Juan Carlos Ferrero ended his singles career with a 7-5 6-3 defeat to Nicolas Almagro in Valencia

Juan Carlos Ferrero brought the curtain down on his singles career with a 7-5 6-3 defeat to fellow Spaniard and close friend Nicolas Almagro in the first round of the Valencia Open.

The 32-year-old former world No 1, who won the French Open in 2003, announced last month he would retire after playing his home event.
However there was to be no fairytale ending as he failed to cope with the speed and power of sixth seed Almagro.
Almagro appeared to be suffering from a right shoulder problem late in the second set but shrugged off the injury and sealed victory on his first match point when the unseeded Ferrero netted a return.
"It's been a long time since I enjoyed myself so much on a tennis court," said a tearful Ferrero who will join up with David Ferrer in the doubles on Wednesday.
"I simply want to thank everyone for all their support, not just this year but throughout all the years I have played here.
"It's always been a very special tournament for me and this year even more so."

Swedish tennis player hit with corruption ban

Swedish tennis player Lucas Renard has been suspended for six months and fined $5,000 for a corruption offense.

Renard had breached an article of the anti-corruption program that states: "No Covered Person shall, directly or indirectly, contrive or attempt to contrive the outcome or any other aspect of any Event," the Tennis Integrity unit said in a statement.
The 19-year-old, ranked 882nd in the world, admitted the offense. Four of the six months of his ban will be suspended, providing he commits no future violation of the code.
The Tennis Integrity Unit is an initiative of the Grand Slam Committee, the International Tennis Federation, the ATP World Tour and the WTA as part of the Uniform Tennis Anti-Corruption Program.

2011 ATP Tour season review

After a year dominated by Novak Djokovic, Eurosport analyst Mats Wilander rounds up the 2011 season.
The Serb shot to the top of the tennis tree after a sensational 12 months during which he won three Grand Slams, five ATP World Tour Masters 1000 titles and a total of 10 tournaments.
On the way, he went on an incredible 43-match winning streak and ended with an overall record of 70 wins and just six defeats.
It might just have been the best season ever seen by a single player and Djokovic fully deserved his world number one status by the end of it.
The one remaining Grand Slam went to the undisputed king of clay Rafael Nadal while Roger Federer's topsy-turvy season ended on an upward trajectory with victory at the World Tour finals, just to remind his doubters that there is life in the old dog yet.
Mats look back on an eventful year in men's tennis with this series of videos.

ATP World Tour Finals - Ferrer upsets struggling Murray

Andy Murray paid the price for a flat performance as he was beaten 6-4 7-5 by David Ferrer in his opening match at the ATP World Tour finals - his first loss to the Spanish grinder on a hard court.

British number one Murray could not get out of second gear throughout the match and lost a fierce baseline encounter in straight sets despite being a break up in both sets of a contest watched by 17,000 fans at the O2 in London.
"I am very happy. I played very consistently throughout the match," said Ferrer. "Andy seemed to have problems with his back, but I played my game and won the match.
"This is only the first match, and I will have to be focused on the next matches in the tournament."
Murray could have few complaints about the nature of his defeat such was his inconsistency.
He needed a medical time-out at the end of the first set for treatment after struggling with what seemed to be a hip or back problem, but was later confirmed as a groin injury.
Murray's travails should not detract from an impressive victory for Ferrer, who had lost all five of his previous encounters with the Scot on the same surface. Murray leads 5-4 in their career head-to-heads.
In the final analysis, Murray made 44 unforced errors compared to 35 from Ferrer with the Scotsman nailing 21 winners to 19 from Ferrer as the Spaniard - who lost the final of this tournament to Roger Federer in Shanghai four years ago - saluted a shocked crowd in London after emerging victorious from two hours of unremitting play.
Murray - seeded third this week - will need to come up with wins in his final two Group A games against world number one Novak Djokovic and Tomas Berdych to have a chance of reaching the last four. He is likely to need to win them in straight sets to be sure of progress.
Ferrer made a series of errors in being broken for the first time in the third game only to break back immediately with Murray - toiling for any degree of certainty on his serve - guilty of making three errors on the forehand side as his opponent restored parity at 2-2.
Murray managed to produce a stunning running backhand winner in levelling at 3-3. The match continued on serve until Ferrer produced a fine game to snare the opening set by breaking Murray for a second time in the match.
Murray broke in the opening game of the second set and held for a 2-0 lead only for Ferrer to win three straight games for a 3-2 advantage.
Murray broke for a second time to lead 4-3 after Ferrer threw in a couple of uncharacteristic errors, but could not cement the break as a first double fault of the set helped the Spanish player - who saw a break point elude him to lead 4-2 - draw level at 4-4.
Ferrer finally saw out the match with Murray trying to force the tie-break trailing 5-6.
Ferrer brought up match point at 30-30 by coming to the net to convert a winning volley that bounded beyond Murray, before racing towards the net moments later to thrash the ball beyond the Scot seconds after he had somehow got the ball back over the net with a desperate lunge on the forehand side.

