Former champ Clijsters looks to family time
Tennis: Preparing for what she knew would be her last professional tennis tournament, Kim Clijsters – four-time Grand Slam title winner; mother of 4-year-old Jada – devoted her effort and energy to the U.S. Open.
Family time needed to wait a tad longer.
“She was like, ‘Why don’t you come with us to go out, go for a walk?’ I’m like, ‘Mama’s almost done,’ ” Clijsters said Wednesday after her singles career ended where she wanted it to, just not the way she hoped. “So, yeah, I think she’s going to be excited to kind of have her mom around more, on a more regular kind of basis.”
Clijsters lost 7-6 (4), 7-6 (5) to 18-year-old Laura Robson of Britain in the second round of the U.S. Open, and will head into retirement after she finishes playing doubles at Flushing Meadows.
The loss ended Clijsters’ 22-match winning streak in New York, encompassing titles in 2005, 2009 and 2010, plus Monday’s first-round victory.
Joining Robson with a surprise victory was American wild-card entry Mallory Burdette, the NCAA runner-up who reached the third round in her Grand Slam debut by eliminating 69th-ranked Lucie Hradecka 6-2, 6-4.
Andy Murray of Britain reached the third round by beating 118th-ranked Ivan Dodig of Croatia 6-2, 6-1, 6-3.
Cowboys cruise past Dolphins
NFL: Orie Lemon returned an interception 26 yards for a touchdown, No. 3 running back Phillip Tanner had a 1-yard score and host Dallas finished the preseason with a 30-13 victory over Miami.
The Cowboys kept quarterback Tony Romo and most of their front-line starters standing on the sideline.
• Giants down Patriots: Lawrence Tynes kicked a 32-yard field goal with 1:03 to play and the New York Giants defeated New England 6-3 in the preseason finale at East Rutherford, N.J. The teams met in the Super Bowl in early February.
Eli Manning and the majority of the Giants’ starters played just more than a quarter. New England rested their starters with only fullback Eric Kettani and defensive tackle Brandon Deaderick starting.
• Redskins rout Bucs: Billy Cundiff made 3 of 4 field-goal attempts – and was booed for the one he missed – making him the only first-stringer to do something noteworthy in Washington’s 30-3 win over Tampa Bay at Landover, Md.
Cundiff, signed Tuesday after the Redskins cut Graham Gano, converted from 39, 27 and 22 yards and got some grief from the crowd when he sliced one wide right from 46. The 2010 All-Pro joined Washington just two days after being released by Baltimore.
• Replacement officials will open season: The NFL will open the regular season next week with replacement officials and said it was prepared to use them “as much … as necessary” afterward.
Replacements will be on the field beginning Wednesday night when the Dallas Cowboys visit the New York Giants in the season opener, league executive Ray Anderson told the 32 teams in a memo. Negotiations are at a standstill between the NFL and the officials’ union.
O’Malley family takes over Padres
Baseball: The third generation of the O’Malley family took over the sad-sack San Diego Padres, promising to run the club in the same first-class manner that Walter and Peter O’Malley once ran the Dodgers.
The new ownership group includes Peter O’Malley’s sons, Kevin and Brian, and nephews Peter and Tom Seidler. It also includes San Diego businessman Ron Fowler, the executive chairman who has been designated as the team’s control person.
OSU, Nichols State postpone opener
College football: Hurricane Isaac has forced Oregon State and Nicholls State to postpone their football season opener that was set for Saturday at Reser Stadium in Corvallis, Ore.
Oregon State officials said that the game will be rescheduled.
The Nicholls State campus in Thibodaux, La., is closed because of Isaac, and classes Friday have already been canceled. The team was scheduled to take a charter flight to Oregon on Friday morning.
Lafourche and Terrebonne parishes in Southern Louisiana were hit by heavy wind and rain Wednesday, leaving some 60,000 homes and business in the area without power.
• Superdome undamaged: The New Orleans Superdome came through Isaac largely undamaged and will be ready to host Tulane’s scheduled opener against Rutgers on Saturday night if the schools still want to play the game, stadium chief Dog Thornton said.
• Miles stays on campus: LSU coach Les Miles rode out Hurricane Isaac at the Tigers’ football operations building at Batton Rouge, La., where he and members of his staff continued planning for Saturday night’s scheduled home opener against North Texas.
As of midday Wednesday, LSU officials said there was still power on campus and that the season opener remained on its original schedule of 6 p.m. Saturday.
Timbers hire Akron soccer coach Porter
Miscellany: The Portland Timbers hired University of Akron coach Caleb Porter as their head coach for the 2013 season.
Porter has spent the past seven years at Akron and led the team to the national championship in 2010. He will stay with the Zips through this season.
The Timbers, who are in last place in Major League Soccer’s Western Conference, fired coach John Spencer on July 9.
• Woods, Begay III lead Americans: Tiger Woods and Notah Begay III combined to shoot 9 under and lead the American side to victory in the NB3 Foundation Challenge at Turning Stone Resort’s Atunyote Golf Club in Verona, N.Y.
• Rodriguez still first: Joaquin Rodriguez held a slim overall lead on Alberto Contador after finishing seventh in the time trial in the Spanish Vuelta.
Fredrik Kessiakoff won the 24.5-mile, 11th stage individual cycling sprint by 17 seconds over Contador.
Rodriguez finished 1:16 behind Kessiakoff to retain a one-second overall lead on Contador, the 2008 champion.