INDIAN WELLS, CalifORNIA // Andy Roddick beat fellow American James Blake 6-3, 7-5 in the second-round of the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells.
Roddick's eighth win in 11 matches with Blake set up a third-round meeting with his US Davis Cup teammate John Isner, who opened the day with a 6-3, 7-6 (2) victory over Ricardo Mello of Brazil.
Three-time tournament champion Roger Federer overcame Igor Andreev 7-5, 7-6 (4).
Two-time women's champion Kim Clijsters of Belgium struggled but beat Italy's Sara Errani 6-3, 2-6, 6-4 and 2010 champion Jelena Jankovic of Serbia ousted Julia Goerges 6-2, 6-4 to join Francesca Schiavone of Italy, Ana Ivanovic of Serbia and Marion Bartoli of France in the third-round.
On the men's side, No 7 seed Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic also moved into the third-round and the No 3 seed Novak Djokovic, the Australian Open champion, stayed perfect for the year (13-0) with a 6-0, 6-4 win over Andrey Golubev of Kazikstan in the opening match of the night session.
Roddick rallied from a 3-0 deficit in the second set by losing just two points and hitting 10 of his 13 aces in his final five service games. Isner had 12 aces and did not face a break point against Mello.
Roddick said he thought he performed acceptably, but "it was tough to get a gauge on how I was playing because James was playing so aggressively. From the first game his strategy was — he didn't want to let me get a rhythm. I felt like he was coming out of his shoes (trying to hit winners). It was tough, but the numbers looked good afterward. I felt like I was hitting the ball OK, so it worked out."
While Roddick is trying to maintain the form that has carried him to a 14-2 record and his 30th career title this year, Isner is trying to find a way to correct his inconsistencies. After winning three of his five matches in Australia, he lost in the first rounds at Memphis and Delray Beach and split two matches in last weekend's Davis Cup victory over Chile.
"I haven't been playing that well," said Isner, who got out to a 4-1 lead and then had to battle both Mello and his own vagaries. "Hitting the right shots at the right time has been sort of a struggle.
"Today I couldn't have started off any better. I'm up 4-1 and 15-40 (on Mello's serve) and then I didn't win that game. That's when my game went downhill a little bit. I was playing the right way and I didn't get that (break) and I don't really know what happened. I just stopped playing how I was playing in the first five games. It's something I'm always working on and need to do better at."
Federer, who'll meet Juan Ignacio Chella of Argentina in the third round, is 4-0 lifetime against Andreev.
"I thought it was another tough match against him," said Federer, who is 15-2 this year. "I felt always kind of in control in the first set, even though I was down, 5-4. I felt I was in the match quickly against him, which maybe in the past wasn't always the case because he's got a lot of spin and a lot of pace.
"I was able to handle that better today, I thought. I had a good 10 minutes where I was able to get up 7-5, 2-0, and after that he found his way into the match and it really became competitive. I played a really good tiebreaker."
RESULT
Al Hilal 4 Persepolis 0
Khribin (31', 54', 89'), Al Shahrani 40'
Red card: Otayf (Al Hilal, 49')
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
Company%20Profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENamara%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EJune%202022%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMohammed%20Alnamara%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDubai%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMicrofinance%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECurrent%20number%20of%20staff%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E16%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESeries%20A%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFamily%20offices%0D%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
WITHIN%20SAND
%3Cp%3EDirector%3A%20Moe%20Alatawi%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EStarring%3A%20Ra%E2%80%99ed%20Alshammari%2C%20Adwa%20Fahd%2C%20Muhand%20Alsaleh%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ERating%3A%203%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League quarter-final, second leg (first-leg score)
Porto (0) v Liverpool (2), Wednesday, 11pm UAE
Match is on BeIN Sports
The specs: 2018 Mazda CX-5
Price, base / as tested: Dh89,000 / Dh130,000
Engine: 2.5-litre four-cylinder
Power: 188hp @ 6,000rpm
Torque: 251Nm @ 4,000rpm
Transmission: Six-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 7.1L / 100km
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Yahya Al Ghassani's bio
Date of birth: April 18, 1998
Playing position: Winger
Clubs: 2015-2017 – Al Ahli Dubai; March-June 2018 – Paris FC; August – Al Wahda
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
