Star Moto GP rider Spain's Alvaro Bautista expects the sport to hit India soon. ...
08:58 PM, Oct 19, 2012
Madrid: Rafael Nadal is set to play at the Mexican Open in February, although the fourth-ranked Spaniard remains committed to returning ahead of the Australian Open. The clay-court Mexican Open is scheduled for Feb. 25-March 2. Toni Nadal, the player's trainer and uncle, tells the Associated Press that Nadal is focused on returning in time for an exhibition event at the end of the year in Abu Dhabi as part...
05:45 PM, Oct 19, 2012
London: Spain's run of 24 consecutive qualifying wins was halted by France on Tuesday, while Germany spectacularly collapsed to let Sweden fight back from four goals down to draw 4-4 in the campaign to reach the 2014 World Cup. It was also a frustrating night for Cristiano Ronaldo as his 100th Portugal appearance ended in a 1-1 draw with Northern Ireland. England didn't even get a chance to play as...
04:10 AM, Oct 17, 2012
Madrid: France will field 11 warriors intent on proving Spain are not unbeatable when they play the world and European champions in a World Cup qualifier in Madrid on Tuesday, according to striker Karim Benzema. Benzema, who plays with Spanish internationals including Iker Casillas, Sergio Ramos and Xabi Alonso at Real Madrid, said he believed the Iberian nation were the best side in the world but insisted France had the...
09:44 AM, Oct 16, 2012
Paris: Hit by injuries and reeling from a surprise 1-0 loss to Japan, with their strikers struggling to score and a patched-up defense looking far from secure, France have enough to worry about without even thinking about Spain's quality ahead of their World Cup qualifier on Tuesday. Both teams won their opening two qualifiers to share the lead in Group I. But while Spain cruised into top gear with a...
07:11 PM, Oct 15, 2012
Madrid: Spain coach Vicente del Bosque recalled Bayern Munich center back or defensive midfielder Javi Martinez on Friday to patch up his weakened defense for the World Cup qualifiers against Belarus and France. Del Bosque said the two matches, which come a week after an always intense meeting between Barcelona and Real Madrid, were "vitally important" to the world champion's bid to win an unprecedented fourth consecutive major title. "These...
07:34 PM, Oct 05, 2012
Madrid: Spain and Greece outlined plans on Thursday to cut spending and raise taxes to convince international lenders and financial markets they are on the right track to cut their deficits. The measures outlined on Thursday highlight how Europe's struggling countries are battling public anger and flat-lining economies to push for more austerity, all with the aim of securing much-needed aid. Throughout the three-year financial crisis in the 17 countries...
03:07 PM, Sep 28, 2012
Madrid: Rafa Nadal's steady recuperation from a knee injury is proceeding according to plan and he is not going to rush back before it has healed properly, the world number four said. In an interview with Reuters in Madrid, the 11-time grand slam singles champion said he was still feeling some pain in his left knee and would only return to the court when that was no longer the case....
08:31 AM, Sep 25, 2012
Buenos Aires: Tomas Berdych defeated Carlos Berlocq in straight sets on Sunday to put the Czech Republic into the Davis Cup final against Spain. Berdych had few problems with Berlocq, winning 6-3, 6-3, 6-4 to give the Czechs an insurmountable 3-1 lead in the semifinal. Berlocq filled in for Juan Martin del Potro, who missed the decisive reverse singles with a left-wrist injury. Argentina's Juan Monaco then won the last...
09:44 AM, Sep 17, 2012
Gijon: Top-ranked United States pair Bob and Mike Bryan kept US hopes of upsetting holders Spain alive when they fought off a brave challenge from Marcel Granollers and Marc Lopez to win their Davis Cup semi-final doubles 6-3 3-6 7-5 7-5 on Saturday. Spain had put themselves within a point of a fourth final in five years when David Ferrer and Nicolas Almagro beat Sam Querrey and John Isner in...
