Li Na was forced into a battle in the heat before overcoming American Christina McHale 7-6, 7-5 to reach the second round of the Sydney International tennis tournament yesterday. Li took almost two hours to dispatch her 33rd-ranked opponent in 30-degree Celsius temperatures. She only arrived in Australia a day earlier, having won the Shenzhen Open on Saturday. "I was playing in China, so I have to get used to the heat," Li said. "Very tough because in China it was like five, six degrees, but here it's over 30." Reuters
Italian Interior Minister Annamaria Cancellieri yesterday demanded "more incisive" action be taken to end the abuse of non-white players by racist fans. Cancellieri was speaking after AC Milan's Kevin-Prince Boateng last week responded to racist chants by a small group of fans during a soccer friendly by storming off the pitch. Cancellieri said Boateng's stance was a "nice gesture" but that a "more comprehensive strategy" needed to be put in place to avoid games being decided by "a minority of racists". "Fans involved in racist chanting should be hit very hard and must be removed from the stadium," she said. AFP