with Kavcic's delivery also coming under constant threat, Roddick was able to take the opening set.

It was 5-5 in the second set when rain arrived to interrupt and when the players resumed it was Kavcic who was able to settle first, breaking serve and squaring the contest.

Roddick, who had been taken the distance in his first match, appeared keen to wrap this one up quicker when he secured a double break to lead 3-0 in the third and although his opponent was able to retrieve one break, the sixth seed managed to clinch the set.

With Kavcic's resolve broken, the fourth set saw Roddick move comfortably on to victory and a place in round three where he will play Russia's Teimuraz Gabashvili.

Hernandez deal complete

Manchester United have completed the signing of striker Javier Hernandez after he was granted a work permit.

 

United last month agreed a fee with Mexican side Guadalajara for the 22-year-old before the player also completed a medical and agreed personal terms.

United had only been awaiting confirmation of his work permit to complete his transfer, which will go through on 1st July.

A statement on the club's official website confirmed: "Manchester United is pleased to announce that Javier 'Chicharito' Hernandez has been granted a work permit and will join the club on 1 July 2010."

Hernandez's confirmation as a United player had been held up because he had played less than 75 per cent of Mexico's internationals during the past two years.

quick glimpse

He is, however, set to be a part of the Mexico squad at the World Cup finals in South Africa following which he is due to join United's squad for the Philadelphia leg of their pre-season tour of the United States and Canada.

Hernandez, who is nicknamed 'Chicharito', described his move to Old Trafford as "living the dream" after he completed his medical in Manchester last month.

United fans got a quick glimpse of his talents when he made a substitute appearance for Mexico against England in their 3-1 defeat at Wembley on Monday, before he scored in a 2-1 friendly loss against Holland 0n Wednesday.

Hernandez's signing is the first time that United have done a deal for a Mexican player.

When the deal was initially struck, United manager Sir Alex Ferguson described Hernandez as "an exciting young striker".

"He has been in prolific form for both his club and his country," Ferguson added at the time. "He will be a great addition to our squad." 

Anelka eyes World Cup debut glory

Nicolas Anelka wants to celebrate his debut World Cup by bringing home the coveted Jules Rimet trophy.

Although now 31 years of age, the striker has never represented his country in the World Cup and he wants to make amends for the late debut in the grandest way possible - by winning the title.

In comments reported by the Daily Mail, he said: "It's a very big competition for any player, I have never taken part in it before and I am very happy to get the chance."

"There's no point playing just for the sake of it. We will only be happy if we've played well and if we've won it. Why not?"

"We think we can win it and we have the players to do so," said the Chelsea forward.

"We have been working well physically and tactically and we can't wait to see what it brings out on the field."

Anelka has won nearly every major trophy football has to offer.

He has won two league doubles - one each with Arsenal and Chelsea, UEFA Champions League with Real Madrid as well as the European Championships with France in 2000.

He also won the Premier League's Golden Boot award in the 2008/09 season. Winning the World Cup would thus embellish an already spectacular resume.

Hart delighted with keeper camaraderie

Joe Hart is delighted with the spirit amongst the three keepers competing for a place in England's World Cup squad.

Veteran custodians Robert Green and David James, along with Hart, are fighting for the number one spot in the England line-up for the World Cup finals in South Africa.

23-year-old Hart is the youngest of the three and made his England debut in the 3-1 friendly win over Mexico at Wembley on Monday.

Speaking to The Mirror later, he said: "Jamo [David James] is a legend and I can learn a lot from him.""I wish he'd make me his 'project' and teach me all he knows!

"There's definitely a camaraderie between the keepers. We train together far more regularly than we do with anyone else in the squad.

"Greeny [Robert Green] and Jamo have great experience over me and I'm looking to learn off that. They are two big personalities and good people to be around."

The Birmingham keeper was also overjoyed by his first Wembley outing.

"It felt brilliant," he said.

"It was the biggest crowd I've ever played in front of - and maybe ever will.

"It was a great atmosphere and a great honour for me personally. You don't really get butterflies because you never really know if you're playing until an hour-and-a-half before kick-off so it's just a case of focusing really.

"I just knew that if I did get my chance, I had to take it. I felt confident and it's a great being around such good players. That really gives you confidence and I feel privileged to be involved at this stage."

Torres provides boost for Spain

Fernando Torres handed Spain a lift by working with the rest of the squad for the first time since knee surgery.

The Liverpool striker went under the knife on April 18 to repair torn cartilage in his right knee and appears well on target to return inside the six-week rehabilitation period forecast by his doctors.

The 26-year-old joined up with the rest of Vicente del Bosque's 23-man squad in a light training session today that featured a half-hour practice match.

The Spanish federation (RFEF) revealed Torres' workload would increase over the coming days, although time is on his side with nearly three weeks to go before Spain's opening World Cup Group H match against Switzerland on June 16.

Torres' return has been welcomed by his team-mates, with Barcelona defender Gerard Pique saying: "It's great to have Fernando training with us.

"This is an important player for us and hopefully he can be ready for the first World Cup match."

Valencia winger Juan Mata added: "He is eager to start training and says he will be fit for the opener. This is good news."

Spain's World Cup preparations step up a gear with a warm-up match against Saudi Arabia in Innsbruck on Saturday before facing South Korea on June 3 and Poland five days later.

The European champions also face Honduras and Chile in the group stage in South Africa.

England hit by Stephen Warnock worry

England were hit with a World Cup injury scare in training when full-back Stephen Warnock limped out with a twisted ankle.

Warnock is hoping to play some part in Sunday's friendly against Japan in Graz in order to press his claims for a place in the 23-man squad that Fabio Capello will unveil on June 1.

However, Warnock will now need to be assessed before it is known whether he will be able to resume training on Friday.

Although he was rated an outsider to go to South Africa, Leighton Baines' modest display against Mexico on Monday night meant Warnock was still in with a chance of being named as back-up to first choice left-back Ashley Cole.

Sources close to the England camp also played down speculation that Steven Gerrard had limped out.

The Liverpool skipper is clearly a key part of Fabio Capello's plans and did stop training today to do some stretching exercises.

However, he was able to complete the session and is expected to be involved against Japan, who were beaten on home soil by South Korean earlier this week.

Happily for Darren Bent, the Sunderland man has also shrugged off the hamstring problem that prevented him from facing the Mexicans and is also in contention for the weekend.

Capello has already confirmed Ledley King will not take part, whilst the Chelsea contingent of John Terry, Frank Lampard and Cole will play, although the presence of Joe Cole in the Italian's starting line-up is less certain.