Argentina must ditch a habit of fading in the final stages of Rugby Championship Tests if they are to prevent New Zealand clinching the title on Saturday. The All Blacks defeated the Pumas 21-5 in wet Wellington this month and another win at the 35,000-seat Estadio Ciudad de La Plata will give them an unassailable lead in the new-look southern hemisphere competition. New Zealand have 16 points from four consecutive victories, Australia eight, South Africa seven and Argentina three in a Championship Read more [...]

Nishikori, Asia's top-ranked player, advanced when 2009 champion Nikolay Davydenko retired after losing the first set of their quarterfinal 6-4. Davydenko also pulled out of the quarterfinals here last year with an injury.

"It's sad to see him retire, but hopefully he is fine," Nishikori said.

Julien Benneteau of France also advanced, defeating Colombia's Alejandro Falla 6-2, 6-2. He will face either top-seeded Spaniard David Ferrer or Igor Sijsling of the Netherlands.

"They both have a great kick, the only difference is one kicks with his right foot and other with his left, they're both massive players, we'll have to be really careful of Carter and they of Hernandez," he told Reuters. The Pumas, who host the match in the provincial capital La Plata 60km from Buenos Aires city, will be looking to beat the All Blacks for the first time after 15 defeats and a draw in 1985. Argentina have played very well for an hour against New Zealand and Australia in their two Read more [...]