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2B Daily News – Saturday, July 13, 2013 HALL OF FAME TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS Isner advances in match of tallest men NEWPORT, R.I. (AP) — John Isner continued winning tiebreakers and forced another tie after the match. The two-time defending champion won the battle of the tallest players on the ATP tour, defeating Ivo Karlovic of Croatia 7-6 (3), 7-6 (3) on Friday to advance to the semifinals of the Hall of Fame Tennis Championships. In the other quarterfinal match, No. 4 seed Lleyton Hewitt of Australia beat qualifier Jan Hernych of the Czech Republic 6-7 (3), 6-4, 62, setting up a rematch up of last year final when Isner captured the title in straight sets. On Friday, Isner won his 13th straight match on Newport's grass courts and raised his mark to 13-0 in tiebreakers during the streak. When it was over, Isner, listed at 6-foot-9, claimed his height is listed incorrectly by the ATP — short an inch, which would tie him with Karlovic as the tallest player ever on the tour. ''I'm 6-10,'' he said, drawing attention from an ATP media official assigned to the event. ''That was like my college height. No one from the ATP busted out the measuring tape. They found it online or something.'' He was then asked by a writer: ''Do you want to be listed at 6-10?'' ''Yeah, because that's what I am,'' he said. ''I'm not trying to hide that. I was probably still growing in college.'' The second-seeded Isner served 23 aces, including three in each of the tiebreaks. Karlovic had 14 aces, POLE (Continued from page 1B) made his Cup debut in 1970 and won four times in NASCAR's top series. He finished as high as fifth in the final standings in 1990 and hasn't started a race since 2006. Four-time Cup champion Jeff Gordon had no problem with Shepherd competing on Sunday. ''I think that's quite an accomplishment,'' Gordon said. ''We talk about how amazing it is to see Mark Martin out there being competitive over 50 years old, but to just go out there and do what he does as far TOUR (Continued from page 1B) from Stage 1 in Corsica two weeks ago, the sporting drama and the Tour's stunning visuals have come to the fore. Much of Friday's mischief was cooked up by two teams — Belkin and Omega Pharma-QuickStep — that simply happened to share the same hotel the night before. With two-thirds of the stage left to race, a time when the pack often prefers to take things easy and let breakaway riders speed ahead for a while, Omega powered as a group to the front and rode like furies. They soon got additional support from Belkin. Their sudden acceleration and sustained high speed caught dozens of other riders off guard. The pack split into three groups. The breeze blowing across the long, undulating straights made it impossible for stragglers to catch up. Among them was Marcel Kittel, winner of three stages at this Tour. John Isner of the USA returns to opponent Ivo Karlovic of Croatia during a quarterfinal match at the Hall of Fame Tennis Championships on Friday. but double faulted on the match's final point. Both players served over 70 percent in the match, most ranging between 120-130 mph. Neither broke in a game. ''He served at a pretty high percentage,'' said Isner, ranked 19th in the world, the highest American coming into the week. ''Anytime guys like us serve in the 70's, it's going to be tough for anyone to break us.'' The 1 hour, 37 minute match, played in humid conditions with peeks of sunshine, had few extended points. ''When I'm able to inch ahead in tiebreakers it gives a lot of confidence, especially when I know the match is on my serve at that point,'' Isner said. Karlovic played his first ATP tournament since being sidelined with spinal meningitis from late April to early May. He called for trainer early in the opening set, moving his arms from side to side, explaining what was wrong while sitting in his chair. ''I was dizzy a little bit and it was difficult to focus,'' the 34-year old said. ''I was a little worried that it was the virus or something. It wasn't. I was tired. I wasn't used to playing that many matches.'' Karlovic, ranked 167 coming into the week, was satisfied with how he played in the tournament. ''I was just happy I was here,'' he said. ''If anyone told me I'd be in the quarters, I would say he's nuts.'' Isner closed out the first tiebreaker