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08/18/2010 - Mason, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Top seeds Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic and last week's Canadian Masters titlist Andy Murray were a trio of second-round winners Wednesday at the $3 million Western & Southern Financial Group Masters, a U.S. Open Series event.
Roger Federer, a 16-time major titlist and reigning champ here, also advanced when Denis Istomin of Russia retired due to a right foot and ankle injury with the Swiss superstar leading 5-2 in the first set. Federer, seeded third, also won this event in 2005 and 2007.
The world No. 1 Nadal handled oft-injured American qualifier Taylor Dent, 6-2, 7-5, while the second-seeded, but world No. 3, Djokovic doused Serb Viktor Troicki, 6-3, 7-5 on the hardcourts at the Lindner Family Tennis Center. Nadal is now 27-3 in ATP Masters 1000 events this year.
Djokovic, who captured his 100th Masters 1000 victory on Wednesday, has lost in the last two finals here, with Federer getting the best of him last year.
The Wimbledon and French Open champion Nadal will face France's Julien Benneteau in the third round here on Thursday, while Djokovic will battle Argentine star David Nalbandian, a titlist in Washington, D.C. two weeks ago. Nalbandian was trailing John Isner 4-5 in the first set on Wednesday when the 6-foot-9 American retired from their match. The hot Nalbandian has now won 13 of his last 14 matches.
A fourth-seeded Murray held off Frenchman Jeremy Chardy, 6-3, 6-7 (3-7), 6-2 in 2 hours, 9 minutes on Day 4 here. January's Aussie Open runner-up to Federer, Murray beat Federer in last week's marquee finale in Toronto and was the Cincy champ in 2008.
Murray will be opposed by talented Latvian Ernests Gulbis on Thursday.
Ninth-seeded Andy Roddick, who titled here in 2003 and 2006 and was the runner-up in 2005, straight-setted Thiemo De Bakker, 7-6 (7-4), 6-4. while Nikolay Davydenko, seeded sixth, defeated Robby Ginepri, 6-2, 6-7 (5-7), 6-2.
Lleyton Hewitt, a former top-ranked player and runner-up at this event in 2002 and 2004, was ousted by fifth-seeded Robin Soderling, 4-6, 6-3, 7-5 in a little under two hours.
Upsets came when the wild card/surging American Mardy Fish dismissed eighth- seeded Spaniard Fernando Verdasco, and Gulbis knocked out 13th-seeded Austrian Jurgen Melzer, 6-7 (8-10), 6-3, 7-6 (7-5).
Fish, who has won 13 of his last 14 matches, including titles in Newport and Atlanta, was the Cincinnati runner-up back in 2003. He beat Verdasco in two sets, both tiebreakers.
Tenth-seeded Spaniard David Ferrer avoided an upset by handling American Sam Querrey, 7-5, 6-2. Querrey is a four-time champion on the ATP World Tour this season.
In other second-round play, France's Richard Gasquet grounded German Michael Berrer, 6-4, 6-2, German Philipp Kohlschreiber got past Colombian qualifier Alejandro Falla, 6-0, 1-6, 6-3, and Benneteau blitzed Swiss Stanislas Wawrinka, 6-4, 6-2.
The 2010 Cincinnati titlist will claim $443,500.
<< Cardinals release S Rouse
Tempe, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Arizona Cardinals have released safety
Aaron Rouse.
The 26-year-old played in 14 games, eight as a starter, last season for the
New York Giants and compiled 52 tackles and one sack.
He was orig
<< Richard, Padres continue to roll in win over Cubs
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Clayton Richard allowed just one run in 6 2/3
strong innings, leading the San Diego Padres to a 5-1 victory over the Chicago
Cubs in the third of four games at Wrigley Field.
Richard (11-5) yielded seven h
<< VCU extends Smart's contract
Richmond, VA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Shaka Smart, the head men's basketball coach
at Virginia Commonwealth University, received a two-year contract extension on
Wednesday.
In his first season on the job, Smart led the Rams to a 27-9 record, o
<< Bills safety Byrd out indefinitely with groin injury
Pittsford, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Buffalo Bills safety Jairus Byrd is out
indefinitely after having surgery to repair a nagging groin injury.
Byrd's rookie season in 2009 was cut short by the problem. He was felled after
racking up 45
Rollins keeps Phils rolling vs. Giants >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jimmy Rollins' three-run homer capped a
four-run fourth inning, and the Philadelphia Phillies widened the gap in the
NL Wild Card race with an 8-2 win over the San Francisco Giants.
Rollins fell a d
Tuiasosopo keys Mariners over O's for second straight night >>
Baltimore, MD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Seattle left fielder Matt Tuiasosopo clubbed
a three-run homer and made a spectacular diving catch to preserve the lead in
the eighth inning, as Mariners beat the Baltimore Orioles, 6-5, in the rubber
match o
Uggla, Johnson get Marlins past reeling Pirates >>
Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dan Uggla homered in support of Josh
Johnson, who worked eight effective innings to lead Florida past Pittsburgh,
3-2, in the third of four meetings at PNC Park.
Johnson (11-5) bounced back from
Braves beat Nats on Heyward single in ninth >>
Atlanta, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jason Heyward's line drive base hit up the
middle plated Rick Ankiel with the game-winning run in the ninth, giving the
Atlanta Braves a dramatic 3-2 victory over the Washington Nationals.
In Atlanta's
BILLS (+10) at Steelers SPORTSBOOK LINES
It's impossible to gauge how a team will react after something like the Steve Everett situation, and it probably doesn't matter. That being said, the Bills are going to lose several games this year where they keep things close but fall short in the end to superior teams. Ben Roethlisberger and company could have a field day against Buffalo's decimated defense, but I like the Bills to cover.
