Broad wary of Costa’s fitness, ‘dangerous’ Falcao’s form Clarke key to Chelsea 17 title defense WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2015 19 Clean athletes let down by system — Tallent Page 18 KAZAN:Guy Great Britain’s James Guy competeseclipses in the final of the men’s 200m freestyle swimming Sunevent at the 2015 FINA World Champioinnships. — AFP200m freestyle KAZAN: Britain’s James Guy held off a host of “I tried to focus on myself (in the final 50m) and I semi-final, summoning all her strength to qualify stroke titles. Emily Seebohm led home a brilliant petition since her doping ban ended in February, Olympic champions to win his first world title, the knew the boys would go out hard. I also knew I had sixth-fastest. one-two in the women’s event, claiming gold with posted 1:05.66, with Lithuanian rival Ruta Meilutyte men’s 200m freestyle, at the world championships a good back end because of the 400m, so I tried to “I was prepared for it and it did hurt a lot, but I the year’s world leading time of 58.26 seconds, claiming silver. Guy’s compatriot, Adam Peaty, earli- yesterday. play to my strengths.” got the job done and it feels really good,” said ahead of compatriot Madison Wilson in 58.75 sec- er set a world record for the men’s 50 metres After claiming silver in the 400m freestyle As expected, Katie Ledecky, of the United States, Ledecky. She had avoided the same schedule at the onds. Mitch Larkin then held off 2011 world cham- breaststroke as he continued his Kazan rivalry with behind China’s Sun Yang, Guy came from third at won her second world title in three days, coasting 2013 championships, but opted to include a fourth pion Camille Lacourt, of France, in the men’s 100m South Africa’s Cameron van der Burgh. the final turn to touch the wall in one minute 45.14 to victory in the women’s 1500m freestyle and low- event in Kazan in the build-up to the Rio Games, backstroke on the final stroke. Peaty’s time of 26.42 seconds broke the previous seconds. He beat Sun and Paul Biedermann of ering her world record in the process. given that the 1500m is not on the Olympic pro- record by 0.20 seconds, set by Van der Burgh, the Germany into silver and bronze respectively. Ryan gramme. “I have 2,000 more metres of racing here PULSATING SESSION defending champion, earlier in the day. The Briton Lochte, of United States, was fourth. OPENING SALVOS and I’m not thinking about 2016 just yet,” she The 22-year-old touched in 52.40 seconds, just will be favourite to land his second title of the week The stirring finish from the 19-year-old dented The 18-year-old high school graduate raced added. The American, chasing four individual world 0.08 seconds ahead of Lacourt. The defending after winning 100m breaststroke gold on Monday. Sun’s bid for four world titles.”It was quite a nice away from the field in the opening salvos, record- titles, will face a tough final after Italy’s Federica champion, Australia’s Matt Grevers, took bronze. Meanwhile, Conor Jaeger, of the United States, qual- feeling, as I never thought I’d race Ryan, one of my ing 15:25.48 to lower the mark she set on Monday Pellegrini and Missy Franklin, of the United States, In the final event of a pulsating session, favorite ified fastest for Wednesday’s men’s 800m final, with heroes, and racing head-to-head against him, by 2.23 seconds. took the first two final berths. Yuliya Efimova delighted the home crowd by tak- seven minutes 44.77 seconds. Defending champion touching the wall and becoming world champion Thirty minutes later, Ledecky was back on the Australia took two golds in less than an hour ing gold in the women’s 100m breaststroke. Sun recorded the sixth-fastest time, 3.10 seconds is amazing,” said Guy. starting blocks for her women’s 200m freestyle after securing both men’s and women’s 100m back- The Russian, competing in her first major com- down on the American. — Reuters Petkovic advances Murray returns to DC at West Classic for 1st time since 2006 STANFORD: Sixth-seeded Andrea Petkovic got her body realigned and returned to form to beat fellow German Carina Witthoeft in a first-round WASHINGTON: Andy Murray is back on hard reigning U.S. Open champion Marin Cilic; match of the Bank of the West Classic on Monday. courts for the first time in four months - and James Duckworth eliminated Ryan Harrison 