Draper Has Staying Power Against Muster in Rome

After three hours on clay, Thomas Muster usually is the last man standing. Not this time.

Once nearly invincible on clay, Muster couldn’t cope Wednesday with the scorching 90-degree heat and gutsy play of Australia’s Scott Draper in the second round of the Italian Open at Rome.

Muster, seeded third and two-time defending champion, was treated for severe dehydration after his 6-7 (7-4), 7-5, 5-7 defeat.

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Her confidence back and her shots crackling again, Steffi Graf defeated Ruxandra Dragomir, 6-3, 6-2, to reach the quarterfinals of the German Open at Berlin.

Graf, seeking her 10th title at the event, was playing her second singles match since being sidelined by a knee injury for three months.

Third-seeded Lindsay Davenport was ousted by France’s Sandrine Testud, 7-6 (11-9), 7-6 (9-7).

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Former world No. 1 Mats Wilander and Czech-born Karel Novacek were suspended for three months after withdrawing appeals for failing drug tests, the International Tennis Federation announced. Sweden’s Wilander and Novacek tested positive for cocaine at the 1995 French Open.

Hockey

Owen Nolan of the San Jose Sharks scored a goal and set up another as Canada defeated Olympic champion Sweden, 2-1, to win the world championship at Helsinki.

The victory capped a gritty comeback by the Canadians after they lost the first game of the best-of-three final Sunday. It was their 21st world title, second in the past 35 years.

Boxing

Lake Tahoe will host its first heavyweight title fight July 12 when Lennox Lewis defends his World Boxing Council heavyweight belt against unbeaten Henry Akinwande. . . . The International Boxing Federation declared its junior-flyweight title vacant, stripping Mauricio Pastrana of the belt for failing to attend a weigh-in for a May 10 title defense. . . . Eduard Zakharov, a boxer on the 1996 Russian Olympic team, died from stab wounds Tuesday night in the Siberian town of Ukhta. . . . Former heavyweight champion Buster Douglas was awarded a victory at Biloxi, Miss., after Louis Monaco, a journeyman with a 6-6-2 record, unloaded a straight right hand after the bell caught Douglas flush on the temple.

Miscellany

Former Ohio State women’s track and cross-country coach Mamie Rallins has filed a $13-million sexual discrimination lawsuit against the university, three years after she was fired.

The suit contends that athletic administrators discriminated against Rallins throughout most of her eight-year career as coach.

The Ann Arbor News filed a lawsuit against the University of Michigan, seeking a copy of a letter sent to basketball Coach Steve Fisher about his handling of NCAA violations. University officials cited concerns about privacy in refusing to turn over the letter. . . . A misdemeanor battery case against Miami Dolphin receiver Lamar Thomas was dropped when his former fiancee refused to cooperate with prosecutors. . . . Hawaii quarterback Tim Carey was arraigned on gambling charges, and was placed on indefinite suspension by the school.

Billionaire Paul Allen’s plan to build a $425-million football stadium in Seattle using taxpayer funding appears to be in trouble, according to a poll published in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. A survey of 800 likely voters in the June 17 statewide single-question election found 56% opposed to the idea of a new tax-supported pro football stadium.

Jerry Reinsdorf, chairman of the Chicago Bulls and Chicago White Sox, and Blackhawk owner William Wirtz have proposed a plan to build a privately financed, open-air stadium for the Bears, aimed at heading off an idea backed by Gov. Jim Edgar to build a domed stadium near the city’s lakefront that would be partially financed by public bonds. . . . The NFL’s Oilers and the city of Houston have reached an agreement that leaves the team only a minor hurdle away from abandoning Texas for Tennessee, television station KRIV reported. The station reported the city agreed to accept $250,000 from the Oilers to cover legal fees incurred in court battles with the franchise. . . . The Oakland Raiders re-signed tackle Robert Jenkins, who was cut in February.

Ronaldo converted a penalty kick in the 37th minute, giving Barcelona a 1-0 soccer victory over defending champion Paris-St. Germain in the final of the Cup Winners Cup at Rotterdam, Netherlands. . . . The ruling panel of the U.S. Olympic Committee is expected to vote today against pursuing a bid for the 2008 Summer Games. . . . New Zealand received a record 18 entries from 10 countries to compete for the America’s Cup. The U.S. entered six challenges including an entry from four-time winner Dennis Conner.