Krickstein, Shriver Fall to Low-Ranked Foes

Aaron Krickstein and Pam Shriver, playing as wild-card entrants because they are on the down side of solid tennis careers, slipped a little more Thursday, both losing to low-ranked opponents on the opening day of the Lipton Championships in Key Biscayne, Fla.

Krickstein, 29 and ranked 196th after many years in the top 10, fell for the 12th consecutive match, this time, 6-3, 3-6, 7-5, to 144th-ranked Wojtek Kowalski.

Shriver, 33, a part-time player now after nine years of top-10 rankings, was losing to 202nd-ranked Corina Morariu, 6-1, 1-0, before retiring because of a hip injury.

“When do you take the next step?” Shriver said, contemplating retirement. “I’ve got between now and the grass courts, and I will, obviously, give it some thought.”

In a night match, Jennifer Capriati played Lea Ghirardi-Rubbi.

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Magnus Gustafsson defeated Swedish compatriot Anders Jarryd, 6-2, 6-2, in the second round of the St. Petersburg Open in Russia.

Olympics

Atlanta officials have begun Project Homeward Bound, a program in which Fulton County will buy one-way bus tickets out of town for the homeless before the Olympic Games.

At a meeting in Cape Town, South Africa, the IAAF, track and field’s world governing body, is expected to change the Atlanta Olympic schedule to afford Michael Johnson a shot at a sprint double in the 200 and 400 meters, and move the men’s marathon starting time from evening to early morning.

The Daily Telegraph in London said Jon Clark, an Englishman appointed as U.S. Olympic men’s field hockey coach, was not on Britain’s 1984 bronze-medal team, as claimed on his resume, nor had he played 147 times for the English and British national teams, which he also had claimed.

Football

The Maryland House of Delegates approved $70.5 million worth of improvements around a planned Redskin stadium in Prince George’s County and $200 million for a Baltimore facility for the former Cleveland Browns.

The Cincinnati Bengals signed cornerback Jimmy Spencer, a starter the last two seasons for New Orleans, to a two-year deal worth $1.4 million. . . . The New England Patriots signed free-agent defensive tackle Mark Wheeler, who has spent his four seasons with Tampa Bay. . . . The Miami Dolphins signed fullback Keith Byars to a one-year contract. . . . The Tampa Bay Buccaneers waived veteran safety Thomas Everett. . . . Defensive end Trace Armstrong of the Dolphins is the new president of the NFL Players Assn.

Jurisprudence

Alfredo Roberts, former Dallas Cowboy tight end, appeared before a grand jury investigating the arrest of a woman on drug-possession charges, but Cowboy receiver Michael Irvin did not appear and will testify on Tuesday.

Angus Charles Drogo Montagu, the 12th Duke of Manchester and a member of Britain’s House of Lords, could go to jail for three to seven years after a federal jury convicted him of conspiracy and wire fraud in a scheme to bilk Tampa-area banks and the NHL’s Tampa Bay Lightning out of $27 million.

Miscellany

Top-seeded Mike Mena, 118 pounds, and Joe Williams, 158, pinned their opponents in leading nine of Iowa’s 10 wrestlers into the second round of the NCAA championships in Minneapolis.

Babeto and Rai scored goals, leading Deportivo and Paris-St. Germain into the semifinals of the Cup Winners Cup soccer semifinals.