Spain seize the Euro crown from Germany

Spain finally ended their 44-year wait for a trophy when Fernando Torres's superb first-half goal gave them a deserved 1-0 victory over Germany in a fast and furious Euro 2008 final on Sunday.

Spain, appearing in their first final since 1984 and seeking only their second trophy following their 1964 Euro success on home soil, were worthy winners as their crisp passing, wonderful technique and defensive discipline left Germany flounder.

Torres's goal after 33 minutes was also fit for a final as he showed all the speed, determination and quality of finish that summed up his team's whole campaign.

Spain had gone close twice before the goal from Torres.

Jens Lehmann had to react quickly after the superb Andres Iniesta's shot was deflected but the keeper was beaten in the 23rd minute when Torres, not for the first time, outjumped Per Mertesacker but saw his header come back off a post.

Torres, who had been somewhat overshadowed by absent four-goal partner David Villa in the tournament, showed what a dangerous finisher he is after 33 minutes.

Philipp Lahm appeared to have Xavi's through-ball covered but fractionally hesitated as he hoped Lehmann would reach it first and that was all Torres needed as he sped past him then cleverly lifted the ball over the advancing keeper.

Spain's precision delivery earned them several more half-chances early in the second half but none were taken and Germany, never a team to give up on a trophy without a fight, raised their game.

Captain Michael Ballack, fit to play after his calf strain, had spent most of the first hour fighting fires but he went close with a low volley as his side hit back and ramped up the temperature with a few lively tackles.

Coach Joachim Loew threw on striker Kevin Kuranyi but Spain then had a flurry of chances of chances as Lehmann saved well from Sergio Ramos and Iniesta, and Torsten Frings cleared Iniesta's shot off the line all in the space of two minutes.

As Germany pressed, for the equaliser the gaps opened and Torres almost broke clear twice more. In the end, though, his early effort proved enough to clinch the trophy for Spain.

Sania rises a step to 32 in WTA rankings

The disappointing build-up to the Wimbledon despite, Sania Mirza's WTA ranking improved by one rung as she climbed to the 32nd spot in the latest list issued on Monday.

The Indian number one, who crashed out in the second rounds of both the Wimbledon warm-up tournaments she played, has 867 points in the singles chart topped by Serb Ana Ivanovic.

Sania, however, remained steady at 19th in the doubles' list with 1745 points. The Hyderabadi girl, who is recovering from a wrist injury, has been seeded 32nd at the Wimbledon and handed an easy opening round match.

She takes on Colombian Catalino Castano in the first round.

Spain reached the European Championship final for the first time in 24 years

Thursday with a convincing 3-0 win over Russia, Spain reached the European Championship final for the first time in 24 years to set up a meeting with Germany in Sunday's Euro 2008 decider.

Spain beat Russia 4-1 in the group stage two weeks ago and was the better side again on Thursday, totally deserving their triumph because their midfield dominated and created plenty of chances for the front men.

Spain's breakthrough in an absorbing match came five minutes into the second half when Iniesta cut in from the left and found Xavi who had lost his markers. He took his chance brilliantly to put Spain ahead and on the way to their first final since they lost to France in 1984.

Guiza replaced Fernando Torres up front after 69 minutes and took only four minutes to strike after being set up by midfielder Cesc Fabregas, who had a huge influence after replacing the injured David Villa after 35 minutes.

Xavi scored with a superbly taken opportunist volley at a rainswept Ernst Happel stadium to give Spain a deserved 1-0 lead after 50 minutes and substitute Daniel Guiza made no mistake when he beat the offside trap to make it 2-0 after 73 minutes. Cesc Fabregas set up David Silva to make it 3-0 eight minutes from time.

Spain, who stretched their unbeaten run to 21 matches, will be attempting to be crowned European champions for the first time since their only success in 1964.

Germany to give a thrilling victory over Turkey to reach final

Germany, who will play either Spain or Russia in Vienna on Sunday, looked to have won the semi-final in the 79th minute when Miroslav Klose headed home to give them a 2-1 lead.

Goals from Turkey's Ugur Boral and Bastian Schweinsteiger in an absorbing first half had left the game evenly poised. Terim's side began much better than their more illustrious opponents despite being without four players through suspension and having a raft of others injured.They scored the opener in a match for the first time in the tournament after 22 minutes.

Left midfielder Ugur, who was a threat all night, scuffed the ball through goalkeeper Jens Lehmann's legs after a looping effort from Kazim Kazim came back off the bar.Turkey deserved their lead having already come close when Kazim rattled the woodwork with a shot and impressive playmaker Hamit Altintop was denied following a Lahm mistake.

