BERLIN: World number two Roger Federer closed in on his sixth Halle Open title with a tough 7-6 6-4 win over local favourite Philipp Petzschner in the semi-finals in Germany on Saturday. Federer, knocked off the number one spot by Rafael Nadal this week, will meet Lleyton Hewitt in the

RUSTENBURG: A shocking schoolboy howler from England goalkeeper Robert Green gifted the United States a goal as the two sides tipped to qualify from Group C battled to a 1-1 stalemate at the Royal Bafokeng Stadium on Saturday. Green, 29, winning only his 11th England cap after being

DHAKA: Host South Africa shared points with Mexico in the opening match as the World Cup football 2010 kicked off at Johannesburg Soccer City Stadium Friday amid a pan-African symphony.The match ended with a 1-1 draw.The home team showed a very enthusiastic performance as the 82nd team of

JOHANNESBURG: Argentina`s Lionel Messi, potentially the tournament`s most exciting player, takes the stage for the first time on Saturday after South Africa launched a spectacular opening to the continent`s first World Cup. The globe`s most watched sports event met all expectations on

JOHANNESBURG: Dedicated South African soccer fans braved freezing weather to queue overnight in a last-minute scramble to get tickets for Friday`s opening match in the first World Cup finals to be held on African soil. The queue outside the FIFA ticket office in the upmarket Sandton

CAPE TOWN: France failed to rise to the occasion again on Friday when a lacklustre performance in a tepid 0-0 draw with Uruguay handed the initiative to their lesser-ranked World Cup Group A rivals. After South Africa and Mexico drew 1-1 in the tournament curtain-raiser in Johannesburg,

DURBAN: The great weight of German expectation will slam headlong into a wall of Australian defensive grit and muscle when the spectacular new Moses Mabhida stadium hosts its first World Cup match on Sunday. Germany`s World Cup pedigree -- three titles, four-times losing finalists and

IRENE, South Africa: World champions Italy beat local team the Guateng All Stars 6-0 in a practice match at their Southdowns College training base here on Friday. Coach Marcello Lippi gave his clearest indication yet of what his World Cup starting XI and formation will be as he played

CAPE TOWN: With Brazil massive favourites and North Korea the rank outsiders the pivotal issue in World Cup Group G could be decided in its first game in Port Elizabeth when Ivory Coast take on Portugal. In fact, the entire group order is likely to be heavily influenced by whether

JOHANNESBURG: Brazil kicked off their World Cup rivalry with Argentina on Friday when striker Luis Fabiano said his team oozed happiness and complained others were bitter, aiming his taunt at his country`s neighbours. "Happiness is inside us," Luis Fabiano told reporters. "If they`re not

PRETORIA: Diego Maradona, the greatest footballer of his era, said on Friday he hoped his World Cup ace Lionel Messi would come to be regarded as the best player ever. "I wish with all my heart for Lio to have a superb tournament and be the best of all time definitively," Argentina`s

JOHANNESBURG: A joyous day for South Africa. A not quite perfect result. South Africa gave up the lead on a goal by Mexico`s Rafael Marquez in the 79th minute and settled for a 1-1 draw Friday before 84,000 horn-blaring fans, whose euphoria over the start of the first World Cup on the

LOS ANGELES: Of all the storylines dominating the build-up to next week`s U.S. Open at Pebble Beach, perhaps the most intriguing is Phil Mickelson`s emotional bid for a second consecutive major. The American left-hander has never won his national open where he has been one of the most

JOHANNESBURG: Former World Cup winners Patrick Vieira and Geoff Hurst have picked Spain as their team to win the tournament being hosted for the first time on African soil. Hurst, who scored a hat-trick when England won the 1966 World Cup final at home, and former French captain Vieira,

PRETORIA: Never write off the Italians is a World Cup cliche many pundits have ignored this time around such is the lack of buzz around the defending champions. Marcello Lippi`s team are being dismissed as past their sell-by date and 36-year-old captain Fabio Cannavaro`s move last week

JOHANNESBURG: Former South African President Nelson MandelaÔÇÖs 13-year-old great granddaughter was killed in a car crash on Friday after leaving a concert ahead of the World Cup kick off, the Nelson Mandela Foundation said. Mandela, 91, is widely credited with helping South Africa

JOHANNESBURG: The once-improbable dream of a World Cup in Africa kicks off on Friday when Mexico face the home team in the deafening cauldron of Johannesburg`s 90,000-seat Soccer City stadium. The Mexicans will have to contend not only an army of jiving supporters in a frenzy of

MAGALIESBURG, South Africa: Portugal winger Cristiano Ronaldo and coach Carlos Queiroz visited former South African president Nelson Mandela and offered him a team shirt with his name on the back, the Portuguese Football Federation said on Thursday. "As result of a personal invitation

MEMPHIS: Lee Westwood gave himself a timely boost for next week`s U.S. Open by rocketing into a one-shot lead in the opening round of the St. Jude Classic on Thursday. The English world number three, the highest-ranked player in the field, took advantage of calm morning weather and

IRENE, South Africa: England manager Fabio Capello has drilled home the message to his team that set-pieces can be the difference between winning and losing at the World Cup and the United States have clearly taken note. With free-kick specialists Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard, the