to MLBs incessant leaks, Alex recently has even gone so far as to offer that the pro

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MELBOURNE, Australia - After a year which featured eight Grand Slam singles champions, theres been plenty of talk ahead of the Australian Open about the new guard vs. the old guard in both mens and womens tennis. The champions recently have been, well, just different.Stan Wawrinka claimed his first career major last year in Australia. Strike one for the new. Then Rafael Nadal won the French Open, his ninth at Roland Garros, and Novak Djokovic won Wimbledon for his seventh major. The next generation struck back when Marin Cilic won the U.S. Open.Four women shared the Grand Slams, too — the now-retired Li Na at Melbourne last year, Maria Sharapova at Roland Garros, Petra Kvitova at Wimbledon and Serena Williams at the U.S. Open.So what can we expect in 2015?At the Australian Open, at least, the top-ranked players who also have nine Australian titles between them are reliable options. That would be Djokovic with four titles in Melbourne and Williams with five.Still holding court for the mens side is 33-year-old Roger Federer, aiming to add to his 17 Grand Slam titles — four of them also at Melbourne — and who just notched his 1,000th career match win to capture the Brisbane International with a victory over Milos Raonic on Jan. 11.Clearly I do believe I have a shot in Melbourne, otherwise I would go home, Federer said in Brisbane.Federer received good news in that department Friday during the tournament draw — he will play Lu Yen-hsun of Taiwan in the first round, a player he has beaten all three times theyve played.Rafael Nadals appendix surgery in early November has left him uncertain of his match fitness ahead of Mondays start of the tournament. Hell have a tough first-round match against former top-10 player Mikhail Youzhny of Russia.Then theres Andy Murray, who seems to have recovered from back surgery late last year and a minor left shoulder complaint at the start of this one. A three-time Australian Open finalist, Murray drew a qualifier in the first round and could play Federer in the quarterfinals.Add Wawrinka, along with the so-called young guns — among them Grigor Dimitrov, U.S. Open finalist Kei Nishikori, Raonic and Australian Nick Kyrgios, who beat Nadal at Wimbledon last year — to the potential trophy winners.Djokovic and Raonic, who both open against qualifiers, are in the same quarter of the draw.Serena Williams hasnt been back to the Australian Open final since her last title here in 2010, but can never be ruled out of contention — even with the kind of indifferent preparation shes had.No. 2 Sharapova warmed up with a win at the Brisbane International last weekend, beating Ana Ivanovic in the final.Sharapova drew a qualifier in the first round here and could meet 20-year-old Eugenie Bouchard, who reached the Wimbledon final and the semis in Australia and France last year, in the quarterfinals.Two-time winner Victoria Azarenka, unseeded after an injury-hit 2014, faces Sloane Stephens in the first round in a rematch of their acrimonious semifinal two years ago when Azarenka left the court for a medical timeout and Stephens questioned her reasons for doing so. Stephens was coming off a big upset win over Serena Williams at the time.Until 2014, thered been very few surprises in mens majors for nearly nine years as three players ruled: Federer, Nadal and Djokovic combined for 32 of the 35 titles in that span. The exceptions were Juan Martin del Potro at the 2009 U.S. Open and Murrays wins at the 2012 U.S. Open and Wimbledon in 2013Then Wawrinka won here last year and Cilic in New York. Cilic wont play in Melbourne because of a right shoulder injury.Del Potro drew one of the toughest first-round assignments in Melbourne this year, taking on 24-year-old Jerzy Janowicz, who won last weeks Hopman Cup with Poland teammate Agnieszka Radwanska.As he reviewed results of tournaments at the start of 2015, Federer paid the new breed of players such as Janowicz and Dimitrov a compliment, but then appeared to take it away.I do believe there is a group of guys right there that can make a break again and can do special things, Federer said in Brisbane. I just think its too early to say in the season just because Novak and Rafa lost in Doha that there is something on the horizon.I dont read into any of those results. I think (Djokovic and Nadal) are going to be tough to beat, and favourites for the Australian Open.The biggest question mark through the opening week, at least, will be Nadals fitness after he spent three months out with a right wrist injury after Wimbledon, and later had the appendix trouble.Nadal, however, looked fit this week, enduring a strenuous training session before taking part in a night for his childrens charity to officially re-open the Margaret Court Arena, now Melbourne Parks third venue with a retractable roof.Im working as hard as I can, Nadal said. Im back, and I am healthy. Anthony Lopes Portugal Jersey . -- Brandon Hope stopped 46 shots and Kurtis MacDermid scored with 27 seconds remaining in overtime as the Owen Sound Attack edged the visiting Kingston Frontenacs 5-4 on Saturday in Ontario Hockey League action. Rui Patricio Jersey . He spent the rest of the