Formula One champion Vettel reveals Alonso snub

New Formula One world champion Sebastian Vettel revealed rival Fernando Alonso has yet to congratulate him on his success as the German greeted his fans in his home town on Sunday.

Around 10,000 fans cheered on the new champion in his home town of Heppenheim, 60 kilometres from Frankfurt, after he flew in after two days of tyre testing in Abu Dhabi with his Red Bull team.

Vettel, 23, picked up his fifth Grand Prix win of the season last Sunday in Abu Dhabi, to win the drivers' world championship by four points from Alonso, and has been in high demand since becoming the youngest ever world champion.

Last week, he flew to Salzburg, Austria, to visit Red Bull headquarters before flying to the team base in Milton Keynes, England, then went back to the Middle East for testing and was helicoptered into Heppenheim on Sunday.

"He still has not congratulated me," revealed Vettel, when asked if the Spaniard had contacted him, but said the last week has felt like a dream.

"I have been hoping all the time that I don't wake up from this," he said.

"It's all a bit unreal for me, it seems my face was on the front page of every German newspaper.

"I find it all a bit hard to take in, because at the end of the day, I am just a normal boy."

Vettel was greeted by cries of 'Sebastian, Sebastian!' as he came onto the stage in his home town, where his parents still live, and took a picture of the scene with his mobile phone.

"This one is going in my bedroom," he said after fans started arriving from 7am and police closed roads in the town centre an hour later with more than 200 officers keeping an eye on the festivities.

"I didn't expect to see so many people, this makes me really proud as a Heppenheim boy.

"I have got goose pimples, this is better than Abu Dhabi, because there weren't so many people there."

Source : http://sport.id.msn.com/article.aspx?cp-documentid=4474354

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Federer downs Ferrer at ATP World Tour Finals

Roger Federer underlined his determination to finish the year on a high as the world number two cruised to a 6-1, 6-4 victory over Spain's David Ferrer in his opening match at the ATP World Tour Finals on Sunday.

Federer arrived in London for the prestigious end-of-year event, featuring the world's top eight players, in the unusual position of not being the sport's pre-eminent force after a relatively unsuccessful campaign by his high standards.

Although he started the season by winning the Australian Open, he lost his grip on the Wimbledon and French Open titles he won in 2009 and failed to return to the US Open final.

But, of course, what constitutes a slump for Federer would still be a season to remember for most of his peers.

He had won 12 matches in a row before losing to Gael Monfils in the Paris Masters recently and if anything could put a spring in his step it was the sight of Ferrer across the net.

Ferrer, 28, had lost all 10 of his previous meetings with the Swiss star, including a defeat in the 2007 final of this event when it was staged in Shanghai.

Although Ferrer has returned to the top 10 for the first time in three years after reaching five finals and winning two titles this season, he was unable to subdue Federer despite a gutsy effort in the Group B clash.

"Looking at the scoreline, it doesn't reflect how tough it was," Federer said. "Usually 6-1, 6-4 kind of matches take an hour of play. Here, it took one hour 25 minutes I think.

"There were many close games, especially in the second set. Possibly the first set could have gone faster too.

"But all in all, I'm really happy the way I was able to get out of the first match here, starting off with a feisty top 10 player is never easy.

"It's sort of a first round, that's why I'm really pleased with my performance."

Ferrer added: "I served very badly throughout the match and this was the key. With Roger, it is impossible if you serve badly.

"In the first set, I played a little bit nervous. The second set I improved my game but Roger served really well when I had one or two chances."

Federer, who has won this title four times, wasted no time taking control as he unfurled a typically dazzling array of groundstrokes.

He broke in Ferrer's first service game and then again two games later to open up a 4-0 lead.

Like the rest of the crowd, Argentine football legend Diego Maradona, watching from the stands after earlier seeing Manchester City thrash Fulham across London at Craven Cottage, couldn't fail to be impressed by such a commanding display.

