Davis Cup

NEW YORK -- It's been quite a five-month period for John McEnroe. First came a baby girl, then his induction into the Tennis Hall of Fame, and yesterday he was named captain of the U.S. Davis Cup team."

NEW YORK -- It's been quite a five-month period for John McEnroe. First came a baby girl, then his induction into the Tennis Hall of Fame, and yesterday he was named captain of the U.S. Davis Cup team."

BIRMINGHAM, England -- Tim and Greg. Greg and Tim. They are the reason tennis is a year-round talking point again in Britain, and the reason the capacity of the National Indoor Arena here had to be expanded twice to meet ticket demand for this first-round Davis Cup match against the United States.Yesterday, Tim Henman and Greg Rusedski played well enough together to ensure that those ticket-holders won't have to watch meaningless tennis today.Their 3-6, 7-5, 6-3, 6-7 (5-7), 6-3 victory over Todd Martin and Alex O'Brien narrowed the Americans' lead to 2-1 in this rematch of the first Davis Cup series in 1900.

NEW YORK -- Todd Martin, sweat dripping from his face despite his attempts to mop it off, looked up at the U.S. Open scoreboard last night. Martin, the No. 7 seed, had lost eight consecutive games, his verve and his energy.But Martin didn't fold against No. 9 seed Greg Rusedski of Britain. Giving up isn't Martin's style.Despite the creeping fatigue and onslaught of booming serves from Rusedski, Martin pressed on under humidity-laden skies for another three sets, finally pulling out an improbable, 5-7, 0-6, 7-6 (7-3)

WASHINGTON -- While untold hundreds of tennis professionals would just as soon leave Washington to the politicians, Ken Starr and the oppressive summer heat, Michael Chang is one player who looks upon the Legg Mason Tennis Classic tour stop with something approaching relief."

WASHINGTON -- Jim Courier, his red hair covered by a white hat, his lanky body clothed in sweat-drenched whites, looked like a dish towel searching for a dryer yesterday afternoon on the Stadium Court at the Legg Mason Tennis Classic.The former world No. 1 player, who last week anchored the United States' Davis Cup victory over Belgium, could be forgiven if he wondered what had possessed him to ask for a wild card into this tournament that was being played under a scorching July sun that raised temperatures on the court to well over 104 degrees.

GOTEBORG, Sweden -- Hexed and vexed by a combination of bad play and worse luck in snowy Goteborg at the Davis Cup, the U.S. team was eliminated, 3-0, after a straight-set loss by Todd Martin and Jonathan Stark in yesterday's must-have doubles against Sweden.The 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 victory by Jonas Bjorkman and Nicklas Kulti guaranteed Sweden the 1997 title by acclamation.The devastation began Friday, when a confidence-starved Michael Chang put the United States behind 1-0 and top-ranked Pete Sampras doubled the predicament by limping away from his unfinished match with a leg injury.

WASHINGTON -- Pete Sampras is Randy Johnson with a tennis racket.The show he put on yesterday while blowing away Patrick Rafter, 6-7 (6-8), 6-1, 6-1, 6-4, giving the United States a decisive third match in a 4-1 Davis Cup semifinal victory over Australia, lent new meaning to the words domination and perfection.Sampras served 18 times, excluding the first-set tiebreaker, and lost just 15 points. He hit 14 aces and had just one double fault in the 2-hour, 19-minute match.Rafter didn't win a single point on Sampras' serve in the 25-minute second set. He scored only five of 21 points against Sampras' usual 120-mph lightning bolts in the 24-minute third set. Rafter never got to a break point.

GOTEBORG, Sweden -- Tom Gullikson, the captain of the United States' Davis Cup team, swore it would not happen this time. There would be no supernatural goings-on, no mysterious injuries, no eerie surrenders inside the hulking Scandinavium Arena. But Gullikson could not have been more wrong.Soon after Michael Chang lost the opening match of this team championship to Jonas Bjorkman of Sweden yesterday, Pete Sampras was removed from the premises in a wheelchair after straining the calf muscle in his left leg in the third set of his match against Magnus Larsson.

WASHINGTON -- After losing both opening-round singles matches and down a set and a break at the start of doubles yesterday, it appeared Matilda would be waltzing back to Australia at any moment."

Phelan inducted into Hall of Fame COL. BASKETBALL Longtime Mount St. Mary's coach Jim Phelan was inducted into the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame in Kansas City, Mo., last night with a class that included Charles Barkley, former Kansas star Danny Manning and Arkansas coach Nolan Richardson. Former Utah All-American Arnie Ferrin also entered the hall, as did announcers Dick Vitale and Billy Packer as contributors. Phelan was famous for wearing a bow tie on the sideline while coaching 49 seasons at Mount St. Mary's.

