Tennis: Federer wins on opening day of ATP World Tour Finals

Tennis

Top-ranked Federer beats Verdasco in London: Roger Federer of Switzerland overcame an erratic forehand and Fernando Verdasco on Sunday, rallying to beat his Spanish opponent 4-6, 7-5, 6-1 in the round-robin stage of the ATP World Tour Finals in London.

The top-ranked Federer was broken once — in the opening game of the Group A match after double-faulting on the first point — but he never looked dominating until late in the second set when he converted his first break point to even the score at one set apiece.

Coming into the tournament for the top eight players in the world, Federer was riding a two-match losing streak.

In another Group A match, Andy Murray of Scotland beat Juan Martin del Potro of Argentina 6-3, 3-6, 6-2.

Del Potro needed a medical timeout after the third game in the first set to treat a bleeding nose. He shrugged off the incident after the match, saying he has a history of nosebleeds.

"I have a big nose, that's the problem," he said. "It's just bleeding. I don't know why."

Soccer

Defoe, Tottenham equal records: Jermain Defoe scored five goals to match an English Premier League record in powering Tottenham to a 9-1 rout of Wigan.

Defoe tied the mark set by Newcastle's Alan Shearer in 1999 and Manchester United's Andy Cole in 1995.

Tottenham matched Manchester United's league record for most goals in a match. United defeated Ipswich 9-0 in 1995, the match in which Cole had his five goals.

Tottenham is tied with Arsenal for third in the league, behind first-place Chelsea and second-place Manchester United.

Swimming

Kukors of Auburn is honored: Ariana Kukors of Auburn won the U.S. female race of the year award for her 200-meter individual medley at the world championships in Rome; she set two world records and won the title in the event in July.

World champions Ryan Lochte and Rebecca Soni won male and female athlete of the year awards, respectively, at the Golden Goggles gala in Beverly Hills, Calif.

Track and field

Bolt, Richards are honored: Sprinter Usain Bolt of Jamaica and 400-meter runner Sanya Richards of the United States have won their second IAAF World Athlete of the Year awards.

Bolt retained the honor by winning the 100- and 200-meter finals in record times at the world championships in Berlin, matching his double at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. He won a third gold in the 400-meter relay.

Richards, the 2006 winner, got her first major individual gold medal at the worlds in August.

Meanwhile, Bolt and U.S. runner Tyson Gay intend to race each other at least three times at elite Diamond League meets next year.

The new circuit will be the top tier of track and field in 2010, with no Olympics or world championships on the schedule. The Diamond League offers $6.63 million in prize money across 32 track-and-field disciplines.

Eugene, Ore., is among the cities on the Diamond League circuit.

Boxing

Rodriguez dies: Francisco Rodriguez of Mexico died after being removed from life support at a Philadelphia hospital. He was 25.

Rodriguez was injured during a 10th-round knockout loss Friday to Teon Kennedy of Philadelphia in a matchup for the vacant USBA super-bantamweight championship.

Bobsled

American Holcomb wins four-man event: Steven Holcomb said the U.S. bobsled team was going to be a powerhouse this winter. He is helping to make his point.

Holcomb, the reigning four-man bobsled world champion, won a four-man World Cup race, giving the United States a 1-2 finish in Lake Placid, N.Y., for the second consecutive day.

"I've been saying all summer that we have the strongest U.S. team ever," Holcomb said.

Holcomb finished the two-run race in 1 minute, 49.60 seconds to beat teammate John Napier. Napier defeated Holcomb for the gold in Saturday's two-man race.

Canadian Football League

Saskatchewan advances to Grey Cup: Darian Durant threw three touchdown passes to help the hots Saskatchewan Roughriders advance to the Grey Cup with a 27-17 victory over the Calgary Stampeders in the CFL West Division final.

Saskatchewan will face Montreal — a 56-18 winner over British Columbia in the East final — in the Grey Cup on Sunday in Calgary. Montreal's Anthony Calvillo threw five touchdown passes.

Seattle Times news services