Sports digest

Today's other stories in brief|

Dementieva fights back again

TENNIS: World number seven Elena Dementieva came from a set down to defeat Czech Lucie Safarova 6-7 6-1 6-4 to win the Paris Indoor Open yesterday for the first time. The 28-year-old Russian, who lost to Amelie Mauresmo in the final last year, was forced to work hard by Safarova.

The top seed also had to come from a set down to win in the quarter- and semi-finals, but it was Safarova who showed the cooler nerve in the tiebreak, taking it 7-5 with a rasping cross-court backhand.

Dementieva came back powerfully in the second set, but Safarova got her serve working again in the third set until her opponent cranked up the pressure in the seventh game to break for a 4-3 lead.

Oracle defeats Alinghi to win America's Cup

SAILING: America's BMW Oracle team beat Swiss Cup holders Alinghi 2-0 off Valencia in a best-of-three series where the winner's solid-winged mainsail produced speeds of over 33 knots. (61 km/h) in the America's Cup – one of the world's richest trophies.

The 33rd cup was raced for by two 90-foot multihulls, and after a six-hour delay billionaire Larry Ellison’s winged trimaran confirmed its boat speed supremacy in moderate winds and over took the Alinghi catamaran at the top of the first weather mark. The American tri tripled its lead to over 2km by the second turning mark.

It’s the first time America has reclaimed the cup since 1995 and only the fifth time in the 165-year history of the cup that a challenger has beaten the holder. Dublin-born sailor Noel Drennan is a sail trimmer on the BMW Oracle squad but did not sail in either race.

Hirvonen takes Rally of Sweden

MOTOR SPORT: Finland's Mikko Hirvonen held off the challenge of six-time champion Sebastien Loeb to seal victory in the season-opening Rally of Sweden yesterday.

The Ford driver, who lost the title to Frenchman Loeb by a point last season, led after Friday’s and Saturday’s stages and wrapped up the win on the snow and ice by 42.3 seconds.

“It’s absolutely fantastic and I’m really happy it’s over after those last few stages; you can’t imagine how nervous I was in there,” Hirvonen said. “It’s a perfect start to my year, I’ve never won the first round before, but after last season I’ve got one more year of experience. Now I plan to carry on like this.”

The victory was Hirvonen’s 12th in the championship and he was rewarded with 25 points under the scoring system brought in last week to mirror Formula One.

Citroen’s Loeb was 16 seconds behind and never looked like winning.

Murray stretches unbeaten run

BOXING: Cavan lightweight Andy Murray stretched his unbeaten run to 18 after retaining his Irish crown with a fifth-round stoppage of Oisín Fagan at the National Stadium in Dublin on Saturday night, writes Bernard O'Neill.

Referee David Irving called a halt to proceedings with 15 seconds to go to the bell after Fagan was on the receiving end of a number of punishing shots from the former Irish international.

Murray said he believed it was the right decision to halt the scheduled 10-rounder.

“Some people are saying it shouldn’t have been stopped but I think the referee got it spot on. Oisín was taking a lot of punches and I don’t think anyone can disagree that I was very accurate with the punches.”

Soderling clinches title

TENNIS:Third seed Robin Soderling clinched the World Indoor Tournament title when Mikhail Youzhny withdrew injured when trailing 6-4 2-0 in Rotterdam yesterday.

Youzhny began the final by breaking Soderling’s service game. The Swedish world number eight recovered, breaking Youzhny twice to take the first set, and after an early break in the second the 2007 champion gave up.

Ireland fall short but reach finals

CRICKET: Ireland duly qualified for the ICC World Twenty20 Finals on Saturday in Dubai, but not before they were given another stark reminder that their hard-won title of best-of-the-rest outside of the Test-playing nations faces a new and hungry rival, writes Emmet Riordan.

Phil Simmons’s side booked another Caribbean adventure with a resounding 65-run victory over The Netherlands in their final Super Four game, but the combination of a one-hour turnaround and an Afghanistan team buoyed by the presence of over 6,000 supporters helped them take top spot as they eased to an eight-wicket win in the decider.

Ireland have been placed in Group D and head back to Guyana, where they opened their campaign at the 2007 World Cup. There they will face hosts West Indies and an England team likely to contain former Irish star Eoin Morgan.