ATP fines Davydenko $2,000 for his lack of effort

Nikolay Davydenko, already at the center of a betting investigation, was fined $2,000 for lack of effort in a loss at the St. Petersburg Open in Russia.

The ATP said Friday that the fourth-ranked Davydenko was fined for lack of “best effort” during his 1-6, 7-5, 6-1 loss Thursday to Marin Cilic.

The top-seeded Davydenko won the first set in 27 minutes, but drew a rebuke from chair umpire Jean-Philippe Dercq in the third set. Davydenko double-faulted four times in the second set and six times in the third.

“When I made a double-fault, he gave me a notice for a wrong behavior on the court as if I was throwing the match,” Davydenko said Thursday after the match.

Davydenko said during the exchange, Dercq asked him about his condition. Davydenko first said there was nothing wrong, but later said the problem was in his legs.

The ATP is investigating a match in Poland in August involving Davydenko in which online gambling site Betfair voided bets because of irregular betting patterns.

Top-ranked Roger Federer cruised into the semifinals of the Swiss Indoors at Basel, his home tournament, by beating Nicolas Kiefer, 6-3, 6-2. He gained three match points and won on his first when Kiefer mis-hit a shot into the roof of the hall.

Federer is seeking his second consecutive title in the event. If he repeats as champion, he also will end the year as No. 1 for the fourth consecutive season.

Federer will next play Ivo Karlovic, who had 38 aces in coming from behind to beat fifth-seeded Tomas Berdych, 6-7 (5), 7-6 (2), 7-6 (13).

Karlovic, the tallest man on the tour at 6-foot-10, has 1,272 aces for the year, still well behind the record of 1,477 set in 1996 by Goran Ivanisevic.

Second-seeded Andy Murray rallied past Dmitry Tursunov, 3-6, 7-6 (2), 6-4, and advanced to the semifinals at the St. Petersburg Open.

Murray will next play third-seeded Mikhail Youzhny, who moved into the semifinals when Philipp Kohlschreiber retired because of fatigue after losing the first set, 6-4.

Sixth-seeded Patty Schnyder needed only 39 minutes to defeat top-seeded Anna Chakvetadze, 6-1, 6-0, and reach the semifinals of the Generali Ladies at Linz, Austria.

Chakvetadze made 24 unforced errors and scored only six points on Schnyder’s serve. While trailing, 3-0, in the opener, she won her only service game after saving two break points.

Qualifier Alejandro Falla upset fifth-seeded Ivan Ljubicic, 7-5, 6-7 (3), 7-5, to reach the semifinals of the Lyon Grand Prix in France.

Ljubicic had 30 aces but wasn’t able to break Falla in the 2 1/2 -hour match. Falla will next play Marc Gicquel, who defeated Diego Hartfield, 7-5, 6-3.

GOLF

Estes, Armour share lead at Ginn sur Mer Classic

Bob Estes and Tommy Armour III each shot a five-under-par 68 to share the lead in the suspended second round of the rain-soaked Ginn sur Mer Classic at Port St. Lucie, Fla.

Estes and Armour opened with identical 64s on Thursday, leaving them at 14 under. Daniel Chopra was another stroke back after a 66 at Tesoro Club.

Play was delayed an hour at the start by rain and the round was suspended at 5:39 p.m. after another squall moved into the area. None of the players with afternoon starting times finished, meaning 64 will complete the round this morning.

Seeking her third LPGA Tour victory in four weeks, Suzann Pettersen holed a 115-yard wedge shot for eagle on the par-four 13th and birdied the 18th. Her four-under 68 left her at 11-under 133 after two rounds of the LPGA Thailand at Pattaya. Alena Sharp matched Pettersen’s 68 and is in second place. Laura Davies was third, four strokes back at seven under. She eagled the 18th for a 66.

Annika Sorenstam followed her opening 72 with a 68 to reach the halfway point at four under. The 10-time major champion, winless since September 2006, is making only her 11th tour start in a season marked by a long break because of neck and back injuries.

Eduardo Romero took the second-round lead in the Champions Tour’s season-ending Charles Schwab Cup Championship at Sonoma, shooting a four-under 68 for a one-stroke advantage over Denis Watson (64) and Jim Thorpe (68).

Romero has a 12-under 132 total on the Sonoma Golf Club course.

AUTO RACING

Biffle edges Busch to win pole position

Greg Biffle won his first pole in more than a year, nipping Kurt Busch for the top spot for NASCAR Nextel Cup Series Pep Boys Auto Club 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

Biffle turned a fast lap of 192.453 mph in a Ford, and Busch went 192.427 in a Dodge on the 1.5-mile oval. The time difference between the top two laps was 0.004 of a second.

Perris Auto Speedway canceled its racing program scheduled for tonight because of poor air quality from the Southern California fires.

BASEBALL

White Sox take Crede off 60-day disabled list

The Chicago White Sox activated third baseman Joe Crede from the 60-day disabled list after he sat out most of the season because of a back injury. He was put on the disabled list June 6 and underwent surgery on June 12. He batted .216 with four home runs and 22 RBIs in 47 games.

The San Diego Padres waived second baseman Marcus Giles, the younger brother of right fielder Brian Giles. The Padres owe him a $500,000 buyout of his $4 million option.

Dodgers catcher Chad Moeller and minor-league pitchers Zach Hammes and Tim Hamulack were out-righted, clearing them off the team’s 40-man roster. Moeller and Hammes accepted their minor-league assignments. Hamulack elected free agency.

COLLEGE BASKETBALL

Ibekwe, UCLA women’s center, is suspended

Chinyere Ibekwe, one of three returning starters for the UCLA women’s team, will be suspended for both exhibition games and the first two regular-season games for violating team rules.

Ibekwe, a 6-foot-4 junior center who averaged 7.6 points and 6.6 rebounds last season, will sit out nonconference games at Cal State Northridge on Nov. 14 and against visiting Rice on Nov. 18.

--

MISCELLANY

U.S. pairs champions withdraw from event

U.S. pairs figure skating champions Brooke Castile and Ben Okolski withdrew from Skate America at Reading, Pa., because of her foot injury. The couple also will skip Skate Canada next week.

Four-time U.S. champion ice dancers Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto won the compulsories Friday night.

Bode Miller said he expects to compete in the season-opening World Cup giant slalom on Sunday at Soelden, Austria, despite a back injury.

The 2005 overall World Cup champion hurt his back skiing earlier this month and had been in doubt for the race.

North Dakota officials have three years to persuade Sioux tribes to support the Fighting Sioux nickname, under a settlement approved that the president of United Tribes Technical College says shows contempt.

Light welterweight Javier Molina and bantamweight Gary Russell advanced in the World Boxing Championships in Chicago, continuing an almost perfect run for U.S. fighters.

David Beckham is expected to make his final appearance of the year for the Galaxy at the Home Depot Center against a team of stars from Hollywood.

Beckham is scheduled to play against “Hollywood United FC” in a fundraiser Nov. 4. Proceeds will go to the American Red Cross and The Salvation Army to benefit those affected by the wildfires in Southern California.