Investigators Drop Steffi Graf Case

Prosecutors in Mannheim, Germany, dropped their investigation into Steffi Graf’s taxes Wednesday in return for the tennis star paying a fine and making a charitable contribution.

The amounts were not disclosed by either side.

Graf, who at the end of this month will lose her No. 1 ranking to Martina Hingis, said she wants to concentrate fully on tennis again. She has been sidelined recently because of a knee injury.

Graf’s father, Peter Graf, was convicted in January of evading millions of dollars in taxes on his daughter’s winnings and was sentenced to nearly four years in prison.

At Key Biscayne, Fla., Jana Novotna survived 63 unforced errors and 2-1/2 hours in the hot Florida sun to outlast Iva Majoli 6-2, 3-6, 7-6 (9-7) in the quarterfinals of the Lipton Championships.

The third-seeded Novotna, advanced to the semifinals today against top seed Martina Hingis, a 6-4, 6-1 winner over No. 10 Mary Joe Fernandez. No. 4 Monica Seles and No. 11 Barbara Paulus meet in the other semifinal.

In men’s play, top-ranked Pete Sampras won by walkover when Hendrik Dreekmann of Germany was unable to take the court because of a sprained ankle. Sampras will play Spaniard unseeded Sergi Bruguera, a 6-0, 6-3 winner over unseeded Andrei Medvedev.