Germany equalised against the run of play on 26 minutes when midfielder Schweinsteiger cleverly flicked in a cross from Lukas Podolski in one of their first real attacks.The second half started off less thrilling than the first with Germany having a penalty shout turned down after Lahm was felled on the edge of the area and Thomas Hitzlsperger whistling an effort just past the post.

Semih Senturk then levelled for Turkey in the 86th minute from close range in what looked like another escape act by Fatih Terim's men. But Lahm snatched victory for Germany with a smart shot into the top corner at St Jakob Park.

Philipp Lahm scored a 90th minute winner to give Germany a breathtaking 3-2 victory over Turkey on Wednesday and a place in the Euro 2008 final.

Sharapova is looking to add a second Wimbledon crown

Former champion Maria Sharapova comfortably won her first round match and bet her claim as the fashion queen of Wimbledon on Tuesday.

The glamorous 2004 winner, the world's most photographed sportswoman, took to the court in a chiffon top which her sponsors Nike said had a "tuxedo bib front", teamed with a pair of men's shorts.

Dressed to kill, the Florida-based Russian exhausted little time in ending French opponent Stephanie Foretz's involvement with an untroubled 6-1, 6-4 victory.

Sharapova, seeded three, will face fellow Russian Alla Kudryavtseva in the second round. Still only 21, Sharapova is looking to add a second Wimbledon crown to the Australian Open title she won in January.

Ivanovic gets into second round at Wimbledon

Top seed Ana Ivanovic speed into the second round at Wimbledon with a 6-1, 6-2 victory over Rossana De Los Rios on Monday.

Ivanovic, 21, arrived at the All England Club freshly installed as the world number one after her French Open triumph earlier this month and lived up to her billing by dispatching the Paraguayan in 57 minutes.

The Serb faces France's Nathalie Dechy next and looks in the mood to improve on last year's semi-final appearance at Wimbledon. De Los Rios certainly had no answer to Ivanovic's potent power game. Just two weeks after beating Dinara Safina to win her first Grand Slam title, Ivanovic could have suffered a post-Paris hangover in south-west London.

But from the first game of the match it was apparent that, while Ivanovic may not have the competely grasscourt game yet, she has no problem imposing herself from the baseline. She broke early after a battering the Paraguayan into submission with her blistering forehands and never let the advantage slip to take the first set.

There was no let up from Ivanovic in the second either and another early break was enough to ensure she was never troubled

Spainish enter Euro-08 semi-final

Spain beat Italy 4-2 on penalties on Sunday to reach the Euro 2008 semi-finals and in so doing break a number of painful hoodoos.

The match took on a predictable pattern in the first half with Italy defending determinedly and Spain overplaying the passes and underplaying the necessity. Italy had the first shot on target when Massimo Ambrosini crossed for Simone Perrotta but his header lacked power.

David Villa had a shot blocked by De Rossi before Gianluigi Buffon got down quickly saving his free-kick. Fernando Torres then beat two men on Spain's left but De Rossi, again, was there to block before David Silva sent the follow-up just wide.

Spain goalkeeper Iker Casillas saved penalties from Daniele De Rossi and Antonio Di Natale before Arsenal midfielder Cesc Fabregas buried the winning spot-kick after the match had ended 0-0 after extra-time.

Spain will play Russia in Thursday's semi-final here, having already.

Crotia's win come to tragic end

Turkey equalized in dramatic style with the last kick of extra time before beating Croatia on penalties after their breathtaking Euro 2008 quarter-final ended 1-1 on Friday.

Ivan Klasnic headed Croatia in front at the near post after a good run and cross by Luka Modric in the 119th minute. Turkey, who twice rallied from behind to win in the group stages, equalizes in nerve-taking style as Semih Senturk's left-foot shot took a deflection past keeper Stipe Pletikosa.

Croatia then made a mess of the penalty shootout, with Luka Modric and Ivan Rakitic missing the target before Turkey's 3-1 shootout victory was clinched when Rustu Recber saved from Mladen Petric.

Turkey trio Arda Turan, Semih Senturk and Hamit Altintop were all successful with their spot kicks.

Defeat was uneven on Croatia, who overall had the better of the chances with Turkey weakened by a string of injuries plus suspensions to keeper Volkan Demirel and defender Mehmet Aurelio.Slaven Bilic's Croatia got into their stride early and repeatedly managed to penetrate the Turkish defence.

Croatia went close at the start of the second half when Gokhan Zan's weak back header let in Olic, who jiggled over Rustu but failed to add the finishing touch with two defenders on the line.