with an ace. as Morgan is concerned at 71, that's amazing.'' Jim Fitzgerald when he was 65 years, 6 months and 20 days when he raced in 1987 at Riverside International Raceway. ''At some point, I think you just have to trust that he knows what he can do and what he can't do,'' Keselowski said. Kurt Busch will now join Keselowski on the front row. Dale Earnhardt Jr., Kyle Busch and Gordon round out the top five. Carl Edwards, Denny Hamlin, Kasey Kahne, and Jeff Burton all topped Newman's record. Keselowski won five races this season but lost his consistency this season in the No. 2 Ford. He has three straight finishes of 21st or worse and only one top-10 finish in his last 10 races. Whatever worked for Keselowski last season is gone. His team has been in a tailspin since a failed April inspection in Texas after NASCAR confiscated parts in the rear suspensions of his Ford. Keselowski knows a win or two can propel him back into the Chase and keep alive his bid for a second straight title. ''I still have the same goal and that is to continue to be a winner and that is what fuels me inside,'' he said. ''The competitive fire that burns inside of me is still there whether I was a champion or not. I probably have it with a little bit more confidence and I believe in myself and those around me a little stronger because of the championship.'' The long-expected Stewart-Haas Racing shakeup was finalized Friday. Kevin Harvick and his Budweiser sponsorship will join SHR teammates Tony Stewart and Danica Patrick in 2014. Ryan Newman is out of the New Hampshire record book — and a job at SHR. Newman (15th) and Stewart (16th) actually start on the same row. Harvick starts 18th and Patrick is 32nd. There was at least one palatable shift with Harvick's move — Stewart might have to crack open a cold Bud to celebrate. For years, he's been an open admirer — and frequent chugger — of lowbudget Schlitz. ''Yeah, I'm finally upgrading to the good stuff,'' Stewart said. ''I feel like 'The Jeffersons' now. I've moved up. Yeah, it's the end of my Schlitz era. I can't say that it's terribly disappointing. Now I get to drink the good stuff every day, guilt free.'' Omega rider Jerome Pineau hinted it was no coincidence that his team and Belkin worked together. ''Look at the list of hotels and look who we were with yesterday,'' he said. His teammate, Sylvain Chavanel, added: ''You need some friends in the peloton.'' Belkin rider Sep Vanmarcke said his Dutch team long ago identified this stage as a chance to spring a trap. ''We had planned this. The team leaders knew exactly where we would go,'' he said. ''We knew there would be a lot of side wind there and that would be the best place to go.'' When Valverde's rear wheel broke with more than 80 kilometers (50 miles) to ride, the Spaniard could only look on helpless as the pack sped on without him. With a new rear wheel, he and his Movistar teammates tried but failed to catch back up. He lost nearly nine minutes to Froome. Now out of podium contention entirely, in 16th place, Valverde suggested he might seek to exact revenge on teams — he named Belkin and Europcar — that didn't slow up for him, saying: ''Maybe we can make the race tougher for those who didn't help me today and made it so I couldn't catch up.'' Froome signaled his disapproval of the way Valverde was eliminated. ''I just hope that no team would do that to me if I had a mechanical problem,'' said the Team Sky leader. On this very tactical 173-kilometer (107-mile) stage from Tours in the Loire valley, Contador's Saxo-Tinkoff team then pulled the same trick as Belkin and Omega. They hit the gas about 30 kilometers (20 miles) from the crowded finish in the town of Saint-AmandMontrond, again splintering the pack. This time, Froome was among those left behind. Contador said his Italian teammate, Daniele Bennati, ''rode a kilometer as if he were on a motorcycle. It was incredible, and that's what made the group break into a thousand pieces.'' ''All you could do was fasten your seat belt,'' said another of Contador's teammates, Nicolas Roche. Never letting up, they got Contador to the finish 1 minute, 9 seconds ahead of Froome. Contador, the Tour champion in 2007 and '09 who was stripped of his title the following year for doping, was having a poor race. He was badly beaten by Froome in the Pyrenees and the first time trial. His team's efforts