Sampras Again Beaten by Safin

Pete Sampras, needing work on his clay-court game for the French Open, lost Tuesday to Marat Safin, 7-6 (0), 7-5, in the World Team Cup at Duesseldorf, Germany.

Russia defeated the United States, 2-0, in the eight-nation tournament. This is the final tuneup before Monday’s start of the French Open, the only Grand Slam event Sampras has not won.

“I made too many errors, but for me to play good on clay, I need time,” said Sampras, who lost to Safin in the U.S. Open final. “My game’s slowly coming around.”

Sampras made early exits in clay-court tournaments at Rome and Hamburg. On Sunday, he won for the first time on clay this season, defeating Franco Squillari as the Americans downed Argentina.

The United States and Russia have 1-1 records in the Red Group in the round-robin event.

Safin gave Russia an unbeatable 2-0 lead after Yevgeny Kafelnikov defeated Jan-Michael Gambill, 6-4, 5-7, 6-2.

Mary Pierce, the defending French Open champion, lost to Iroda Tulyaganova of Uzbekistan, 3-6, 6-3, 6-1, in the first round of the Strasbourg Open at Paris. Pierce, ranked 17th, has been dogged by poor performances and injuries. Also eliminated was top-seeded Amanda Coetzer of South Africa, who lost in the second round to Ai Sugiyama of Japan, 6-4, 6-4. Anna Smashnova of Israel downed last year’s winner, Silvija Talaja of Croatia, 6-2, 6-4. . . . Unseeded Maria Martinez of Spain upset fifth-seeded Barbara Schett of Austria, 7-5, 2-6, 6-4, and sixth-seeded Lisa Raymond of the U.S. defeated compatriot Jennifer Hopkins, 3-6, 6-2, 6-2, in the first round of the Spanish Open at Madrid. . . . Defending champion Andrei Pavel of Romania defeated Christophe Rochus of Belgium, 6-1, 6-1, to reach the quarterfinals of the Raiffeisen Grand Prix at St. Poelten, Austria. . . . Chanda Rubin and Corina Morariu of the U.S., and Jason Stoltenberg of Australia have withdrawn from next week’s French Open tennis tournament. Morariu is undergoing chemotherapy in a hospital in Florida for a rare form of leukemia. Rubin has a knee injury and will be replaced in the draw by Alexandra Stevenson. Virginie Razzano of France takes Morariu’s spot. No reason was given for Stoltenberg’s withdrawal. Jose Acasuso of Argentina will replace him.

Jurisprudence

A few weeks before his girlfriend’s 4-year-old son died, Jeremiah Parker of the New York Giants said he told authorities she was regularly abusing the boy.

Tauleah Kelly’s lawyer disputed the accusation, asserting her client was a “very good parent.”

Elijah Kelly died May 14, two days after Parker found him motionless on the bedroom floor of the Haledon condominium he shared with the child’s mother. An autopsy revealed he died from blunt force injuries to the head that were sustained over a period of time.

The 23-year-old defensive end and Kelly, 19, have been charged with aggravated manslaughter and child abuse. They are to be arraigned today in state Superior Court in Paterson, N.J.

A court in Saint-Omer, France, sentenced a German soccer fan to five years in prison for his part in the near-fatal beating of a French policeman during the 1998 World Cup.

The court also banned Markus Warnecke, who has been detained in a French jail for three years pending his trial, from entering French territory for 10 years after he is released. He was also banned from entering sports facilities for five years.

Warnecke, a 30-year-old former tattoo shop owner and skinhead from Hanover, will soon be eligible to request parole, having served more than half his sentence.

Pro Football

Randy Moss, an all-pro receiver for the Minnesota Vikings, will play basketball for the Pennsylvania ValleyDawgs, a U.S. Basketball League team coached by former NBA standout Darryl Dawkins.

Jim Fassel, coach of the New York Giants, had surgery in New York to remove bone spurs in his neck, a condition that bothered him throughout last season. . . . The Chicago Bears agreed to terms with former UCLA running back Skip Hicks, a backup with the Washington Redskins the last three seasons. . . . Paul Shields, a fullback for the Indianapolis Colts last season, agreed to a one-year contract with the Arizona Cardinals, his agent said. . . . Tyrone Poole, a cornerback cut by the Colts in February, agreed to a contract with the Denver Broncos.

Miscellany

UCLA senior Laura Moffat shot a 69 and leads the NCAA golf championships at Howley-in-the-Hills, Fla. Oklahoma State leads the team competition, with the Bruins two shots behind and USC third, another shot back.

DeLisha Milton and Mwadi Mabika each scored 15 points to lead the Sparks to an 83-79 victory over the Orlando Miracle in a WNBA exhibition at Orlando, Fla.

NBC’s first telecast of the Preakness Stakes drew its highest ratings since 1992 and viewership increased 56% from last year’s coverage by ABC. . . . Gary Stevens, who won the Preakness aboard Point Given, plans to ride at England’s showcase Royal Ascot meeting for four days next month.

Michael Schumacher, who won a world drivers’ title with Ferrari last year, extended his contract with the Formula One team through 2004. The German’s contract was to expire in 2002. He has won three drivers’ titles but last year’s championship was his first with Ferrari. . . . Gabriele Rumi, who once owned the Minardi Formula One team, died Monday from cancer in Faenza, Italy. He was 61.