11:40 PM, Sep 15, 2012
Gijon, Spain: David Ferrer and Nicolas Almagro maintained their near-perfect clay court records in the Davis Cup to give Spain a commanding 2-0 lead over the United States in their semi-final. Ferrer put the hosts ahead in the best-of-five series with a 4-6, 6-2, 6-2, 6-4 win over Sam Querrey before Almagro beat John Isner 6-4, 4-6, 6-4, 3-6, 7-5 to leave the defending champions one point away from their...
11:53 PM, Sep 14, 2012
Gijon, Spain: Even without Rafael Nadal, Spain present a formidable challenge to the United States' bid to reach the Davis Cup final. Defending champions Spain welcomes the Americans after having won the last two series between them. Spain haven't lost on clay, or at home, in 13 years. The Americans will play without Andy Roddick, who retired after the US Open. "Spain is the favourite. They could make three or...
07:25 PM, Sep 13, 2012
Barcelona: Barcelona forward David Villa says it will take some time to get back to top form after having returned from the broken leg that ruled him out for most of last season. The Spain striker said on Wednesday that "I still need to get up to speed" as he had been sidelined for "almost eight months without playing," forcing him "to be patient because rushing things now wouldn't be...
08:35 AM, Sep 13, 2012
Madrid: Andres Iniesta returned from Spain international duty with a muscle strain in his right leg and will be out for 10 and 15 days, his club Barcelona said on Wednesday. Iniesta will miss Saturday's La Liga match at Getafe and Wednesday's Champions League Group G opener at home to Spartak Moscow but could be back for the La Liga game against Granada a week on Saturday. His Spain and...
08:29 AM, Sep 13, 2012
Madrid: Spain's Juan Carlos Ferrero, a former world number one who won the French Open in 2003 but whose career has been hampered by injuries, will retire after playing at his home event next month, he said on Wednesday. "The Valencia Open 500 will be my final tournament, in the best possible scenario," Ferrero told a news conference presenting the ATP event. "This season injuries have prevented me from playing...
08:55 PM, Sep 12, 2012
Tbilisi: Spain needed 86 minutes to break down Georgia's defense in a 1-0 win on Tuesday as the World Cup champions took the first step to defending their title in 2014 with a 23rd consecutive victory in qualifying. Georgia goalkeeper Giorgi Loria kept Spain from converting their overwhelming possession into a goal until he was forced off with a leg injury. Substitute Cesc Fabregas then found Roberto Soldado to slot...
01:43 AM, Sep 12, 2012
The chance to feature at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil is an extra motivation for Spain's veteran players, said coach Vicente del Bosque on the eve of their first qualifying match in Georgia. Spain's haul of two European Championship titles and one World Cup trophy in the last four years means they have eclipsed Brazil as the team to beat but the South Americans still hold a special place...
08:04 PM, Sep 10, 2012
Pontevedra: David Villa scored on his return to the Spain national team as the World Cup champions prepared for World Cup qualifying with a 5-0 thrashing of Saudi Arabia in a friendly on Friday. Villa, making his first appearance for Spain since November because of injury, added to his all-time leading goal tally for Spain by hitting his 52nd international from a 64th-minute penalty. Pedro Rodriguez scored a goal in...
03:49 AM, Sep 08, 2012
Zurich: Brazil stayed outside the top ten of FIFA's highly questioned ranking system on Wednesday, with England, Denmark and Greece all ahead of the five-times world champions. The South Americans, who hit an all-time low of 13th last month, climbed one place to 12th thanks to a 3-0 friendly win in Sweden. But their placing, one below Greece, is still surprisingly low as they have won 10 of their 13...
04:07 PM, Sep 05, 2012
Spain international Pablo Hernandez has joined Swansea from La Liga side Valencia for a club-record fee of 5.55 million pounds, the Premier League club said on Friday. The 27-year-old winger, who played under current Swans manager Michael Laudrup at Getafe, signed a three-year contract. "He has played a lot of games in the Champions League games in the last three seasons and made his debut in the national team," Laudrup...
11:22 PM, Aug 31, 2012
