Williams Struggles to Thrilling Victory Over Top-Ranked Hingis

In a match of extraordinary drama deserving of a Grand Slam final, Venus Williams limped and staggered through a third set in the Sydney International at Sydney, Australia, to beat top-ranked Martina Hingis for the first time.

Embarrassed by her wild performance during a straight-sets thrashing in the U.S. Open last September, Williams played brilliant tennis in a 3-6, 6-4, 7-5 second-round victory of this tuneup for the Australian Open.

Williams began limping from cramps in her right leg late in the second set, and after an unusual 10-minute break before the third set because of the heat and humidity, came back limping worse than before.

“I never had that,” said Williams, 17. “The [umpire] asked me if it’s cramps. I said, ‘I don’t know, it’s pain.’ I really didn’t want to quit because I’d come so far in the heat. I had to go on.”

Williams required a medical timeout and treatment on court at 1-1 in the third set. When she resumed play and served, she grimaced through each point as she fell behind a 1-2.

But Hingis, the defending champion at this tournament and winner of three major titles last year, couldn’t capitalize on that injury and dropped serve at love when Williams ripped a forehand winner crosscourt and out of reach.

Williams made it 4-2 when she broke Hingis with another sizzling forehand crosscourt into the corner. After Hingis evened the match, and took a medical timeout of her own to deal with cramps and dizziness at 5-5, Williams swept through the final two games and won both at love.

At the end of the nearly 2 1/2-hour match, Williams received a standing ovation from the crowd.

“This was not as important as it was at the U.S. Open,” Hingis said. “I’m sure we will have many other matches.”

Swimming

On the opening day of the World Swimming Championships at Perth, Australia, Chen Yan, the 16-year-old world-record holder in the 400-meter individual medley, won that event in 4 minutes 36.66 seconds, well off the record of 4:34.79 she set at the Chinese nationals in Shanghai last October.

Earlier, Shan Ying was third behind five-time Olympic gold medalist Jenny Thompson of the United States, who swam 54.95 in the 100-meter freestyle.

Winter Sports

Andy Gabel, who won Sunday’s 1,000-meter pursuit race in record time at the U.S. Olympic short-track speedskating trials at Lake Placid, N.Y., continued his surge, winning both of his 500-meter heats and then the final--again in record time. Gabel skated the final in 43.032 seconds and is assured a spot on his fourth Olympic team.

A World Cup moguls event vital to Olympic selection was shifted from Lake Placid, N.Y., to the Sugarloaf/USA resort in Carrabassett Valley, Maine, because of the ice storm that ravaged parts of the northeastern United States.

Jurisprudence

Former junior featherweight champion Antonio Cermeno said from Caracas, Venezuela, that his gun had gone off accidentally when he shot a woman in the leg in December, and denied reports he had fled Venezuela.

Police confirmed that no charges will be brought against the fighter.

Jamie Richardson, a sophomore receiver suspended twice for previous criminal violations during a troubled football career at Florida, has been suspended indefinitely after being charged with battery.

Coach Steve Spurrier said Sunday night that Richardson was “off the team” pending an investigation into charges he struck a bouncer at a Gainesville bar early Sunday.

Former Boston Red Sox player Bernie Carbo has sued major league baseball, claiming the sport and MCI illegally made a commercial of his homer in the 1975 World Series without authorization.

Baseball

The Dodgers agreed to minor league contract terms with right-handed pitchers Mark Gubicza and Sug Chung.

Gubicza, 35, started two games for the the Angels last season before arthroscopic surgery to his right shoulder sidelined him for the rest of the season.

Chung, 24, played on the Korean national team. He will complete his army service Feb. 8 before coming to the United States.

Detroit Tiger Manager Buddy Bell agreed to a two-year contract extension.

Miscellany

USC football Coach Paul Hackett is interviewing former Oklahoma defensive coordinator Bill Young as a possible defensive coordinator or defensive line coach. Young said he resigned at Oklahoma after the season because the Sooners wanted to change defenses. He has previously coached at Ohio State and Arizona State.

The tumor found in the brain of former baseball star Dan Quisenberry last week was cancerous, according to hospital officials in Kansas City, Mo.

Said neurosurgeon Jonathan Chilton: “With his projected type of therapy, we now measure these situations in months to years. It is very unlikely that the malignancy will [spread] to other areas of his body.”

Clem Haskins, who led Minnesota’s men’s basketball team to its first Final Four appearance last season and was an assistant on the 1996 U.S. Olympic team, was appointed coach of the U.S. men’s basketball team for the Goodwill Games next summer in New York.

The Portuguese Formula One Grand Prix at Lisbon, Portugal, was canceled for the second consecutive year because of unfinished improvements to the track.