Wimbledon - 100,000 Serbs welcome home Djokovic

Some 100,000 Serbian tennis fans gave Novak Djokovic a royal reception in central Belgrade on Monday after the 24-year-old arrived home to celebrate winning his first Wimbledon title.

Djokovic, who leapt to the top of the ATP rankings in the process, was greeted by a deafening roar as he arrived in an open-top bus which took hours to reach the Serbian parliament square from the airport.
Traffic on the main motorway ground to a halt as fans got out of their cars to salute Serbia's most popular athlete, whose entire family paraded alongside him on a giant stage where rock bands entertained the crowd.
"This is absolutely unbelievable and I owe all of you eternal gratitude for this reception," an elated Djokovic said as he held aloft the trophy he won with an emphatic four-set win over Spaniard Rafa Nadal in Sunday's final.
"The time has come to bare all my emotions to you and all I can say is that you are the best in the world because only Serbian fans can throw a party like this.
"You have made the happiest day of my life even better and I dedicate this trophy to you," said Djokovic, who will lead Davis Cup holders Serbia in their quarter-final tie away to Sweden next weekend.
"We have a soul that is second to none and with the team event coming up, I can promise you we will do everything in our power to win it all again," he added.
Djokovic and his two younger brothers then joined rock, pop and folk bands on stage in singing local chartbusters, as fans lit flares and waved Serbian flags.
Some of them produced banners taunting Nadal, who relinquished the world number one spot to his fierce rival.
"Are you watching this from Madrid, Rafa, and keep practising that backhand of yours," said one of them.
The frenzy culminated when Djokovic and his family engaged in a traditional Serbian folk dance as fireworks lit the skies above Belgrade on a warm evening.
"Young people are here in droves because they look up to this extraordinary young man and draw inspiration from his accomplishments," said former Davis Cup coach Radmilo Armenulic.
"He is a role model and a true champion, finding the strength and willpower in his family and close friends, which is the best way to keep your life on the rails.
"As for his game, I am in no position to give him any advice because he is so superior on the court," said Armenulic.
Former handball international Igor Butulija added: "As a former top-level athlete I know how much more difficult it is to reach the top as an individual, hence Djokovic's triumph must stand as the most remarkable achievement in Serbia's history."

