Russia Hot Favorite to Win First Hopman Title
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PERTH, Australia  - Marat Safin and Anastasia  Myskina, the only grand slam champions in the eight-team field,  will be hot favorites to win Russia's first Hopman Cup when the  ITF mixed team event gets underway on Sunday.
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As the year drew to a close, Myskina inspired Russia to their first Fed Cup title against France in Moscow. Federer&#39;s emergence to fill the vacuum left by the retirement of Pete Sampras stamped an indelible mark on the year.
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Radek Stepanek defeated Jose Acasuso 6-4, 7-6 (5) Saturday to reach the final of the Hamburg Masters and secure a top-10 ranking for the first time. The 15th-seeded Czech will meet the winner of Saturday&#039;s semifinal between Tommy Robredo of Spain and Mario Ancic of Croatia.
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Russia won its first Fed Cup title yesterday by edging defending champion France 3-2 when Anastasia Myskina and Vera Zvonareva beat Marion Bartoli and Emilie Loit 7-6 (5), 7-5 in the deciding doubles match.
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Guillermo Coria and Gisela Dulko beat French Open champion Anastasia Myskina and Marat Safin 6-2, 6-0 in mixed doubles Wednesday to give Argentina a 2-1 victory over top-seeded Russia at the Hopman Cup. Argentina will play Germany for a spot in the final.
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Daniela Hantuchova beat Michaella Krajicek of the Netherlands 6-4, 6-2 Friday and Dominik Hrbaty won his match when Peter Wessels pulled out with an injury, allowing Slovakia to advance to the Hopman Cup final against Argentina.
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Serena Williams and Mardy Fish beat Jelena Jankovic and Novak  Djokovic , 7-6 (7-5), 6-2, yesterday in Perth, Australia, to give the United States its fifth title in the Hopman Cup mixed team tennis tournament.
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Russia's Nikolay Davydenko plays Juan Ignacio Chela of Argentina in the opening rubber of the Davis Cup final.
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U.S. number one Andy Roddick has   consulted former tennis great Pete Sampras on how to beat   Russia ahead of their Davis Cup semi-final this week in Moscow.
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Russian star wrestler Buvaysa Saytiev, a five-time world champion, eased to win the men&#39;s 74kg freestyle Olympic gold in Athens on August 29 afternoon.
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HOT favourites Russia, seeking their first Fed Cup title, will take on champions France in the final after beating Austria today. French Open champion Anastasia Myskina recovered from a horrendous first set
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French Open champion Anastasia Myskina put Russia on the brink of their first Fed Cup title on Sunday, a 6-3 6-4 victory over Nathalie Dechy giving the home team a 2-1 lead in the final against holders France.
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St. Petersburg, Russia (Sports Network) - Russian Mikhail Youzhny and Karol Beck of Slovakia each posted victories in the semifinals at the $1 million St.
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PERTH, Australia  - The United States edged out an injury-hit Serbia in a deciding mixed doubles to win a dramatic Hopman Cup final on Friday.
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Lindsay Davenport of the US returns a shot during a match against Francesca Schiavone of Italy at the Kremlin Cup tennis tournament in Moscow&#39;s Olympic Indoor stadium on Friday, Oct. 15, 2004.
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Mikhail Youzhny will open Russia's Davis Cup campaign here on Friday by taking on Serbia's Australian Open winner Novak Djokovic.
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Slovakia won the Hopman Cup on Saturday, beating Argentina in the final behind victories by Daniela Hantuchova and Dominik Hrbaty in this Australian Open tuneup.