Novak Djokovic wins Shangai Open after Thriller match against Andy Murray

Novak Djokovic avenged his US Open defeat to beat Andy Murray Sunday, saving five match points to seal a stunning 5-7, 7-6 (13/11), 6-3 victory in the Shanghai Masters final.The iron-willed Serbian second seed, 25, came out on top in a gripping second set tie-break lasting more than 20 minutes to level the match. He broke twice in the decider in a marathon match lasting three hours and 21 minutes.A gruelling first set contained seven breaks of serve as the players went toe-to-toe in a breathtaking display of power hitting, with neither able to grab the initiative.But third seed Murray, 25, made what proved to be the crucial breakthrough in the 11th game, recovering from 0-40 to break for a 6-5 lead as an infuriated Djokovic destroyed his racquet, tossing it away in disgust.It was a different story in the second set, with both players secure on serve until defending champion Murray broke in the seventh game to lead 4-3 when Djokovic put a volley into the net.But agonisingly for Murray, Djokovic, refusing to be beaten, saved a match point to pull level at 5-5 and the set went into the dramatic tie-break.The Serbian denied the Scot four more times in the shoot-out, sealing the set with a drive volley that was followed by a trademark fist-pumping celebration.Two breaks in the decider were enough for Djokovic to claim victory.Murray beat his rival in five sets in last month's US Open final to secure Britain's first men's Grand Slam singles title since the 1930s, just weeks after his Olympic triumph in front of home fans in London.The Scot, who lost the Wimbledon final to Roger Federer, had never been beaten at the Shanghai Masters before Sunday, winning the 2010 and 2011 tournaments.Djokovic came into the match on a 9-0 winning streak since losing to Murray, a run that included his third China Open title.Djokovic enjoyed one of the finest seasons in tennis history in 2011, winning three Grand Slams. He is hot on the heels of Federer as he tries to secure the year-end number one ranking for the second year in a row.

Wayne Rooney keen to take Captaincy for England

Wayne Rooney has said he would love to become the full-time England captain when Steven Gerrard's tenure comes to an end.The Manchester United striker wore the armband for the Three Lions' 5-0 World Cup qualification win over San Marino on Friday, and hopes it is not the last time he gets to lead out his country in an international match."If you can get the opportunity to captain your country, it's something which I think - as a player - you need to grab with both hands," Rooney said. "In the future, hopefully that'll happen but, at the minute, Steven's our captain and he'll lead by example for us."He added: "To actually lead a team out, you look up, you see the crowd and - the atmosphere - it's quite a feeling."To captain your country at Wembley is the greatest honour you can have. It's something that, as a young boy, you dream of and to actually do it is a great honour for me something which I'll take and cherish for the rest of my life."Rooney was on the scoresheet twice in the regulation triumph against the European minnows, moving him into fifth on the list of all-time top scorers for England with 31. He hopes there will be many more to come, however, with Bobby Charlton's record of 49 goals understandably within his sights."I'm extremely proud to be in England's top five scorers," Rooney said. "But I am only 26 and I hope I can score a lot more."At the other end of the spectrum, winger Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain fired past San Marino goalkeeper Aldo Simoncini to notch his first goal for the senior side. The Arsenal player revealed afterwards that his father, also an England international, had been impressing upon him the need to get a goal for his country."It's a relief to get the monkey off my back, as they say," Oxlade-Chamberlain noted. "I have been looking for my first goal for England and my dad's been pushing me, telling me I needed a goal."