Connors arrested outside basketball game tennis Tennis great Jimmy Connors was arrested outside the campus arena where UC Santa Barbara and top-ranked North Carolina were playing a men's basketball game. The eight-time Grand Slam champion was taken into custody Friday night after refusing to comply with an order to leave an area near the entrance of the Thunderdome after a confrontation, police Sgt. Dan Massey said in a statement. A police dispatcher said Connors was arrested at the beginning of the game.

Doctor: Olson had stroke in the past year COL. BASKETBALL Lute Olson's doctor said yesterday that the former Arizona men's basketball coach had had a stroke within the past year and he had advised him to retire. The comments by Dr. Steven Knope at a news conference called by Olson's family offer the first explanation for Olson's sudden retirement last week, two days after he appeared at the Wildcats' media day. Olson, 74, said at the time he was energized and looking forward to his 25th season with Arizona.

U.S. doubles win keeps Davis Cup hopes alive tennis The United States won a doubles match in five sets against Spain yesterday to maintain its chance of reaching the Davis Cup finals against either Argentina or Russia. Mike Bryan and Mardy Fish beat Fernando Verdasco and Feliciano Lopez, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 4-6, 6-4, on clay in Madrid to cut the Spaniards' match lead to 2-1 and ensure that the semifinal result depends on today's reverse singles. Bryan usually plays with his twin brother, Bob. But Bob pulled out with a shoulder injury and Fish was a late replacement.

College Football Terps' E. Williams out 6-8 weeks Maryland sophomore center Edwin Williams had surgery Thursday to repair a tendon in his left hand that he tore during a scuffle with a teammate, and he will miss six to eight weeks, coach Ralph Friedgen said yesterday. Phil Costa has been filling in for Williams, who injured his finger when he grabbed defensive end Jeremy Navarre's jersey. ... Right tackle Jared Gaither, who is one of the Terps' top returning offensive linemen, hurt his back in the weight room but participated in a scrimmage yesterday.

Croatia won its first Davis Cup title yesterday in Bratislava, Slovakia, with Mario Ancic beating Michal Mertinak of Slovakia, 7-6 (1), 6-3, 6-4, in the decisive fifth match. Dominik Hrbaty had pulled Slovakia even at 2-2 by defeating an ailing Ivan Ljubicic, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 6-4. Ancic then downed Mertinak to clinch the best-of-five series between two first-time finalists. Goran Ivanisevic, who came out of retirement for the final, added the Davis Cup championship to his 2001 Wimbledon title.

Croatia just one win away from first Davis Cup crown If his younger teammates can deliver, Goran Ivanisevic will lift the Davis Cup trophy today and take it home to Croatia for the first time. Ivan Ljubicic and Mario Ancic beat Slovakia's Dominik Hrbaty and Michal Mertinak, 7-6 (5), 6-3, 7-6 (5), yesterday in Bratislava, Slovakia, giving Croatia a 2-1 lead in the best-of-five series between two first-time finalists. Croatia needs to win one of today's reverse singles - Ljubicic meets Hrbaty and Ancic plays Karol Kucera - to clinch the title.

LONDON - He is 0-5 in five-set matches since 2003 and 2-14 in his career against the leaders of his peer group, Roger Federer of Switzerland and Lleyton Hewitt of Australia. This wouldn't seem to belong to the resume of the second-seeded player at Wimbledon, but it is, in fact, part of the record of Andy Roddick. Stray losses are one thing, but his record suggests a pattern - and a couple of words that might not have been used last year when he nearly beat Federer in the Wimbledon final: Career crossroads.

The format of the 17th Chevy Chase Bank Tennis Challenge on Dec. 10 at Baltimore Arena will remain unchanged. That means the evening's program will begin with a legends match, be followed by the main singles event and conclude with the Orioles Challenge. It is the Orioles Challenge that may require fans to suspend their take on reality for a little while. Yesterday, tournament personnel presided over the official announcement that Lindsay Davenport and Monica Seles, two former World No. 1s and current Top 10 players, will compose the feature match of the evening.

NEW YORK - Among the reasons James Blake has become so popular among American tennis fans is his generous play for the U.S. Davis Cup team. Blake is 6-0 in his Davis Cup career and is fully expected to be on the team later this month when it travels to Paris for the semifinals against defending Davis Cup champion France at Roland Garros, Sept. 20-22. But Blake said he would have no problem sitting out for the right reason. "This time is really exciting for me," Blake said. "I feel like I have a chance of playing singles.