Defending champion del Potro withdraws from U.S. Open

Tennis Betting Lines

08/21/2010 - Flushing Meadows, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Juan Martin del Potro, the reigning U.S. Open champion, announced Saturday he will not be able to defend his title in 2010 due to the lasting effects of wrist surgery earlier this year.

Currently ranked ninth in the world, del Potro became the first Argentine to win the U.S. Open since Guillermo Vilas in 1977 when he defeated the world's top two players in successive matches last year at Flushing Meadows. His first career grand slam title came courtesy of thrilling wins over Rafael Nadal in the semifinals and Roger Federer in a five-set final.

"I feel extremely sad to announce that I will not to be able to defend my US Open title," said del Potro. "Winning in New York last year has been my major accomplishment in tennis and my best memory so far. I am so sorry for my fans, my sponsors and all the people that care about me, but I have only started practicing in the last two weeks and unfortunately I cannot compete at the top level yet. I look forward to returning to New York in 2011."

The 21-year-old played in the year's first grand slam at the Australian Open, eventually bowing out to Marin Cilic in the fourth round. It was del Potro's only appearance on tour this year, as he underwent surgery on his right wrist May 4 at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota.

Wwwbingogala Tennis Betting News

<< Van Nistelrooy's brace beats Schalke
Hamburg, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ruud van Nistelrooy scored in the 83rd minute to lead Hamburg to a 2-1 win over Schalke at Imtech Arena on Saturday. Van Nistelrooy put Hamburg in front in the opening minute of the second half, while

<< Walcott helps Arsenal batter Blackpool
London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Theo Walcott scored a hat trick as Arsenal rolled to a 6-0 win over Blackpool at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday. The promoted side was coming off of a 4-0 win over Wigan in its first game, but things

<< Phillies reinstate Howard from DL
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Philadelphia Phillies reinstated first baseman Ryan Howard from the 15-day disabled list on Saturday. Howard suffered a left ankle sprain sliding back into second base in an August 1 extra-inning win o

<< Bolts' Lecavalier to undergo knee surgery
Tampa, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tampa Bay Lightning center Vincent Lecavalier will undergo minor surgery on his left knee on Tuesday. The arthroscopic procedure will be performed by Lightning Orthopedic Surgeon Dr. Ira Guttentag at the

<< Hamilton hammered by Hearts
Hamilton, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Hamilton was on the wrong end of a 4-0 scoreline for the second successive weekend, this time losing to Hearts at New Douglas Park on Saturday. Calum Elliot scored the opener and the final goal fo

N.Y., Marquez end Toronto's home unbeaten streak >>
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Rafael Marquez scored his first goal in Major League Soccer and Red Bull New York handed Toronto FC its first home defeat in more than a year, 4-1 on Saturday at BMO Field. Marquez scored off a swerving, 25-

Strong seventh gets Yanks by Mariners >>
Bronx, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Mark Teixeira's sacrifice fly capped a three-run seventh inning, as the New York Yankees beat Seattle, 9-5, in the second portion of a three-game set. Robinson Cano hit a two-run single and Jorge Posada ad

Chargers OT Thomas retires >>
San Diego, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Diego Chargers revealed on Saturday that left tackle Tra Thomas has retired. Thomas had been signed to a one-year contract back in June, but knee troubles ended his preparation for the upcoming

Atwal alone at the top of Wyndham Championship >>
Greensboro, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Arjun Atwal fired a five-under 65 on Saturday to take sole possession of the lead after the third round of the Wyndham Championship. Atwal, who fired a 61 for the first-round lead and shared

Padres activate Eckstein from DL >>
Milwaukee, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Diego Padres have reinstated infielder David Eckstein from the 15-day disabled list among a handful of moves prior to Saturday's game against Milwaukee. Eckstein was placed on the disabl

COLLEGE FOOTBALL BETTING

NCAA Football Betting : USC's reward: Top spot in Top 25

NEW YORK (AP) -By staying away from the cupcakes, Southern California earned itself a slim new ranking.

No. 1 always seems to fit USC.

Southern California jumped two spots to No. 1 in The Associated Press Top 25 on Tuesday, rewarded by voters for opening the season with a dominant performance on the road against a BCS conference opponent.

