01-16-2020, 08:27 AM
MONTE CARLO -- Vancouvers Vasek Pospisil lost his career debut at the Monte Carlo Masters on Monday, falling 6-2, 6-2 in the first round to experienced clay-court player Roberto Bautista-Agut of Spain. Oklahoma City Thunder Shirts . The 29th-ranked Pospisil lacks clay-court experience and paid the price against his 45th-ranked opponent who grew up playing on the surface. "Theres a lot you can learn from every loss," said Pospisil. "This one was more about my lack of clay experience, I need to get used to the surface. Working on my movement will help a lot, its something I can improve." Eighth seed Milos Raonic of Thornhill, Ont., had a bye in the first round and will face either Argentinas Federico Delbonis or Taiwans Lu Yen-Hsun in the second round on Wednesday. Pospisil was competing in only his seventh top-level match on clay and now stands 1-6 on the surface. His only victory came in a Davis Cup tie against Ecuador in 2011. Pospisil hasnt played much since the Australian Open due to a back injury. "Considering how little Ive played in general, this was not so bad," said Pospisil. "He played extremely well and didnt miss any balls. I played well on my forehand but obviously clay is not my natural surface. "There was really not much I could have done out there." Pospisil, who committed 18 unforced errors in the opening set, admitted he came to the court with low expectations. "I didnt have too many expectations, Ive been dealing with a couple of injuries and only played points on clay for the first time yesterday." The Canadian said that while he did not want to go into detail, his back felt fine during the match. Pospisil will move onto Bucharest and Munich over the next few weeks as the French Open buildup continues. Elsewhere, Fabio Fognini of Italy was two points away from defeat before rallying to beat Joao Sousa 5-7, 7-5, 6-4. Sousa led 5-2 and 30-0 on Fogninis serve, but the Portuguese player lost his composure and then started complaining to the chair umpire at the end of the second set and midway through the third. "Im not happy today. I was I think a bit lucky," Fognini said. "It was a really difficult match." The 10th-seeded Fognini, who lost to title-holder Novak Djokovic in last years semifinals, was the highest seeded player in action Monday in the clay-court tournament. Fognini failed to serve out the first set at 5-4 and then his game fell apart. "I was completely without energy, without power in my legs," he said. "I have no idea what happened." After Fognini had served out the second set, the crowd jeered Sousa -- who had received a warning during the first set. At 3-2 down in the third, Sousa continued to grumble, saying "its a joke, its a joke." Fognini will play Bautista Agut in the next round. Later in the day, 11th-seeded Tommy Robredo of Spain beat Belgian qualifier David Goffin 6-4, 6-1. In other first-round matches, there were victories for Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany, Czech players Radek Stepanek and Lukas Rosol; and Spaniards Albert Montanes, Albert Ramos and Pablo Andujar. Rosol beat Evgeny Donskoy 7-5, 6-1; Kohlschreiber won 6-3, 6-4 against Simone Bolelli; Stepanek thrashed Ivo Karlovic 6-1, 6-2; Ramos beat Jarkko Nieminen 6-2, 7-5 and Andujar downed Edouard Roger-Vasselin 2-6, 7-5, 7-6 (5). On Tuesday, Djokovic plays Montanes in the second round. On Wednesday, eight-time champion Rafael Nadal of Spain faces Gilles Simon or Teymuraz Gabashvili, and fourth-seeded Roger Federer takes on Stepanek. Nick Collison Jersey .com) - Klay Thompson is quickly proving he is worth every penny of his recently signed four-year contract extension. Oklahoma City Thunder Gear . Murray beat Sam Querrey 7-6 (5), 6-7 (3), 6-1, 6-3 to clinch Britains opening-round victory against the United States on Sunday at Petco Park. "Im proud of the way Im playing just now, because I had to do a lot of work to get back to where I want to be," Murray said after celebrating with his teammates on the red clay court in a temporary stadium in left field of the downtown home of baseballs San Diego Padres. https://www.cheapthunder.com/1181h-tom-c...under.html . A knee to the thigh might have stung him the most, but his sixth straight double-double made up for the brief burst of pain.JUPITER, Fla. -- The St. Louis Cardinals signed Cuban free agent shortstop Aledmys Diaz to a major league contract and hell report to spring training on Monday. The Cardinals were among a number of teams, including the Yankees, who held private workouts for the right-handed hitting Diaz and the deal is believed to be for $15-20 million for four years. The team planned a news conference for Monday. "We have been following Aledmys for quite some time," general manager John Mozeliak said in a statement. "His signing marks a significant benchmark for the Cardinals in the international arena and we are excited to have reached this agreement." The deal came a day after St. Louis signed third baseman and leadoff man Matt Carpenter to a six-year, $52 million contract. Justin Patton Jersey. During the off-season, the Cardinals committed $53 million over four years to sign free agent shortstop Jhonny Peralta, so they could face a position logjam in the near future. The 23-year-old Diaz batted .315 with 12 home runs and 11 steals in 270 at-bats in 2012 for Los Naranjas de Villa Clara, Cubas highest professional league, which has produced Oaklands Yoenis Cespedes, the Dodgers Yasiel Puig and Cincinnatis Aroldis Chapman. The Cardinals anticipate the 6-foot-1, 195-pound Diaz will start the year at the high minor league level. Diaz has represented Cuba in several international tournaments, including the 2010 World University Championship games in Tokyo, Japan, and lives in Mexico City. ' ' '