January 30 2010
Sports Bites

Defending champion Rafael Nadal retired from his quarterfinal against Andy Murray with an injured knee, then predicted the Scottish player would end his Grand Slam title drought by winning the Australian Open. "For Andy, I think he deserves to win his first Grand Slam. And I think he's going to do it," Nadal said less than an hour after a knee injury forced him to concede Tuesday's quarterfinal while he was trailing 6-3, 7-6 (2), 3-0. "There's a very good chance for him. First thing, he's playing very well," Nadal said.

Real Madrid winger Cristiano Ronaldo has been banned for two Spanish league games for breaking an opponent's nose. The Spanish soccer federation fined Ronaldo $843 Tuesday for "dangerous play that caused harm.'' Madrid, which was fined $253, can appeal the decision. Malaga defender Patrick Mtiliga will be out for three weeks after being struck in the face with Ronaldo's arm in the 70th minute of Madrid's 2-0 win Sunday. Ronaldo was given a red card. Ronaldo will miss matches at Deportivo La Coruna and Espanyol. Madrid trails Barcelona by five points at the top of the league standings.

Jim Furyk expects to see Tiger Woods when he shows up for the Masters from April 8-11. “If I had to bet, I’d bet we’d see him at Augusta,” said Furyk Monday before a golf clinic in north Florida, according to Jacksonville.com. “Tiger hasn’t come out and made any real public statements, so it’s hard to figure out. Everyone is guessing it will be Augusta. Whether he comes out earlier, or there, I have no idea.” Furyk also expects the world's top golfer will get a mixed reaction from fellow players after the scandal that's engulfed his life since a Thanksgiving night crash outside his Florida home. Furyk, ranked fifth on the PGA Tour, has played with Woods plenty on the tour and as a partner on Ryder Cup and President's Cup teams.

The British government will extend sanctions on about 3,200 fans banned from watching soccer matches in the country to prevent them from traveling to South Africa for the World Cup. The troublemakers already have to surrender their passports to police before international matches but the Home Office says the government will impose what it calls a ``control period'' to lengthen the time they can be stopped from traveling. The number of arrests by police at soccer matches in England and Wales fell 2 percent last season. About half of the 3,752 arrests were for disorder and about a third for alcohol-related offenses. Ticket scalping and violence also featured in the list of reasons.

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