TOP STORIES:
TEN--DAVIS CUP ROUNDUP
LONDON Two of the favorites struggled on the first day of the Davis Cup quarterfinals Friday, with Germany closing in on a big upset against France and Switzerland only managing to split the opening singles matches against Kazakhstan. SENT. 500 words.
NEW/DEVELOPING:
CAR--F1 BAHRAIN GP
SAKHIR, Bahrain Mercedes further demonstrated its early-season dominance by outpacing its rivals in Friday's practice sessions for the Bahrain Grand Prix, indicating the team is well poised for a third straight win to start 2014. SENT. By Chris Lines. 400 words.
FOOTBALL:
SOC--SPANISH ROUNDUP
ALMERIA, Spain Osasuna won 2-1 at Almeria to escape the Spanish league's relegation zone and push the hosts into danger on Friday. SENT. 200 words.
SOC--FRENCH ROUNDUP
PARIS Ghana winger Andre Ayew ended his goal drought in style with a hat trick as Marseille beat last-place Ajaccio 3-1 in the French league on Friday. SENT. 200 words.
SOC--GERMAN ROUNDUP
BERLIN Heiko Westermann scored late for Hamburger SV to beat Bayer Leverkusen 2-1 and provisionally escape the Bundesliga's relegation zone on Friday. SENT. By Ciaran Fahey. 250 words.
SOC--PSG-IBRAHIMOVIC OUT
PARIS Paris Saint-Germain striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic will miss the return leg of the Champions League quarterfinals against Chelsea because of a thigh tear. SENT.
CRICKET:
CRI--T20-INDIA-SOUTH AFRICA
MIRPUR, Bangladesh Virat Kohli showed why he is counted among the best contemporary batsmen as he slammed an unbeaten 72 to guide India to a six-wicket win over South Africa in the World Twenty20 semifinals on Friday. SENT. By C.Rajshekhar Rao.
GOLF:
GLF--HOUSTON OPEN
HUMBLE, Texas Sergio Garcia has surged to the top of the leaderboard after shooting a 7-under 65 in the second round of the Houston Open. The Spaniard's 12-under overall score matches the 36-hole low at the 7,441-yard Golf Club of Houston, and he's four shots clear of the field. SENT, will be updated. By Kurt Voigt.
GLF--NH COLLECTION OPEN
CADIZ, Spain Marc Warren of Scotland shot a 5-under 67 Friday to take the clubhouse lead at the NH Collection Open before the second round was suspended because of bad light. SENT.
TENNIS:
TEN--FRANCE-GERMANY
NANCY, France Peter Gojowczyk marked his Davis Cup debut with a big upset, beating Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in a five-set marathon Friday to give injury-hit Germany a surprising 2-0 lead over France in their Davis Cup quarterfinal. SENT. 570 words.
TEN--SWITZERLAND-KAZAKHSTAN
GENEVA Roger Federer eased to victory over Mikhail Kukushkin on Friday, bringing Switzerland level at 1-1 with Kazakhstan in the Davis Cup quarterfinals. SENT. By Graham Dunbar. 375 words.
TEN--ITALY-BRITAIN
NAPLES, Italy Fabio Fognini overcame an injury and tough resistance from James Ward to give Italy a 1-0 lead over Britain on the rain-delayed opening day of their Davis Cup quarterfinal Friday. SENT. 400 words.
TEN--FAMILY CIRCLE CUP
CHARLESTON, South Carolina Jelena Jankovic lost in the Family Circle Cup quarterfinals Friday, beaten by Eugenie Bouchard 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 after dropping five of the final six games. SENT. By Pete Iacobelli.
HORSE RACING:
RAC--AINTREE FESTIVAL
AINTREE, England Four jockeys were injured in falls at the Aintree Festival on Friday, with Mikey Fogarty and Paul Carberry both taken to a hospital. SENT. 250 words.
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