Maria Sharapova recovered after going down in the first set against Carla Suarez Navarro to win her third Italian Open title in Rome on Sunday. Sharapova’s victory will be a great boost to her confidence ahead of the French Open that debuts next weekend, where the Russian champion hopes to defend her title.

Sharapova won 4-6, 7-5, 6-1 against 10^th favorite Carla Suarez Navarro of Spain, at the end of a highly contested game that lasted just over two and a half hours. “It’s always a special victory,” she said after receiving her trophy. “It isn’t my first time but when I’m able to hold the trophy again it brings back memories of winning it the first time.”

The Russian player has won no less than three of the last five titles in Rome, after having finished on top in 2011 and 2012. This proves her supremacy on clay surfaces, an important thing to consider ahead of the Roland Garros, which starts in about a week. The Italian Open was a good roundabout ahead of the only Grand Slam tournament that takes place on clay, and Sharapova will surely be one of the contenders in Paris.

Starting off as third favorite in Rome, in took Sharapova a while before figuring out her opponent’s play at the Foro Italico on Sunday. Suarez Navarro’s game was rather unpredictable, as the Spaniard effortlessly combined heavy topspin shots with slices. Renowned for her deceiving one-handed backhand, Suarez Navarro won the first set 6-4 and looked in good shape to take the title.

But Sharapova quickly regained control of the encounter, and went ahead 3-1 and 5-3 in the second set. Each time the Spaniard put it a good fight, and eventually the two players were level at 5-5. However, Suarez Navarro was showing signs of tiredness, and after closing the second set at 7-5, Sharapova had little trouble winning 6-1 in the decisive.

In the end, it was Sharapova’s 39 winners that brought her the victory, compared to only 12 for her opponent. After having won the 35^th title of her career (11 of which came on clay), Sharapova will get back to the No. 2 spot of the WTA rankings, after Simona Halep lost against Suarez Navarro in the semifinals.

As for her opponent, Rome was Suarez Navarro’s third final of the year. Although she finished second each time, she constantly put in some good performances throughout the year, enough to climb up to the No. 8 spot in the rankings.

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Juventus Torino and Barcelona are the two teams who will meet in the 2015 UEFA Champions League final. After Barcelona eliminated German champions Bayern Munich on Tuesday night, Juventus held onto a draw against defending champions Real Madrid last night to secure their place in the final act of the competition.

The Champions League Final is the single biggest event in European football, and being part of it is very rewarding, both financially and in terms of prestige. It is the most competitive football competition on the planet, comparable only to events such as the Super Bowl or a grand slam final in tennis.

Juventus went through on a 3-2 aggregate win, although the team only managed to get away with a draw from Madrid on Wednesday. But thanks to a 2-1 draw in the first leg, the predicted ‘El Clasico’ final between Real Madrid and Barcelona will not take place this year.

Despite being considered the underdogs in the clash, the Italian side defended their first leg lead very well in Madrid, and the 58^th minute equalizer from Juventus’ Spanish striker Alvaro Morata sealed the deal. There were mixed feelings for the former Real Madrid player after scoring the goal that knocked his childhood favorite team out of the competition.

“I didn’t celebrate the goal, I was never going to,” Morata said after the game. “It was a bittersweet and strange sensation for me. I wish I had scored against another team.” The footballer joined Juventus last year from Real Madrid, in a deal estimated around $23 million.

Many football fans were skeptical about Juventus’ chances to progress to the final, and Real Madrid was expected to undo the one goal handicap by scoring several times on Santiago Bernabeu. The Spanish side’s offensive options seem unlimited, with the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale leading the ranks.

Moreover, after Barcelona went by Bayern Munich on Tuesday, pundits anticipated a clash between the two huge Spanish rivals. Surprisingly, the Champions League was never decided by a match between the two giants, although they won no less than fourteen trophies between them. Juventus, on the other hand, only has two.

Well, it’s not going to happen this time either. For Juventus, this will be the first final they play in since the 2002/03 season, when they lost against Italian rivals AC Milan, who were led then by Real Madrid’s current coach, Carlo Ancelotti. Having not one the competition since 1996, when they beat Ajax Amsterdam, Juventus will not have an easy task against Barcelona.

It is a mouth of fresh air for Italian football, whose national football championship – the Serie A – has been seriously struggling in recent years. Bookmaking scandals and a lack of investors have almost brought the competition into ruin, with Juventus being the only team to stand out on occasions.