for him on Friday reinvigorated his challenge for the third week where Contador has proved strong in previous races. From fourth place, with a 3:54 deficit to Froome, he moved up to third, 2:45 off the lead. Belkin's smart and well executed plan also moved its rider, Bauke Mollema from the Netherlands, to second, now 2:28 from Froome, instead of the 3:37 deficit he started the stage with. Still, Froome's time cushion remains significant and he is an excellent climber. The imposing Mont Ventoux this Sunday and the Alps next week offer him chances to do damage of his own. AP photo ''Having lost a minute there, that's always a bitter pill to swallow because we've worked really hard already to get the advantage we had. But saying that, we only lost a minute,'' he said. ''I think there will be more time won and lost on a stage like Ventoux.'' Cavendish just managed to stay with Contador's group when they accelerated away. He then beat Peter Sagan in the finishing sprint. Cavendish's 25th win moved him level with Frenchman Andre Leducq on the Tour's alltime list of stage winners. Now, only Bernard Hinault, with 28, and Eddy Merckx, with 34, have more than the Briton. ''An exceptional day,'' said race director Christian Prudhomme. ''The Tour is far from over.'' JOHN DEERE CLASSIC Johnson keeps share of lead SILVIS, Ill. (AP) — Zach Johnson has evolved into one of the most consistent players the John Deere Classic has ever seen. Johnson put together another steady round Friday, maintaining a share of the lead despite standout efforts from rookie Patrick Reed and Lucas Glover. Johnson, the defending champion, shot a 5-under 66 to join Reed and Glover atop the leaderboard at 12-under 130 following second-round play. It ''was a day of just hanging in there and letting things come. But I like the fact that I don't have to be perfect and I can still play here,'' Johnson said. Reed shot a 63 in the morning session, just one year after missing the cut at TPC Deere Run — and Glover finished a shot better at 9 under on Friday. Australia's Matt Jones is a shot back at 11 under. Troy Matteson leads a pack at 10under, while three-time winner Steve Stricker is among those contending at 9 under. Given how well Johnson has played this course of late, it could take a spectacular weekend to beat him. Johnson has shot 18 consecutive rounds in the 60s at Deere Run — largely by avoiding big mistakes and scrambling out of small ones — and his ninth bogey-free round Friday was a tournament record. ''I'm just comfortable. I'm comfortable with every tee shot. I'm comfortable with every wind, and clearly I'm comfortable on the greens,'' Johnson said. Consistency has been an issue this season for Glover, but he was just two feet from taking the lead outright heading into Saturday. He missed a 19-foot birdie putt on his final hole to join Johnson and Reed atop the leaderboard. Glover said he ditched plans to take this weekend off and head to Scotland early for the British Open after playing poorly last week. So far, it looks as though a few extra rounds have helped Glover find his game. ''I was ecstatic (Thursday) after 3 under ... so you can imagine how I feel,'' Glover said. ''But I'm not dumb enough to think it's over.'' Reed, a 22-year-old with two top-10 finishes in 20 events this season, highlighted his strong round with a 37-yard chip for eagle on the 17th hole. Reed, with his wife Justine on the bag as his caddie, is 13-under over his last 27 holes. ''She helps me with everything. I never check wind. She tells me what the wind is. She's always right on that. Most of the time she helps me pick most of my clubs. She seems to know my distances better than I do,'' Reed said. ''She's great at reading putts, so I kind of have the full package. It's definitely not an 'I,' it's definitely a 'we' for us.'' Matteson had his best performance of 2012 at Deere Run a year ago, when he pushed Johnson to a playoff and finished second. Matteson's round on Friday was punctuated by an ace from 132 yards out, as he used a wedge to notch the tournament's first hole-inone in three years. ''I just said, 'You know what? Let's just try to hit a good shot, kind of get some spin on it, bring it back down the hill and leave ourselves a good putt,'' Matteson said. ''It started coming back down the hill and it just disappeared, and the guys behind the green went crazy.''