6- “I played really bad up to 1-5,” Petkovic said. “It felt like my upper body back at the Citi Open for the first time in nine 1, 7-6 (4) and will meet U.S. Open runner-up Kei and lower body were swapped. After that I played fine.” The 17th-ranked years. The two-time major champion is seeded Nishikori; and Victor Estrella Burgos edged Petkovic won 5-7, 6-1, 6-3. “Stanford is special with the conditions. The ball No. 1 at the US Open tuneup that began Nicolas Jarry 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 to set up a match really flies,” she said. “You have to feel the court.” Monday, getting his game in gear on the sur- against eighth-seeded John Isner. The seventh-seeded Madison Keys also advanced. The 18th-ranked face on which he won his first Grand Slam title In doubles, the second stop on Mardy Fish’s American needed just 5 minutes to take care of Aleksandra Krunic 6-3, 6-0. at Flushing Meadows in 2012. farewell tour began with a victory. Fish, who “I think I played really well,” Keys said. “Once I got the lead I tried to keep Like other seeded players, Murray received plans to retire after the US Open, teamed with the pressure on her. My first serve was definitely working for me and that’s a first-round bye, and his initial match in Grigor Dimitrov to beat last year’s Wimbledon something I want to keep up.” American teenager CiCi Bellis lost her match Washington, where he hasn’t played since he champions, Jack Sock and Vasek Pospisil. to qualifier Misaki Doi, 6-3, 7-6 (3). Bellis was the youngest player in 15 years was the 2006 runner-up, comes Murray and Daniel Nestor lost in to win a match at the US Open last year. “I thought I played pretty well and Wednesday against 53rd-ranked doubles at night. In singles, gave her a good fight,” said Bellis, who lives a few minutes from the campus. Teymuraz Gabashvili of Russia. Murray’s season so far: three titles “It’s good for me to play against players ranked so high.” That will be Murray’s first compe- and a 48-7 record. “The year as a Qualifier Nicole Gibbs, who won a pair of NCAA singles titles while at tition on a hard court since losing whole, obviously, has been good. Stanford, beat France’s Caroline Garcia 6-4, 7-5, for her first WTA main draw in the final at Miami to top- It’s been much, much better than victory since April. “This was a big barrier for me to break through,” Gibbs ranked Novak Djokovic in early last year. So there’s been some said. “To do it in front of my home crowd was something special.” American April. “It does take a while, espe- progress there,” Murray said. “But Alison Riske topped German Tatjana Maria 6-2, 5-7, 6-1 to earn a date with cially coming from the grass. This obviously I want to keep trying to third-seeded Carla Suarez Navarro in the second round of the tournament morning was the first time when I do better, and hopefully these that is a tune up for the U.S. Open at the end of the month. Doi meets No. hit and started to feel more com- next few weeks, I can go on a 2-seed Agnieszka Radwanska on Thursday. Mona Barthel beat wild card fortable on the courts, feel like I’m good run on hard courts and fin- Carol Zhao 6-3, 6-0. World No. 1 and defending champion Serena Williams starting to get used to them ish the year strong.” withdrew last week due to injury. again. Obviously the conditions Andy Murray At the majors, Murray reached Meanwhile, Philipp Kohlschreiber overcame 14 aces by Jan-Lennard here, when compared with one final (losing to Djokovic at Struff to beat his German compatriot 6-3, 6-7 (5), 6-3 in the first round of Wimbledon, is completely different. Extremely the Australian Open) and a pair of semifinals the Generali Open yesterday. The sixth-seeded Kohlschreiber held his serve humid. Very high-bouncing courts,” said the (losing to Djokovic again at the French Open). throughout and broke Struff once in the first set and again in the final set. “I third-ranked Murray, who lost to No. 2 Roger “In terms of goals, one of the things I spoke was the better player in the rallies but his serve made it a close match,” said Federer in the semifinals at the All England about at the beginning of the year was consis- Kohlschreiber, who reached the final here in 2012 but failed to win his Club last month. tency, and trying to make sure I did better at opening match the following two years.