French Open - Nadal: Journey made it special

Having conquered his anxiety and battled through tough situations, Rafa Nadal won possibly the sweetest of his six French Open titles on Sunday.

f the Spaniard was simply awesome in 2008 when he claimed the French crown without dropping a set, this year he had to survive a few wobbles on the way to his 10th grand slam title.
The 25-year-old Nadal clawed back from the brink in a five-set thriller against American John Isner and recovered from a sticky start to beat old rival Roger Federer 7-5 7-6 5-7 6-1 in the final and equal Bjorn Borg's record.
"Rafael was nervous," his uncle and coach Toni Nadal told reporters.
Nadal arrived in Paris with two titles on clay, in Barcelona and Monte Carlo, under his belt, but having also lost to Novak Djokovic on the red dirt in the Madrid and Rome finals.
"The real Rafa is both the Rafa who wins and the Rafa who plays well and the Rafa who suffers and doesn't play that well," Rafa Nadal told a news conference.
"You have to face this situation. You also have a Rafa that plays very well and wins. These two Rafas are real Rafas.
"The most positive thing is that I was capable of reversing situations and keeping a good attitude in order to reverse the situation."
It did not happen without pain and fear.
Nadal went 5-2 down in the opening set on Sunday as he struggled to find his range, but after Federer had a drop shot ruled just wide, the Spaniard hit his stride to win seven games in a row and take charge of the match.
The joy of victory obviously took more time to sink in than three years ago, when he dropped only 41 games throughout the fortnight.
"It's difficult to say I am not satisfied with this one, because to win a tournament like this you have to be playing really well," said Nadal.
"But sometimes when you fight a lot to win, when you try your best in every moment to change the situation, it makes the title more special.
"For example, in 2008 I think I played better than ever, but I finished the tournament and I didn't feel that I won Roland Garros because I won in three sets.
"When you come back after a tough situation, it makes the tournaments and the victories more special for sure."

Australian Open - Australian Open offers record prize money

Next year's Australian Open will be the richest Grand Slam tournament in history with the men's and women's champions each taking home A$2.3 million (£1.41m), organisers of the Melbourne event said on Tuesday.

The total prize purse for the January 16-29 tournament has also been hiked to A$26 million, the organisers said in a statement on their website.
They also announced a new women's legends event, which is set to feature three-times Australian Open champion Martina Hingis, and the extension of the use of hawk-eye technology to the Margaret Court Arena.
"The Australian Open inspires players at an elite and grassroots level, particularly after the success of local hero Sam Stosur, who was so impressive winning the 2011 US Open singles title last month," Victoria premier Ted Baillieu was quoted as saying in the statement.

Paris Masters - Scrappy Federer dismisses Monaco

Roger Federer was nowhere near his best but still beat Juan Monaco in straight sets to set up a semi-final against Tomas Berdych at the Paris Masters, bringing up his 800th win on the ATP Tour.

World number four Federer - the highest remaining seed after Andy Murray lost to Berdych and Novak Djokovic withdrew injured - won 6-3 7-5 but had a mediocre game by his high standards, putting in a whopping 35 unforced errors.
But, despite suffering an early break, the Swiss was always in control and never again truly threatened by world number 34 Monaco, who only hit eight winners all match.
There was a chance for Monaco to level at the end of the second set, pushing Federer to deuce at 5-4, but the 16-times Grand Slam winner held on and served out the win with an ace.
Federer, who beat Monaco 6-1 6-2 6-0 in the fourth round of the US Open, admitted it had been a more difficult task this time out.
"I struggled a bit today, I didn't play as well as I did in New York," Federer said afterwards. "I served really well and once you zone in it's really hard to get you out of it.
"This time it was a lot harder, especially to adapt on serve when someone uses a lot of spin like Monaco does.
"Today I thought it was so slow (on court) so I had to adjust my game.
"I also enjoyed Berdych and Murray's match. I thought they played better tennis than we did today."
It was a landmark win for the 30-year-old Federer, his 800th of a career that has brought 16 Majors and 68 titles in total.
Federer was aware of the statistic, and joked that his 13-year professional career was taking its toll.
"800 wins means 800 grey hairs! I love tennis and I knew coming in that it could be my 800th win," he said.
"It's nice to do it on the 11/11/11 (referring to the date).
"But I know there are many other players that have played more tennis than I have. So it's just another win, but it's a special one nevertheless, because 800 is a big number."

