05/09/2008 - Rome, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - World No. 1 superstar Roger Federer suffered a quarterfinal setback Friday at the hands of gritty Czech Radek Stepanek at the $3.5 million Italian Masters, a clay-court French Open tune- up.
The unseeded Stepanek stunned the top-seeded Federer in straight sets in a pair of tiebreaks, 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (9-7), at Foro Italico. Federer was the runner-up at this event in 2003 and 2006.
Stepanek pulled off the upset in 1 hour, 55 minutes with the help of eight aces and a pair of service breaks.
The 29-year-old Stepanek is now 2-4 lifetime against Federer, who had won their previous four meetings, including a third-round one here in 2006.
The 12-time Grand Slam champion Federer dropped to 22-6 this year and has won only one title in seven tournaments in 2008.
A milder Day-5 upset came when Swiss Stanislas Wawrinka upended eighth-seeded American James Blake 6-7 (5-7), 7-6 (7-5), 6-1.
This week's winner will take home $558,000.
<< Reds place Mercker on DL
Flushing, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cincinnati Reds placed relief pitcher
Kent Mercker on the 15-day disabled list on Friday, retroactive to May 6,
with lower back pain.
The 40-year-old left-hander has a 3.86 earned run average
<< Columbus gunning for fifth straight win at San Jose
Santa Clara, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - When asked how the Columbus Crew, who have
won four straight and five of six, could continue their early-season success,
forward Alejandro Moreno had a simple answer.
"Well," Moreno said, "we keep doing t
<< Cubs activate Eyre
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Cubs activated pitcher Scott Eyre
from the 15-day disabled list and optioned left-handed pitcher Sean Marshall
to Triple-A Iowa on Friday.
Eyre, 35, has missed the first 34 games this seas
<< Wolfsburg, Stuttgart highlight key Bundesliga games
Wolfsburg, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Wolfsburg coach Felix Magath described
Saturday's Bundesliga match against Stuttgart as a "final."
Wolfsburg has climbed from 11th at the halfway point of the season to seventh
- only Bayern Munich an
Nash expects D'Antoni to stay despite speculation >>
PHOENIX (AP) -Despite rampant speculation that Mike D'Antoni is headed to Chicago or New York, Phoenix point guard Steve Nash expects his coach to be back on the Suns' bench next season.Beyond that, the two-time NBA MVP had little to say about the S
Report: Knicks negotiating with D'Antoni >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Knicks are reportedly
negotiating with Suns head coach Mike D'Antoni to become their next coach.
The New York Post reported on its website on Friday, citing a league source,
that co
Drama at both ends of Premiership table on final day >>
Manchester, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - There is still plenty to be decided on
the final Premiership Sunday of the season, with Manchester United and Chelsea
both level on 84 points at the top, while three teams are separated by just
one poi
Lyon filled with confidence ahead of top-three clash >>
Lyon, France (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Lyon will head into Saturday's top-three
showdown with Nancy full of confidence after beating Sedan 1-0 in the
semifinals of the French Cup on Wednesday.
The six-time defending Ligue 1 champi
Chiefs' Treen Green out for Sunday's game
How long Trent Green will remain sidelined is unknown. Coach Herm Edwards said Monday he will miss a second straight start Sunday when the Chiefs host the San Francisco 49ers.
A two-time Pro Bowler, Green was going into a feet-first hook slide when he was knocked unconscious by a thunderous, head-snapping hit from Cincinnati's Robert Geathers.
Oddsmakers at online sportsbook MySportsbook.com currently have the Chiefs listed as 7-point favorites versus the 49ers.
The 49ers got beat by Philadelphia 38-24 as a 6.5-point underdog last week. The combined score went OVER the posted over/under total (42.5).
Alex Smith completed 27-of-46 passes for 293 yards with a touchdown. Michael Robinson rushed for 29 yards and a pair of touchdowns on five carries.
The Chiefs lost 9-6 to Denver last week as an 11-point underdog. The combined score was well UNDER the posted over/under total (38).
Larry Johnson rushed for 126 yards on 27 carries. Damon Huard completed 17-of-23 passes for 133 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions.
To visit this online sports book got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs.
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