For Real Madrid, their chances of winning a trophy this season are now over, and Ancelotti’s future at the helm of the team is hanging in balance.

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On Monday night, the Golden State Warriors ousted the Memphis Grizzlies 101-84 and evened the Western Conference semifinals at two games apiece. Their victory was mainly due to their MVP player Stephen Curry, who played at his best, and a flawless defense, which worked miracles on court.

Curry had already 21 points by the end of the second quarter and finished Game 4 with a total 33. Coach Kerr was happy to see his team play once more at the same level which allowed the Warriors wreak havoc among other teams during the regular season.

And the Grizzlies were a redoubtable opponent since it had previously managed to beat Golden State. But it remains to be seen whether they would manage to draw enough energy to beat the Warriors on their home court on Game 5 this Wednesday night.

After last night’s game, coach Kerr deemed the game the team’s “most competitive effort,” at least of the series. He also said that the game taught Golden State players that they needed to play every single second if they wanted positive results at that crucial point in the series.

Game 4, however, was indeed one of the Warriors’ remarkable achievements since they were able to avoid losing three games in a row and they took home court advantage. Additionally, Curry, who couldn’t score more than 23 points in a game in postseason, already had 21 by halftime.

Warriors forward Draymond Green fetched 16 points and 10 rebounds and shooting guard Klay Thompson finished with 15 points. Next in line were small forward Harrison Barnes and forward Andre Iguodala with 12, respectively 11 points.

“We set the tone the first quarter and kept the foot on the gas pedal the whole way, and that’s how we play,”

said the team’s MVP star.

The most notable players of the night from Memphis were center Marc Gasol with his 19 points and 10 rebounds and power forward Zach Randolph with 12 points and 11 rebounds.

Nevertheless, the Warriors admitted that they were really close to losing the series if they didn’t played like they were supposed to. Center Andrew Bogut said that a 3-1 deficit while heading home was a pretty daunting task, but evening 2-2 a three-game series boosted the team’s morals.

On Monday, Memphis lost its forth consecutive Game 4 in a postseason series. Last year, the defeat was even bitterer because they lost on their home court. Somehow, they seem to have loosened up their defense and have slim chances to regain momentum any time soon.

The Grizzlies explained that they have failed to maintain their composure in the first quarter, although they had a good chance of winning early in the first half. One of the players said that defense was affected because offense “really struggled.”

In the first half, Memphis had a brief 9-8 lead, but failed to lead within double digits later on. On the other hand, Golden State were on the loose. When they regained their focus and offensive rhythm, they managed to lead by 26 points and knock down 14 three pointers to offset 21 turnovers.

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On Sunday, Andy Murray beat Rafael Nadal 6-3 6-2 and fetched his first clay Masters title. Murray had fallen short against Nadal in six other games, so this weekend’s win took just about everyone by surprise.

The Mallorcan was aiming to break his record and secure a fifth consecutive win in Madrid, but the Briton was keener. On Monday, Murray lifted his first clay-court crown in Munich, so he has currently two clay titles in less than a week.

“It’s one of the hardest things in tennis to try and win against Rafa on clay, so I’m glad I’ve managed to do it,”

he told reporters.

Murray also said that he managed to keep errors at a minimum and change the ball’s height extremely well, which forced Nadal to mistime a few shots. Surprisingly, Nadal somehow lost momentum before of this match, since he didn’t miss a single set before the final and seemed to be in his best shape before the French Open.

This defeat will place him on the seven spot in world rankings, depriving him of the top five first time in a decade. Also, for some of his top-seeded contestants, he may become an unwelcome opponent.

Nadal is currently preparing for Roland Garos where he will try to win a 10th title. But Murray looks like a serious contender after Madrid.

The Scot argued that he had had experience with Roland Garos. He recalled that last year he was not prepared to win, but two years ago, when he faced Nadal, he played “well.” He acknowledged that he was not one of the French Open favorites but if he would manage to play as well as he did a couple of years ago against Nadal he would give himself an opportunity.

Still, he may need more than just determination to win the French Open since he may meet there a fully-rested and fully-energized Novak Djokovic.

But last week’s first win on clay seems to have boosted his confidence – he was able to secure 12 of the first 14 points and a 3-0 lead in no time. He was both aggressive but also patient while trying to defend three break points before stealing the first set from Nadal.