Olic had two more chances and Darijo Srna forced Rustu into two saves from free kicks late in the 90 minutes but Turkey hung on to take the game into extra time.

Turkey, who also reached the semi-finals of the 2002 World Cup, now meets Germany in Basel on Wednesday. Extra time had finished in heart-stopping fashion after an absorbing encounter with two goals in the last three minutes.

Ten men Paraguay's deserving win to Brazil 2-0

Ten-man Paraguay convincingly beat Brazil 2-0 in Asuncion to speed further ahead in the South American 2010 World Cup qualifying table.

It was not a special performance by the five-time world champions, far from their famous spectacular play, who fell to goals in each half by Roque Santa Cruz and Salvador Cabanas in front of 35,000 spectators at the Defensores del Chaco stadium in Ascunsion on Sunday. And two minutes after the break, Paraguay right back Dario Veron was handed a second yellow card for a tackle from behind, earning his dismissal.

Brazil showed defensive weakness when Paraguay went ahead in the 26th minute.

A slightly missed corner by Edgar Barreto, who had an excellent match, caused confusion at the near post and the ball shot through a crowded six-yard box for recent Blackburn recruit Santa Cruz to sidefoot home at the far post. Luis Fabiano bustled into the box and fed Robinho but he just could not make contact with the ball as he slid into Paraguay keeper Justo Villar.

Paraguay however started to dominate just before the break and was continually trying to break through their opponents' back line.

Brazil, the only team to have played in every single World Cup finals, used to easily go through these qualifying competitions but in recent times they have had to struggle.

Croatia held on for a victory

Fearless Croatia pulled off a impressive 2-1 win over Group B favorites Germany on Thursday to move to the edge of a place in the Euro 2008 quarter-finals.

Darijo Srna beat Marcell Jansen to push home a cross from the left by Danijel Pranjic in the first half and Ivica Olic stroked the ball in early in the second period after a centre by Ivan Rakitic had struck Lukas Podolski and a post.

Germany gained one back in the 79th minute through Podolski but Croatia held on for a victory that recharged memories of their 3-0 triumph over Germany in the 1998 World Cup quarter-finals, a match that featured their coach Slaven Bilic.

To add to Germany's misery substitute Bastian Schweinsteiger became the first player to be sent off at these finals when he pushed Jerko Leko to the ground in frustration for a tackle from behind in injury time.

Croatia tops the group with six points, ahead of Germany on three.

Euro Cup Opener hit a first hat-trick of the tournament

David Villa scored the first hat-trick of the tournament to help Spain hammer Russia 4-1 in their Euro 2008 opener on Tuesday.Villa striked his first when he steered the ball into an open goal after fellow striker Fernando Torres drew goalkeeper Igor Akinfeyev out of his net in the 20th minute.

The 26-year-old Villa added the second before halftime, stroking the ball home after being put through by Andres Iniesta, before making it 3-0 when he stuck in a low shot after litter past a defender on 75 minutes.They quickly settled into their enduring short passing game and had a couple of early chances, Torres sending a shot skidding wide in the eighth minute and Villa scooping an effort over the bar.

Russia pulled one back with a header from Roman Pavlyuchenko before substitute Cesc Fabregas dived to append Spain's fourth goal from close range in injury time after more good work by the inspirational Villa.

Spain was playing completely dominating game to Russia which full time game give 4-1 result.

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The only undoubted 'King of Clay' proved himself

Rafael Nadal defeated Roger Federer in the French Open final for the third year running on Sunday and joined Swedish legend Bjorn Borg as the only man to win four straight titles at Roland Garros.

The Spaniard made a stunning 6-1, 6-3, 6-0 success over the world No.1, taking the last nine games of the match, in harsh compare to the two four-set battles he edged to see off Federer in the two previous finals.

Federer was powerless to stop the stream of heavy top spin fired at him as he was drooping to a demoralizing hitting. Nadal has now won all 28 matches he has played at Roland Garros and having just turned 22, he is well on his way to replacing Borg as the greatest claycourt player of all time.

SAFF Championship: Nepal thrashes Pakistan 4-1

Nepal proved that they weren't the minnows in the SAFF Championship football as they thrashed Pakistan 4-1 in the last match of the championship held in Male, the Maldives, on Saturday.

Raju Tamang, Niranjan Rayamajhi and Jumanu Rai were the heroes of Nepal. Tamang and Rayamahi scored one goal each while Rai struck twice.