BENGALS (-7) at Browns SPORTSBOOK LINES
All you can ask out of your NFL team is that it has a plan. You may not always agree with it as a fan, but as long as it appears the organization is going in some sort of direction, you have to go with it. Which brings us to the Cleveland Browns. You flip a coin to determine whether Chuck Frye or Derek Anderson should start the preseason opener. You start Frye in Week 1, but pull him in the first half. And then you deal him to the Seahawks for a sixth-round pick? Hmm... the Bengals could get six turnovers again this week.
COLTS (-7) at Titans SPORTSBOOK LINES
Tennessee signed ex-Colts cornerback Nick Harper in the offseason so that should help slow down Peyton Manning. Just ask Jason David and the Saints. Oh wait... One of these weeks, I'm going to learn to not pick against Tennessee, which has won seven of its last eight games. But it's not happening against Indy.
TEXANS (+6.5) at Panthers SPORTSBOOK LINES
Houston's Mario Williams, the first pick in the '06 draft, has more touchdowns than Reggie Bush after one week. Somehow I don't see that lasting. Meanwhile, Carolina bottled up what was expected to be a pretty high-octane offense in St. Louis in Week 1. Could this be the Panthers' defense everyone expected last year? Maybe. This feels like a 20-16 Carolina win.
RAMS (-3) vs. 49ers SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Absolutely love this game. Everyone's favorite pick for this year's surprise team -- the 49ers -- laid an egg on Monday night (not that anyone was watching with the game ending in the middle of the night for those of us on the East Coast). St. Louis wasn't much better, delivering a lackluster effort against the Panthers that included two Steven Jackson fumbles and panic from his fantasy owners. Jackson rebounds this week, and the Rams get their first win.
PACKERS (+1.5) at Giants SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Do you really trust this guy to win an NFL game if Eli Manning can't go? I say no. I'd feel alot better about this Packers team if it had any semblance of a running game, but I still think Green Bay's defense is good enough to give it a 2-0 start.
JAGUARS (-10) vs. Falcons SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Does it scare me to pick Jacksonville to cover a double-digit spread after it scored just 10 points last week against the Titans? Absolutely. But can I bring myself to pick Atlanta under any circumstances? No. Check out this poll on ajc.com. It asks what Atlanta's most urgent deficiency is: offense, defense, specials teams or all of the above. "All of the above" has 57 percent of the votes. Ouch.
SAINTS (-3) at Buccaneers SPORTSBOOKS LINES
I'm picking way too many road teams this week. Oh well. New Orleans has had some time to reflect on its lackluster showing in the opener, and the Buccanneers just aren't a very good football team. Anyone else surprised Tampa Bay hasn't made a move to sign Byron Leftwich? I thought that's what they do.
VIKINGS (+3) at Lions SPORTS BETTING LINES
Run the ball and stop the run. Minnesota can do both, and that will keep them in a lot of games this season. Even though it was only one week, Adrian Peterson looks like he was a steal at No. 7 in last year's draft. Not only will he produce, but Peterson delivers excitement to what otherwise would be one of the league's most boring teams.
DOLPHINS (+3.5) vs. Cowboys SPORTS BETTING LINES
Lost in the Tony Romo lovefest is just how bad the Cowboys' defense was last week. I know they're banged up, but Dallas' 'D' allowed 438 yards to the Giants' offense, and backup running back Derrick Ward averaged 6.8 yards per carry. Meanwhile, Cam Cameron's decision to split carries between Ronnie Brown and Jesse Chatman sounds about as can't-miss as Larry David's plan to show up to Marty Funkhouser's party a night late. Still, gotta go with Miami to cover at home.
SEAHAWKS (-2.5) at Cardinals SPORTS BETTING LINES
I'm probably missing something, but this game seems too easy. Arizona blew Monday night's game against the 49ers in typical Cardinals fashion, and the Seahawks beat Tampa Bay by two touchdowns. Love Seattle in this one.
BRONCOS (-9.5) vs. Raiders SPORTS BETTING LINES
Special teams was a major story line in Week 1. Take a look at the Broncos. They had to rush on to the field to get a Jason Elam field goal as time expired against the Bills. Denver drove into Buffalo territory on eight of 10 drives but came away with just a pair of field goals and a touchdown. Look for more scoring from the Broncos this week against an Oakland defense that gave up 36 points to Detroit in Week 1.
BEARS (-12) vs. Chiefs SPORTS BETTING LINES
Everyone talks about Rex Grossman when dissecting the Bears' offense, but Chicago's quarterback got no help in last week's loss to the Chargers. Meanwhile, Kansas City confirmed what we all thought while watching Hard Knocks: The Chiefs are going to stink this year. It could be a rough first month for Larry Johnson fantasy owners. Kansas City's RB was limited to 43 yards on 10 carries in Week 1, and the Chiefs face the Bears, Vikings and Chargers the next three weeks, all formidable run defenses.
RAVENS (-10) vs. Jets SPORTS BETTING LINES
A big dose of Willis McGahee and a usual sound defensive effort will give the Ravens their first win. According to Football Outsiders, no team in the NFL rushed only three defenders on pass plays last year more than the Jets. And according to my special Jets correspondent Ben Stauber, New York did the same in Week 1. Whoever starts at quarterback for the Ravens should have all day to throw.
PATRIOTS (-3) vs. Chargers
Friends and I were discussing how Bill Belichick goes about paying his $500,000 fine for cheating. Does he just write one check to the NFL? Do you need some sort of clearance to make such a monstrous financial transaction? I guess I shouldn't complain about the security deposit I have to put down on my new apartment. Anyway, two of the league's best teams square off in what should be a good one Sunday night. The Patriots always respond well just when you think they're in trouble. And their offensive attack was the story in Week 1.
Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting.
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