Newsday (N.Y.): Roger Federer, Maria Sharapova upset at Wimbledon

By Art Spander
Special to Newsday

WIMBLEDON, England — For 9 1/2 years, 36 consecutive events, Roger Federer had never failed to reach the quarterfinals in any Grand Slam tennis tournament. But this Wimbledon he couldn't get past the second round.

A 27-year-old from the Ukraine, Sergiy Stakhovsky, 116th in the world rankings, defeated Federer, 6-7 (5), 7-6 (5), 7-5, 7-6 (5), a stunning conclusion to a long Wednesday afternoon of upsets, upset competitors and withdrawals.

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Copyright © 2013 Newsday. All rights reserved.

Newsday (N.Y.): Maria Sharapova takes shot at Serena Williams over comments

By Art Spander
Special to Newsday

WIMBLEDON, England — Another Wimbledon begins Monday on the lawns of the All England Club, and what's Wimbledon without rain and wind — both made an appearance Saturday — and without a controversy?

Maria Sharapova took a huge shot at Serena Williams Saturday, lashing back at her when asked about a Williams comment — the author assumed it to be about Sharapova — in Rolling Stone magazine.

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Copyright © 2013 Newsday. All rights reserved.

Newsday (N.Y.): Maria Sharapova loses to Sabine Lisicki at Wimbledon

By Art Spander
Special to Newsday

WIMBLEDON, England -- They call it Manic Monday here. Think of it as a tennis version of March Madness. Everyone remaining is scheduled in a fourth-rounder. The next thing you know, a favorite is defeated, and the survivors are tiptoeing to the quarterfinals.

As Serena Williams will be. As Maria Sharapova will not be.

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Copyright © 2012 Newsday. All rights reserved.

Los Angeles Times: Maria Sharapova falls at Wimbledon, but she'll always have Paris

By Art Spander
Special to The Los Angeles Times

WIMBLEDON, England — The way Maria Sharapova was talking, discussing her French Open victory last month as opposed to her Wimbledon loss Monday ("I'll have that for the rest of my career"), it was easy to think of the film "Casablanca."

"We'll always have Paris," Humphrey Bogart says in that familiar line. So will Sharapova.

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Copyright © 2012, Los Angeles Times

RealClearSports: For Roddick, It's Not Gender, It's Leverage

By Art Spander
For RealClearSports.com

WIMBLEDON, England — It always comes down to money, doesn't it? Whether you're A-Rod or some kid just drafted into the NBA or a relatively successful and - herein lies the issue - relatively unknown tennis player named Gilles Simon.

Fame usually brings wealth. Wealth often brings fame. Everybody wants more of both, which is the reason there are holdouts and lockouts and player strikes in team sports, and there is jealousy in individual sports, such as tennis.

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© RealClearSports 2012