Paris Masters - Fabulous Federer outguns Berdych in Paris

Roger Federer was at his brilliant best to move within one win of his first Paris Masters title with a 6-4 6-3 semi-final victory over Tomas Berdych.

The former world number one - currently ranked fourth in the standings - is chasing back-to-back titles after winning indoors in his home town of Basel last week. He will start as a warm favourite to beat Jo-Wilfried Tsonga or John Isner in the final.
"I am very happy to have made the final," said Federer. "I am very happy with my level of play at the moment. I had six weeks off (after the US Open), and that has been very good for my mind and my body.
"I look at the big picture. The ranking system is 365 days. It is all year round. I am not 20 and I can't play seven straight weeks and expect to win in Paris. I was carrying a few injuries, but the rest has been good. I'm very hungry and aggressive (on the court)."
The slow speed of the courts in Paris have been criticised by several players, but Federer is content. He added: "I think the conditions here are a bit tricky. It takes some getting used to it, but now I'm in the tournament I try to play aggressively."
He gave Berdych short shrift only a day after the Czech player had recovered from a set down to oust Andy Murray in the quarter-finals in just over three hours.
Berdych feels that Federer is back to his best. He said: "I would say, and I'm pretty confident to say, that that's the old Roger. You know, the years that he was really winning everything. We can count the unforced errors that he hit, like maybe, on the fingers on one hand, which is incredible. He started every set really great and just didn't give me any chance at all."
Federer had taken a scattergun approach while almost playing in second gear to defeat Juan Monaco in the last eight, but was brimming with his trademark pinpoint accuracy less than 24 hours later in the French capital's Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy.
Federer swarmed all his opponent after breaking Berdych in the opening game of the first set before repeating the dose in the opening game of the second set.
He was never broken or forced to face a break point in the match as his sliced backhand and dynamic forehand forced Berdych to spend much of the match on the baseline.
At the end, Federer cut an altogether fresher figure than his opponent such was his ability to dictate the pace and tone of the contest.
Federer blew five match points in losing to Gael Monfils at the same stage 12 months ago, but there was to be no repeat as he cleared his path to the final in 80 minutes. He will contest a first Paris final in his ninth appearance at the tournament.
Federer finished off the match by breaking the 2010 Wimbledon finalist to love to see out as one-sided contest as you are likely to come across at this level.
Federer was ahead in all of the major statistics hitting 34 winners compared to 16 by Berdych. He made 13 unforced errors compared to 20 by his opponent and won a mammoth 91 percent of points on first serve as the Paris crowd were left drooling by the quality of Federer's tennis.

Fed Cup - Czechs win maiden Fed Cup title

Kveta Peschke and Lucie Hradecka beat Maria Kirilenko and Elena Vesnina 6-4 6-2 in the decisive doubles to give the Czech Republic a 3-2 win over Russia in the Fed Cup final, clinching the country's first title as an independent nation.

Earlier, Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova prevailed over Svetlana Kuznetsova 4-6 6-2 6-3 in the first match of the day to put the Czechs within a point of claiming their first Fed Cup crown after they split from Slovakia in 1993.
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, who replaced Kirilenko after the latter's straight-set loss to Kvitova on Saturday, overpowered Czech number two Lucie Safarova 6-2 6-4 in the second reverse singles to pull the hosts level at 2-2.
The Czechs' last triumph came when, playing as Czechoslovakia, they beat the former Soviet Union 2-1 in the 1988 final.

Keothavong edged out in three hour epic

Anne Keothavong's brave run at the WTA Luxembourg event ended at the semi-final stage after an epic tussle with Monica Niculescu. 

The British player, who had to win three matches just to qualify for the event, lost 7-5 4-6 6-3 in a match that last over three hours.
In a high quality contest, both players had first serve percentages of over 70 per cent but there were still 13 breaks in the match.
It will be a first career final for 24-year-old Romanian Niculescu.
In the decider she will meet top seed Victoria Azarenka or sixth-seed Julia Goerges – their semi-final is ongoing.