In the second set, Murray did not allow his Spanish opponent to regain focus. He continued his powerful play from the first set and showed the same focus and confidence he displayed at start. One tennis correspondent said he managed to keep the ball “deep in the court,” while looking “comfortable” when launching his attacks.

Murray also said that his balanced personal life had much to do with his recent Madrid victory. He married his 10 year girlfriend Kim Sears on April 11 and attached his wedding ring to his left shoe before the match. He also wrote “Marriage works” on a camera lens shortly after the win.

However, although he said “happy personal stuff” had much to do with his performance, he acknowledged that he trained more this year and felt healthier and in better shape than he did the previous years when he played on clay.

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Last night, Patriots star point guard Chris Paul was back in business. He and Austin Rivers managed to carry the LA Clippers to a 124-99 win over the Houston Rockets in Game 3 of the Western Conference semifinals.

Seeing him on court at Staples Center was a great surprise, since he was still recovering from a strained hamstring that made him skip two games. His flawless play secured his team an easy win by the end of the third quarter.

But it is not the first time he ignores his physical drawbacks to focus solely on the game. He did it again six days ago when he performed a shot that sealed a win on his home court.

“If I could give anything to help the team, I wanted to do it. I got through it,”

he said after the game.

And he did give anything he could to help his club. In the third quarter, he even lost temporarily control when he tried to grab the ball from Houston forward Terrence Jones but managed to throw the latter on the floor.

But most of his team possessions had a favorable result on his watch. In the end, he scored a dozen points and seven assists in less than 23 minutes. And although his scoring and his five out 12 shots were not as challenging as the game he pulled off, his presence alone did contribute to his team’s fourth win that propelled them towards the series’ finals for the first time ever.

Coach Doc Rivers said after the game that he believed Paul’s passing at the start of the game set a tone for the whole team.

In the third quarter, he also helped teammate Austin Rivers to continue with an 18 straight point scoring spree that resulted in a payoff-career-high 25 points. In the last quarter, he played no more than 73 seconds, but just about everyone knew at that moment who the definite winner was since the Clippers were already leading by a whopping 32 points.

The win was Paul’s another major achievement when looking back at his hold-your-breath running jumper in Game 7 of the first round that secured Los Angeles a victory over the Spurs in the last second of the game.

But although the injury on that night was severe enough to keep him off the court, he watched closely his teammates play and  stole Game 1 from Houston on the latter’s home court. He said that he yearned to “be part of the action” as he was stressing out while watching on a bench Game 1 and Game 2.

But on Friday night, other Clippers players  stood in the limelight. Shooting guard J.J. Redick nailed a playoff career-high 31 points, while forward Blake Griffin contributed with 22 more. Griffin also had 14 rebounds.

But the major surprise of the evening was Couch Rivers’ son, Austin Rivers. Rivers jr. managed to finish with a career-high 25 points in a playoff series and perform a crucial run at the end of the third quarter.

His father seemed very pleased with his performance. He instructed his son before the game to hold a “very aggressive” stance, which is the exact thing he did.

Chris Paul described Austin’s performance “unbelievable.”

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After a Game 2 loss to the Houston Rockets, the Los Angeles Clippers are now preparing for this Friday’s third game of the conference semifinals. And some say that they will have a fair chance of winning if Black Griffin keeps up the good work.

Los Angeles already proved that they are a rock-solid team that can win even though they had to employ Austin Rivers as their point guard in Game 1. Chris Paul, who missed the game because of a strained hamstring, was not able to participate in Game 2 either, and his status for Game 3 is uncertain.

Yet, replacing Paul with Rivers in Game 3 could turn out a risky business. Rivers has six fouls, which is more than his total assists in the series. Although, he finished with 17 points on Monday, he only had 10 points Wednesday, and performed a late turnover that cost his team four points in the last 27 seconds.

But despite Paul’s absence, Blake Griffin took the lead and his double triple carried the team to a 117-101 victory early this week. On the other hand, critics say that it was just pure luck since the team was able to take advantage on the Rockets lack of cohesion and momentum.

But we will all have to wait and see in Game 3 if that was really the case. Yet, having Paul on board their odds would more than double. He was seen Thursday training on the court but no one knows whether he would be able to play Friday.

Although coach Doc Rivers announced that Paul was getting better, the “eye and feel test” will eventually decide the fate of the player in Game 3. But even without him on the court, Griffin managed to pull off alone a brilliant performance through six quarters against the Rockets.

