Serbia claims second World Team Cup

BERLIN: Serbia won a second World Team Cup yesterday when Janko Tipsarevic and Victor Troicki set their country on the way to a 3-0 victory over the Czech Republic in the final in Dusseldorf.
Tipsarevic saw off Tomas Berdych 7-5, 7-6 (10/8) before Troicki sealed victory with a 6-2, 4-6, 3-6 triumph over Radek Stepanek.
In the doubles, Serbia completed the rout when Tipsarevic and Nenad Zimonjic got the better of Berdych and Frantisek Cermak 6-3, 6-1
Serbia had also won the tournament in 2009.
Almagro ends Baker’s magical run
In Nice, France, Spain’s Nicolas Almagro got the perfect boost ahead of the French Open by ending the magical claycourt run of American qualifier Brian Baker 6-3, 6-2 to successfully defend his Nice Open title yesterday.
It was Almagro’s second tournament win of the year and the 12th of his career.
Baker, 27, was playing in his first ATP final after being sidelined for almost six years having undergone five surgeries (three hip, one elbow, one hernia) before returning to tennis in July 2011 at the Pittsburgh Futures.
Baker should rise to around 140 in the world from his current 216.
“It was a great week. Every time you go onto court you want to win. I am a competitor, I hate losing,” said Baker.
“But it has been an unbelievable week. I hoped to qualify at the start of the week and win a match or two, before going to Roland Garros. Obviously, I did much better than that. I think even in the qualifying, I felt as if I was playing pretty well.
“I won my three matches easily and knew I was playing good tennis.”
Almagro added: “Baker lost the final today, but he is back, he is playing very good. I think if he plays as he did this week, then he will win many, many tournaments.”
The Spaniard is seeded 12th for Roland Garros, which starts on Sunday. He opens against Italy’s Paolo Lorenzi.
Baker will play the French Open on a wildcard and takes on Belgium’s Xavier Malisse in the first round.
Radwanska takes Brussels title
In Brussels, Polish top seed Agnieszka Radwanska won her 10th career title on Saturday when she defeated Romania’s Simona Halep 7-5, 6-0 in the final of the Brussels claycourt tournament.
For 20-year-old Halep, it was a third defeat in three finals having been beaten in Fes in 2010 and 2011.
Radwanska is seeded three for the French Open, which starts on Sunday in Paris, where she will face Serbia’s Bojana Jovanovski in the first round.
Halep starts her Roland Garros campaign against Czech 24th seed Petra Cetkovska.