game making up for lost playing time. Green scored a career-high 36 points, including eight in overtime, and the Phoenix Suns beat Denver 112-107 on Tuesday night to hand the Nuggets their fifth consecutive loss. http://www.soccerportugalnationalshop.us...al-Jersey/ . Starters, when they struggle, have to live with it for five days. For Sergio Santos and Steve Delabar, two of the three men who authored one of the ugliest pitched innings in Blue Jays franchise history on Thursday night, the bounce-back chance came right away. Silvestre Varela Jersey .com) - The 12th-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes continue a four-game homestand at Value City Arena on Wednesday night when they face off against the High Point Panthers in a non-conference matchup. Jose Fonte Jersey . Martin Reway and David Griger both recorded four points with a goal and three assists each. Mario Lunter, Daniel Gachulinec and Stanislav Horansky also scored for Slovakia (1-0). Dominik Kahun had both goals for Germany (0-2), who lost its opening match to Canada 7-2 on Thursday.NEW YORK, N.Y. - Alex Rodriguez tested positive for a banned stimulant in 2006, The New York Times reported Monday, an accusation denied by a representative of the legal team for the New York Yankees third baseman. The newspaper cited two unidentified people involved with baseballs drug-testing program. Baseballs joint drug agreement specifies the discipline for a first positive test for a banned stimulant is six additional unannounced drug tests over the year following the violation. A second stimulant violation would result in a 25-game suspension. Rodriguezs legal team accused MLB of leaking the allegation of a positive test, using a statement and making a filing to arbitrator Fredric Horowitz. Lanny Davis, a former Clinton administration official working for Rodriguezs legal team, denied the player tested positive, the Times said. James McCarroll, a lawyer for the three-time AL MVP, did not address whether Rodriguez had a positive test, only that he was not banned. "Alex Rodriguez was never suspended for use of stimulants or any violation of the MLB drug program," McCarroll said in a statement. "The fact that MLB has resorted to leaking federally protected medical information about a player speaks volumes of the weakness of their case against Alex — and their desperation to secure a win in the arbitration, at all costs." MLB chief operating officer Rob Manfred declined comment. "We were not the source for this story," MLB said in a statement. "We honour our joint drug program and never publicly disclose player test results until its publicly announced." In a statement Monday night, Davis called for a government probe into MLBs methods. MLB has admitted paying for documents and Rodriguezs lawyers have claimed baseballs representatives have intimidated witnesses. "U.S. authorities should initiate an investigation as to whether any federal crimes have been committed by MLB investigators as well as those in the Commissioners office who may have been complicit in this misconduct," Davis said. Rodriguez was suspended for 211 gamess by Major League Baseball on Aug.dddddddddddd 5 under baseballs drug agreement for his alleged "use and possession of numerous forms of prohibited performance-enhancing substances, including testosterone and human growth hormone, over the course of multiple years." He also was penalized under the labour contract for "a course of conduct intended to obstruct and frustrate the office of the commissioners investigation." The three-time AL MVP was allowed to keep playing until the arbitrator decides a grievance filed by the players association to overturn the penalty. Horowitz has presided over eight days of hearings, which are scheduled to resume Nov. 18. "Alex has abided by the confidentiality rules of the arbitration process. MLB has not," McCarroll said. "In response to MLBs incessant leaks, Alex recently has even gone so far as to offer that the proceeding be opened to the media, so as to even the playing field — an offer which MLB promptly rejected, as they prefer to continue their one-sided flow of leaks, rather than having the weakness of their case exposed publicly by full and fair coverage. Every new step MLB takes wreaks of desperation, in its obsessive effort to bring Alex down." MLB and the union agreed in 2005 to ban many stimulants. The paper said it wasnt clear whether a failed stimulant test was introduced by MLB as evidence in the grievance. Rodriguez said when he arrived at spring training in 2008 that "last year, I got tested 9 to 10 times. ... We have a very, very strict policy, and I think the game is making tremendous strides." That would be an unusually high number of random checks but would be in line with a player subjected to additional tests resulting from an amphetamine violation. Later in the day, A-Rod said his comments were an "exaggeration to make a point." Sports Illustrated reported in 2009 that Rodriguez tested positive for steroids during MLBs anonymous survey in 2003, and A-Rod said two days later he used banned substances while playing with the Texas Rangers from 2001-03. Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Jerseys From China Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys ' ' '