Nepal took only three minutes to take the lead. A shot from Jumanu made it too hard for the Pakistan defenders to clear and Raju Tamang easily converted the ball into the net. Just two minutes later Niranjan Rayajhi doubled the lead. Once again the Pakistani defense looked unsettled and Niranjan sent the ball over the keeper inside six yard box to make the score 2-0.

In the 18th minute Pakistan went close to cut the deficit but Qasim's strike inside Nepal penalty area was only on target to diving keeper's knee. In the next minute Pakistan's Niazi fired a shot from the edge of Nepal penalty area, but was too weak to trouble the keeper.

Pakistan appeared stronger in the second half of the game and made more attacking moves against Nepal. Pakistan cut the deficit in the 53rd minute from Samar Ishag's powerful header, which hit the crossbar on its way into the goal.

In the 67th minute Jumanu Rai got his name on the score sheet. Bijaya Gurung headed Niranjan's free kick into the six yard box and Jumanu Rai in front of the goal easily headed the ball into the goal.In the 73rd minute Aziz took a good shot outside Nepal penalty area, but keeper handled the pressure well.

Four minutes before regular time Jumanu Rai picked up a pass from Ramesh Budhathoki inside Pakistani penalty area and found space to send the ball into the net with two opponent defenders behind him.

Earlier, Nepal had lost to India by 4-0 and Maldives by 4-1.

Now, Nepal will compete in Final round of AFC Challenge Cup to be held in India coming July.

Ana Ivanovic wins the French Open Title

Serbia's Ana Ivanovic won the French Open on Saturday, her first Grand Slam title, by ending Dinara Safina's valiant run to the final and ultimate height to the world number one position in a proving approach.

Ivanovic won 6-4, 6-3 as Russian 13th seed Safina saw her hopes of joining big brother Marat as a Grand Slam champion rushed.

For the second seeded star, it was third time lucky after she had lost both her previous major finals - to Justine Henin here in the same place, 12 months ago and Maria Sharapova at the Australian Open in January.

Nadal enters French Open final

Spaniard Rafael Nadal survived a late fightback by Novak Djokovic to beat the world number three 6-4, 6-2, 7-6 at the French Open on Friday and muscle his way into the final for the fourth consecutive year.

The three-time defending champion saved a set point in the third set to win in two hours 49 minutes and advance to a final against either world number one Roger Federer or unseeded Frenchman Gael Monfils.

Nadal, who has never been beaten at Roland Garros, was at his vile from the start, pulling Serbian Djokovic all over the court and smashing winners on both sides.

One break, in the third game of the match, was enough for Nadal to win the first set. He romped through the second but had to save a set point at 6-5 down before winning the tiebreak 7-3 to reach the final without losing a set for the second successive year.

Slow start but Federer finds top gear at French Open

Top seed Roger Federer powered into the French Open semi-finals on Thursday, but he was given a scare early on by Chile's Fernando Gonzalez before winning through 2-6, 6-2, 6-3, 6-4.

True to form, the 27-year-old Gonzalez came out with all guns blazing and broke Federer's serve in the opening game. Gonzalez though run off four games in a row to take the first set in just 24 minutes through a mixture of his own explosive shot-making and Federer's uncustomary mistakes.

The two had met 11 times previously since 2004 with Gonzalez winning just once - in their last encounter at the Masters Series finals in Shanghai last November in a group game that had little significance. They also met more importantly in last year's Australian Open final when Federer won in straight sets.

Having dropped his serve three times in four tries in the first set, almost unheard of for the world No.1, Federer looked shaky again as he was taken to deuce at the start of the second set.

He warded off the danger though with a backhand winner down the line and a smash at the net on the back of a powerful first serve. Federer was 0-40 up on Gonzalez' following service game but failed to convert any of his three break points and the Chilean accordingly leveled at 1-1. It was an identical scenario two games later and this time Federer nailed the break at the first time of asking to lead 3-1.

Federer's win put him into a record 16th straight Grand Slam semi-final appearance and left him just one match away from playing Rafael Nadal in the French Open final for the third consecutive year, having lost the last two.

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Will Ronaldo choose ManU?

Portuguese striker Cristiano Ronaldo is likely to announce whether or not he will continue with Manchester United in the next 48 hours. Ronaldo is reported to have received an offer from the Spanish football team Real Madrid, and therefore, United is anxious that he stays with them.

ManU coach Alex Ferguson has threatened to let him rot on the bench if he demands a move to Spain. Manchester United owner Malcolm Glazer and his family are ready to make Ronaldo a sub until he learned to respect the contract he signed only last year.

United last week threatened to report Real to FIFA, as they continued their open invitations to the player to move.