Georgia and Ohio State, the preseason Nos. 1 and 2, respectively, started their seasons with glorified scrimmages at home against FCS (formerly I-AA) teams. USC, however, traveled across country to face Virginia and could not have been more impressive in a 52-7 victory.

Georgia fell to No. 2 and Ohio State to No 3.

"We realize that rankings so early in a season are certainly fluid. But rankings do help establish a pecking order for things later in the season," USC coach Pete Carroll said in a statement. "As for moving into the No. 1 spot, it's nice to know that people think highly of our team."

Since reaching No. 1 on Dec. 7, 2003, the final-regular season AP poll of that season, USC has been No. 1 in 39 polls, by far the most of any team during that time.

"Some have said the voters are taking our schedule into consideration," Carroll said. "Our philosophy has always been to schedule outstanding opponents. We need to play challenging games like we just did, traveling across the country to open the season at Virginia. Games like that bring out our best and make us stronger as a team."

The latest voting was close. USC received 21 first-place votes and 1,539 points from the 65-member media panel. Georgia had 20 first-place votes and 1,506 points. Ohio State got 15 first-place votes and 1,497 points.

"I'd say we've evolved as pollsters," said Stewart Mandel of SI.com, who moved USC up to No. 1. "In the past, voters just kind of automatically moved teams up and kept teams where they were if they won."

Georgia beat Georgia Southern 45-21 on Saturday and Ohio State opened with a 43-0 win over Youngstown State.

"There's a bit of a growing backlash for the amount of teams that open with I-AA cupcakes," said Mandel, whose book "Bowls, Polls and Tattered Souls" chronicles college football's controversies. "To see a team [USC] go on the road and play a New Year's Day bowl team from last season, and not only play them but destroy them, how could you not reward that team?"

USC also jumped past Georgia to No. 1 in the USA Today coaches' poll, which has the same top five as the AP poll.

"It's definitely a privilege to be No. 1. But it's not heartbreaking to me if we drop," Georgia offensive lineman Josh Davis said. "It doesn't matter right now what we're ranked. What matters is our next game and right now, that's Central Michigan. The only time the polls matter is in December. That's when the polls matter."

While the Bulldogs opened easy, their schedule ultimately should be as difficult as any team's. Georgia's big nonconference test is at No. 15 Arizona State on Sept. 20. The Bulldogs also face six Southeastern Conference rivals that've been ranked in the first two polls.

As for Ohio State, the Buckeyes play at USC on Sept. 13 before getting into the Big Ten schedule.

But of the teams in this week's top 10, USC and Texas are the only ones that don't play an FCS opponent, and the Trojans are the only team that doesn't play a team from a non-BCS conference.

Get the latest 2009 BCS Championship odds at MySportsbook.com.

The last team to drop from No. 1 after a victory was USC last season. LSU jumped from No. 2 to No. 1 when it beat Tulane 34-9, the same week the Trojans edged Washington 27-24 on the road.

The last preseason No. 1 team to lose the top spot after winning its opening game was Florida in 2001. The Gators beat Marshall 49-14, but preseason No. 2 Miami opened with a 33-7 victory over Penn State and the Hurricanes jumped to No. 1 with Florida slipping to second.

The next four teams in the new Top 25 stayed the same: No. 4 Oklahoma (two first-place votes), No. 5 Florida (five first-place votes), No. 6 Missouri (one first-place vote), No. 7 LSU (one first-place vote) and No. 8 West Virginia.

No. 9 Auburn and No. 10 Texas each moved up a spot, taking advantage of Clemson's big drop. Clemson, ninth in the preseason, fell out after losing 34-10 to Alabama on Saturday.

Also falling out after losses were Virginia Tech, Pittsburgh and Tennessee.

Moving into the rankings were No. 21 Fresno State, No. 22 Utah, No. 23 UCLA and No. 24 South Carolina.

Alabama moved up 11 spots after its big victory over Clemson.

The second 10 started with No. 11 Wisconsin, followed by Texas Tech, Alabama and Kansas. BYU and Arizona State were tied for 15th. Rivals BYU and Utah are both ranked for the first time since 1996.

South Florida was No. 17, ahead of Oregon, Penn State and Wake Forest at No. 20.

The final five were all the teams to move into the ranking, except for Illinois, which dropped four spots and tied South Carolina for No. 24.

Get free Sports Betting lines RSS feeds from top rated online sportsbook MySportsbook.com