Ferrer briefly stemmed the tide with a break of his own, but Federer simply increased the tempo of play and broke again in a marathon sixth game, which included six deuces, before serving out the set.

To his credit, Ferrer refused to throw in the towel in the second set, yet Federer was able to hit too many winners to be kept at bay for long.

The Swiss broke for a 3-2 lead after frustrating Ferrer with some sturdy defence as his opponent tried to wrestle back the initiative.

Even that blow didn't completely discourage Ferrer and he earned two break points in the next game. However the Spaniard couldn't convert either as Federer produced some big serves to maintain his lead.

When Federer came to serve for the match at 5-4, he seemed to lose concentration and Ferrer was able to earn three break points.

Yet again though, Federer kept his poise and fought off all three break points before clinching the win with an ace.

Source : http://sport.id.msn.com/article.aspx?cp-documentid=4474463

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Talks off between Iwakuma and A's: report

Contract negotiations between Japanese star pitcher Hisashi Iwakuma and Major League Baseball's Oakland A's have been halted, the San Francisco Chronicle reported on Sunday.

Citing unnamed sources, the newspaper reported on its website that the talks were stalled and just shy of being finished, even though the A's have until December 7 to make a deal for the 29-year-old right-hander.

Iwakuma seeks a deal worth in the range of 18 million dollars a season while the A's were through to be wanting to pay between three million and five million dollars a season.

One source told the Chronicle that Iwakuma was expected to announce he would return to the Rakuten Golden Eagles.

The A's spent a posting fee of about 16 million dollars for the rights to negotiate a deal with Iwakuma, money the US club would have returned if no deal is struck with the Asian ace.

Oakland was also thought to want Iwakuma because he might make the A's a more likely place for Japanese free agent Hideki Matsui to sign.

Source : http://sport.id.msn.com/article.aspx?cp-documentid=4474485

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N.Zealand tactics 'frustrate' Ireland flanker Ferris

Ireland flanker Stephen Ferris has joined a long list of opposition players in wondering how it is that New Zealand escape sanction for slowing the ball down at the breakdown.

The All Blacks beat Ireland 38-18 at Lansdowne Road on Saturday in an entertaining match that swung either side of half-time as New Zealand turned what had been a four-point deficit, following Ferris's well-worked try, into a 20-point lead.

Few sides ever come back from such a position against Tri-Nations champions New Zealand but the way the All Blacks slowed down Ireland ball did little for the hosts' final quarter rally.

Both teams knew Ireland then needed tries, rather than converted goal-kicks, to get back on terms so just conceding penalties - as opposed to having players sin-binned - was no great punishment for the All Blacks in that situation.

New Zealand captain Richie McCaw is a master at denying the opposition possession, with the flanker and his colleagues perfectly capable of forcing legal turnovers.

Yet one of the oft-heard complaints from rival sides concerns how McCaw manages to avoid censure for acts of slowing or 'killing' the ball that ought, by rights, to be punishable by a yellow card and 10 minutes in the sin-bin.

South African referee Marius Jonker, like many of his colleagues in other international matches last weekend, issued repeated warnings at Lansdowne Road but failed to follow-up with a yellow card.

"If I'd been a referee I would have handed out a couple of yellow cards," said frustrated British and Irish Lions back-row Ferris.

"It's hard because when you're in the middle of the pitch you get fast ball, but when you're in their 22 it keeps getting killed.

"It's the same old faces that are doing it, but they're good at it and get away with it. Richie McCaw did a great job at slowing it down.

"It's frustrating, but they're also good at poaching the ball legally."

In fairness to New Zealand, Jonker could equally have been said to be lenient in not reaching for a yellow card when the All Blacks opted for a series of scrums from penalties close to the Ireland line midway through the second half.

Not that his decision-making played anything like a key role in the outcome of a match that left Ireland still searching for a first win over New Zealand.

Ferris felt the final result was harsh on an Ireland side much improved from a lacklustre display in a 23-21 loss to world champions South Africa a fortnight earlier.

