Racket

Thomas L. Bromwell Sr., the former state senator facing federal racketeering charges, has been given a new lawyer provided at no cost, even though a judge said he believes the Baltimore County Democrat may be able to pay for his own defense. "Although counsel will be appointed to represent the defendants, it appears ... that the defendants may have sufficient resources to contribute financially toward the payment of counsel fees," Magistrate Judge Paul W. Grimm wrote in papers filed in U.S. District Court in Baltimore.

Nancy Hambleton turns 79 in a few weeks. She wants to improve her tennis game. A 5-foot-4, right-handed player, Hambleton relies more on precision than power and plays about four times a week, mostly in doubles matches. "They say it's the sport of a lifetime," Hambleton said. "I like the exercise, and it keeps you trim. It's good socially, and I've met a lot of people through tennis." She could be the model athlete for Welcome Back to Tennis, an initiative by the United State Tennis Association Senior Tennis Leagues in Anne Arundel County and the International Council on Active Aging.

NEW YORK -- After escaping conviction on federal racketeering charges three times in roughly a year, John A. Gotti - the son of the late Gambino crime boss - will finally be able to pursue what he claims he has long desired: an ordinary life. Yesterday, in a widely expected move, federal prosecutors in Manhattan dropped efforts to convict Gotti. He has been free on bail since the most recent mistrial last month. "The government has concluded that a retrial of defendant John A. Gotti on the pending indictment is not in the interests of justice in light of the three prior hung juries in the case," said U.S. Attorney Michael J. Garcia in a statement released yesterday.

WASHINGTON -- A few days ago, Andre Agassi wondered when repetition turned into tradition. He has been coming to the Legg Mason Tennis Classic for 17 of his 20 pro seasons. Over that time, he'd won five titles here, the only player ever to win that often. But along the way there have been hiccups. Early-round losses he'd rather forget. Last night his first-round match against qualifier Andrea Stoppini, a match he wanted to win desperately, was one of those he'd like to forget. Down a set and having just lost a point to go down 3-0 in the second, Agassi the calm, mature master of his sport, lost his cool and hurled his racket so hard onto the hard court that its graphite head bent and curled in grotesque ugliness.

IT HAD TO HAPPEN. SOMEBODY HAD TO turn the genteel game of tennis into a rockin', sockin' fitness workout. People who give up the sport often do so because they don't feel they get enough of a workout, according to a survey by the United States Tennis Association. The tennis industry has taken note, and a new high-energy fitness program called Cardio Tennis was introduced at the last U.S. Open. By this summer the USTA hopes to have 1,000 Cardio Tennis facilities up and running across the country, including several in the Baltimore area.

CHICAGO -- A federal grand jury added racketeering and three other charges yesterday to its $84 million fraud case against former press baron Conrad Black, alleging that he ran his media empire as a criminal enterprise. The new indictment contends that Black's alleged self-dealing and abuse of company perks while running Hollinger International Inc. constituted a pattern of racketeering activity that ran from 1998 to 2002. The purposes of the criminal enterprise included "enriching Black, his associates, and their entities at the expense of [the company]

Before the matches began last night at Pam Shriver's 20th anniversary Mercantile Tennis Challenge, there was a difference of opinion among the four former world No. 1 players assembled at 1st Mariner Arena on how the games would be played. "For fun," said the Martinas, Navratilova and Hingis, who exhibited little humor in the set won by Hingis, 8-4. "Is there such a thing as an exhibition with John McEnroe?" said Jim Courier, who endured through McEnroe's antics in an 8-6 victory. "There is such a thing," McEnroe said.

When Martina Navratilova takes the court tonight in Pam Shriver's Mercantile Tennis Challenge at 1st Mariner Arena, tennis fans will see a woman who refuses to be limited by either age or society. "What I'm doing isn't rare," she said. "It has never been done before." She isn't talking about playing doubles with John McEnroe here, even though it is the first time in professional, charity or exhibition matches that has occurred. She is talking about being a vibrant, relevant competitor at age 49 - and next season at age 50. "I plan to play in my 50th year," she said.

Former state Sen. Thomas L. Bromwell and his wife, Mary Patricia, pleaded not guilty yesterday to charges that they traded their political influence for a lucrative, no-show job and off-the-books construction work on their Baltimore County home. When asked by the court clerk for their pleas, both Bromwells - appearing in court for the first time since being charged - somberly announced they were "on all counts, not guilty." W. David Stoffregen, the former chief executive officer of Baltimore contracting firm Poole and Kent Co., also has been charged in the indictment.

NEW YORK - It wasn't the first time Roger Federer had sent a rocket shot at David Nalbandian, but this one had the biggest impact. No one has ever claimed that Nalbandian, who is one of the finest baseline players in the game, is a great volleyer, and on break point to end the second set Federer lashed one at his Argentine opponent, who was at the net. Too fast. Too hard. Too tough to handle. "I thought about taking the racket away," said Nalbandian, who thought for an instant the force of the shot might send it beyond the baseline.