He finished Game 1 with 26 points, 13 assists and 14 rebounds, and scored 26 points by halftime in Game 2 securing the Clippers a 65-56 lead. But as the Rockets rallied in the second half, Griffin could only pull out eight points and see his team lose 115-109 and a 13-point lead.

Griffin said that his team couldn’t predict in due time Houston’s clogged defensive tactics. So they currently plan to better predict them and react accordingly. Especially in Game 3 where home court is at stake.

“Definitely feels like we let one get away. We came here to win two, but we’re going back with home court now. Got to protect home court,”

Grifffin added.

On the other hand, Houston has increased odds of success since James Harden seems to have waked up from his Game 1 nightmare. Wednesday, he scored 32 points, half of them in the fourth quarter. But on Monday, he was able to finish with only 20 points, which is his lowest playoffs scoring to date.

Before Game 2, Harden said that letting Game 1 slipping away wouldn’t happen again. He also said that although the two games would be “tough,” their “mojo” was back. Recently, he also said that the team was ready to go into Game 3 as they have rebuilt momentum.

Image Source: LA Times

According to the Deflategate report released Wednesday, it was “more probable than not” that New Orleans Patriots deflate footballs before the game against Indianapolis five months ago. The 243-page report revealed that, although the club’s general manager and coach Bill Belichick had no idea what was going on, Patriots’ quarterback Tom Brady was “at least generally aware” of the practice.

Main investigator Ted Wells wrote in the report that two of the team’s employees may have doctored the balls below NFL’s standard of at least 12.5 pounds per square inch. Wells pointed the finger at Jim McNally, Pats’ locker room attendant, and equipment asst John Jastremski.

According to the report, McNally, who signed his text messages as “the Deflator” was awarded money, signed footballs and expensive Patriots-branded shoes in return. Before the most important home game of the season, he took 13 footballs into a bathroom where he deflated them with a needle. Shortly after, he delivered them to the field.

Yet the text message exchange between the two employees circumstantially involves Tom Brady. Although, Brady declined any involvement, Wells reported that his claims lack any basis and were at odds with “other evidence.”

And that “other evidence” may refer to six phone calls between Brady and Jastremski over the course of three days before their home game against Indianapolis. The two hadn’t had a phone conversation in more than 6 months before that time.

But Wells’ investigation was severely hindered by Brady’s refusal to disclose any of his private e-mails, text messages or phone records from that period. Nevertheless, Wells does not call him a cheater in the report. And evidence against him is mainly circumstantial.

About nine years ago, Patriots’ star quarterback was involved in the rewriting of the NFL rules that allowed visiting teams to bring their own footballs, which would be later used for offense-related purposes.

Yet, Wells also said that he believed that the two employees couldn’t have issued the plan and enforce it without Brady’s approval or at least him being aware.

The league is now deliberating on the most suitable penalties. However, there are a lot of people that think the Deflategate report is flawed. Bill Polian harshly criticized Wells’ conclusions and the willingness of the league to penalize a team that was “more probable than not” involved in the violation.

But just about everyone eyes are on Brady, who is either seen as the team’s scapegoat or a cheater. While some advocate for his suspension or try to defend him, others just froze their bets on the Patriots until the problem gets solved.

Although couch Belichick was caught and penalized for cheating eight years ago, the league found him clean this time. While Robert Kraft found the Deflategate report’s conclusions “incomprehensible,” he said that the team would accept any discipline.

The report found that McNally spent nearly “100 seconds” in a bathroom where he probably used a needle to lower pressure in the 13 balls.

Wells also questioned Walt Anderson’s integrity as he failed to spot the difference at the beginning of the game, which has never happened to him over his 20-year career.

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Warriors star point guard Stephen Curry was handed the trophy as the NBA’s Most Valuable Player Monday in Oakland after people saw him shaking his head in disbelief as he learned about his nomination.

And many other people maybe shook their heads in disbelief as few of them gave him credit for his achievements. Curry’s size and frail looks worked against him since high-school when nobody risked granting him a scholarship. Moreover, countless coaches overlooked him and his hidden potential.

But on Monday he proved just about everybody that you can keep a low-profile and still be the best player out there. After all, he won over media’s sweethearts James “the Beard” Harden and LeBron “King” James.

“There were obviously good times and bad times. Times I wanted to shut it down. It just made me feel like how blessed and thankful I am to be in this position,”

a visibly emotional Curry said at the ceremony.