But he agreed New Zealand's finishing had taught Ireland a lesson.

"The scoreline maybe flattered them a bit," Ferris said. "There were a lot of tired bodies afterwards but New Zealand knew they had had a tough game too.

"Speaking to everyone in the dressing room afterwards it didn't feel like we had lost by 20 points. It felt like we'd lost by a few points.

However, he added: "That spell after half-time when they scored two tries showed what New Zealand can do.

"One minute you're three points behind and the next it's 20. We learnt a lot from the match.

"New Zealand scored some good tries and were very clinical. We have to be more like that ourselves."

Source : http://sport.id.msn.com/article.aspx?cp-documentid=4474625

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Benitez pins hopes on Champions League

Inter Milan coach Rafael Benitez is pinning his hopes on a Champions League victory over FC Twente in midweek to arrest an alarming slide that seems to have put his job at risk.

Prior to Sunday's 2-1 defeat at Chievo, the Italian press had given Benitez two games to save his job.

And having lost the first of those, even Benitez had to admit he needs to win on Wednesday.

"I'm a professional with many years of experience and I know that I must simply prepare for the matches and that's it," he said.

"If we win on Wednesday, everything will change.

"We need to score goals to win games.

"On Wednesday we have an important match and we have to stick together.

"We're in trouble but we've got many players out injured and we have to manage this moment."

It is true that Inter have a long injury list with the likes of Diego Milito, Maicon, Julio Cesar, Walter Samuel, Coutinho, Thiago Motta, Muntari Sulley and McDonald Mariga all missing against Chievo.

But they could still call on Serie A top scorer Samuel Eto'o to notch his ninth league goal of the season and 18th in all competitions.

That came deep into injury time with Inter already deservedly 2-0 down to strikes from Sergio Pellissier and Davide Moscardelli.

But Eto'o should not have been on the pitch at that point having got away with a blatant, deliberate headbutt on Chievo centre-back Bostjan Cesar on 36 minutes.

Benitez admitted his star Cameroon forward had lost his cool but he also claimed Cesar should have been punished too.

"I didn't see it," claimed Benitez before being shown the video evidence.

"It's clear he was punched and he's had this reaction that no-one likes to see but it's the reaction of a team needing to win.

"There are four officials at the game and if they don't think it deserves punishment then that's it.

"He's lost a bit of control that's clear but none of the officials took action."

As for the game itself, Benitez somehow managed to praise his misfiring team.

After last season's treble under predecessor Jose Mourinho, Inter's start to this campaign has been a disaster.

They have just five wins and 14 goals in 13 league matches, leaving them sixth in the table and nine points off arch rivals AC Milan at the top.

And yet Benitez preferred to praise his team's spirit.

"It's clear that after a defeat no-one is happy, the only thing I can say is that we worked very hard and our reaction in the second half on a terrible pitch showed great character," he said.

"I can't say anything against my team, the work ethic and attitude is there.

"We showed character, attacked all the time, took risks and if we'd have scored (at 1-0) that would have changed everything.

"This is football, when things aren't going well and you're playing with young players and needing to score, it's always more difficult to manage a game.

"Obviously we have to win these types of games because we're a strong team but we showed that we have the desire to win."

For his part Chievo coach Stefano Pioli played down the Eto'o headbutt.

"I didn't see it, I heard about it from other players and staff on the bench but for sure I prefer a different type of mentality," he said before turning to his own team's performance.

"We knew we could get chances if we could get the ball forward quickly because they attack with a lot of players.

"Inter approached the game well, they fought hard on a tough pitch but we were always quite compact, we played with a high tempo so it was hard for Inter."

Chievo are now just a point behind Inter and Pioli could not help but turn the knife in Benitez's wounds.

"It's a very tight league and even a team like Inter can have difficulties but I have to say, this isn't the Inter of last season that won everything."

Source : http://sport.id.msn.com/article.aspx?cp-documentid=4474626

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