Messi keeps Argentina on course for Brazil

Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi scored twice as Argentina defeated Uruguay 3-0 on Friday to remain comfortably on course for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.The victory kept the 1978 and 1986 world champions on top of the nine-nation South American group while continental champions Uruguay remain in the fourth and final automatic qualifying place.Messi grabbed his 11th and 12th goals of the campaign in Mendoza, but the Argentina skipper had to wait until midway through the second half to unlock a tight Uruguay defence.He opened the scoring in the 66th minute when he slid in from a cross by Angel Di Maria with his second goal -- and his team's third -- coming eight minutes from time.In between, Manchester City's Sergio Aguero hit the target, again from good approach work from the tireless Di Maria.Argentina thought they had a fourth goal in the dying minutes but substitute Hernan Barcos's effort, off a one-two with Messi, was ruled out for offside.The win leaves Argentina with 17 points from eight matches, one ahead of both Colombia and Ecuador who both also won on Friday.Colombia, coached by veteran Argentine Jose Pekerman, moved to 16 points with a 2-0 home win over Paraguay in Barranquilla with both goals coming from prolific Atletico Madrid striker Radamel Falcao.He opened the scoring after 52 minutes and closed out a memorable performance with a second, two minutes from time."Undoubtedly Paraguay are a strong team, we knew it would be difficult, and in the end we got the goals that gave us the victory," said Falcao."But there is still a long way to go to the World Cup finals."Colombia has now won their last three qualifiers -- beating Uruguay 4-0 and Chile 3-1 before Friday's triumph.Paraguay's fifth successive defeat left them firmly rooted to the foot of the table.Ecuador also stayed on course for the finals with a 3-1 win over Chile who finished with nine men in Quito.Felipe Caicedo scored twice for Ecuador with a 33rd-minute opener followed by a 56th-minute penalty while Segundo Castillo added the third in stoppage time as Ecuador claimed a fifth successive home win.Chile, who have never won in the Ecuador capital, had taken the lead through a Juan Carlos Paredes own-goal in the 25th minute.Their miserable night was completed by having Pablo Contreras and Arturo Vidal red-carded.In La Paz, Bolivia and Peru fought out a 1-1 draw which did neither side any favours in their faltering campaigns.The top four teams in the South American qualifying tournament will be guaranteed spots in the 2014 finals with the fifth-placed team playing off against the fifth-best side in Asia.

Shangai Open: Murray Beats Federer! Djokovic face Murray in FINAL!

Andy Murray heaped the misery on Roger Federer on Saturday, taking advantage of an astonishing service meltdown by the Swiss great to set up a mouthwatering final against Novak Djokovic.The US Open champion, who has never been beaten at the Chinese tournament, won 6-4, 6-4, repeating his victory in the Olympic final that came after the searing pain of defeat to Federer just weeks earlier at Wimbledon.The pair swapped breaks at the start of the match but the first set hinged on an incredible fifth game when 17-time Grand Slam champion Federer was broken to love after the normally ice-cool Swiss double-faulted three times in a row.Third seed Murray, who won the Shanghai Masters in 2010 and 2011, immediately put the world number one under the cosh at the start of the second set but the Swiss dug deep to save seven break points and edge ahead.But Federer, 31, continued to struggle and it was the fifth game of the second set that again proved pivotal, with the 25-year-old Scot sealing a break against the Swiss, who had led 40-0, with a devastating forehand return winner.Murray faced an agonising wait of more than half an hour to serve for the match as the roof was closed at the Qi Zhong Stadium after it started raining and an army of people descended on the court to dry the playing surface.The players left the court and had to knock up again but Murray kept his nerve to serve out for victory, sealing the match when Federer netted.Earlier, in-form Djokovic accelerated his push for the year-end number one ranking, dismissing the challenge of fourth seed Tomas Berdych in a one-sided match.The Serbian second seed came into the clash with an impressive 9-1 lead against the Czech player in head-to-head match-ups and immediately took charge, dominating the contest to win 6-3, 6-4."Tomas is in great form in the last couple of months. He's always a difficult player to play against on any surface because he has a very powerful serve and great forehand," said Djokovic."I played tactically right," the 25-year-old added. "I was putting a lot of returns into the court, making a lot of pressure on his serve. On the other hand, I was serving well when I needed to."Yet to drop a set in Shanghai, the Australian Open champion was ruthless, breaking at the first opportunity and repeating the feat as he threatened to run away with the opening set.Berdych, 27, bidding to reach the elite ATP World Tour Finals in London, slowed Djokovic's charge but could not prevent him from sealing the set, with a single break enough for the five-time Grand Slam champion in the second set.Djokovic faded towards the end of a stellar 2011 but looks fresh as he hunts down Federer at the top of the rankings. He is looking to add the Shanghai Masters title to the China Open crown he won last weekend.Because of his limp end to last season, Djokovic has relatively few points to defend in the rolling 12-month rankings whereas Federer has more to lose after a successful spell towards the end of 2011.