He also share a few tears with his father as he was delivering the speech for the league’s top honor an individual player can get.

About 129 experts and broadcasters were involved in the MVP vote, while only one vote came from the fan base. About 100 of 130 voters decided that Curry was the most suited to be MVP, 25 voters put their bets on James Harden, while only five voters expressed their confidence that the best MVP choice was (again) LeBron James.

LeBron James, who won the MVP award four times, raked 552 points, Harden 936, and Curry totaled 1,198. Oklahoma’s Russell Westbrook landed on the fourth spot, while Pelicans’ Anthony Davis finished the fifth.

As his family members were watching from the front row, Curry stepped on the stage along with his teammates, coach Kerr, and the club’s current GM Bob Myers. He found it hard to pull out a coherent speech as he was visibly struggling with emotions especially when he talked about his family.

He mentioned his 2-year-old child and his now-pregnant wife Ayesha, who was smiling back at him from a front seat. Yet, when he mentioned his father he couldn’t stop his tears from falling. He said that he hadn’t had it easy with a former NBA player “pop,” although a lot of people believed exactly the opposite.

Towards the end of his speech he didn’t forget to mention and thank every single teammate and staff member. He also expressed his gratitude towards the club’s former general manager who gave “a scrawny, little kid from a mid-major school” a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

With Curry on board, Warriors earned 67 victories and saw a skyrocketing rise on NBA’s ladder. LeBron even called him “the catalyst of that whole ship.” James said that he well deserved the award and showed no signs of distress over the loss.

And Curry did deserve it. He first had to struggle to grow out of his father’s shadow. Then he struggled to obtain a scholarship after finishing high school, but no one offered him one because he was too small according to NCAA’s standards.

Nevertheless, he managed to polish his own style and gradually morph into a professional point guard that could control the flow of the game without overpowering his opponents.

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On Sunday, top-seeded Roger Federer took the title at ATP Istanbul Open by defeating third-seeded Pablo Cuevas 6-3, 7-6 (11). He also ended his three-year clay title drought, while this Sunday’s win was the first red-clay title in more than five years and his 85^th career crown.

The world’s number two defeated Cuevas of Uruguay in a superb and elegant performance especially after the second set tie break. Federer’s agility and forceful play outpaced his rival’s defense and pulled off victory in one hour and 26 minutes. Cuevas needed two timeouts to treat his wrist injury.

Federer acknowledged after the game that it had been a while since he last saw a title on clay. He also said that it was a pleasant experience to play in Istanbul, while he described his game as both a psychical test and mental test.

Federer noted that last week’s four matches were really tough, but the last one was also his best one. He was also happy with his cultural experience in Turkey, where he could visit Istanbul a little, meet a lot of interesting people, and enjoy his fans’ extensive support.

“I’m very happy. I’m very proud to be the first champion here at the first-time tournament here in Istanbul,”

he added.

After the match, he also looked more confident and determined to win the 2015 French Open.

Federer last won a clay title in 2012, when he played on blue clay in Spain, while his last red clay title dates back to 2009’s French Open.

Additionally, Turkish fans gave the Swiss a warm welcome in their country’s capital city. Many of them showed their support by chanting his name and displaying court banners that read ‘Welcome to Turkey, King.’ It is the first time Federer visits Turkey.

In the first set, Cuevas was already 4-1 behind Federer in less than 25 minutes. Both players had a slower start due to an unexpected but brief rainfall before the match.

Federer looked fully rested and none of his previous weaknesses emerged. He managed to shoot seven aces and hit a 70 percent of his first serves.

On the other hand, after releasing a howl of frustration in the first set for missing a series of his opponent’s serves, Cuevas had to deal with an injured wrist and called two timeouts during which his trainer tried to get it fixed.

Despite the injury, Cuevas quickly rallied and started a defensive play from the baseline. Soon, he was getting even at 4-4 and hit three break points on his serve with his well-paced defensive tactics.

After winning the title in San Paolo three months ago, Cuevas hoped to win his second World Tour title. He said that he had hard times in facing Federer for at least two reasons – the Swiss’ play and a really hard time to stay focused. Despite this, the Uruguayan is confident that this match was a “very good experience” for him that would prove fruitful in the future. Federer praised Cuevas for “playing really well” and constantly pushing him into an aggressive stance.

Federer was awarded 80,000 Euros and 250 ATP ranking points, while Cuevas took home 42,100 Euros and 150 ranking points.

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