Roger Federer advances to Rotterdam final

Top-seeded Roger Federer reached the ABN Amro World Tennis final at Rotterdam, Netherlands, with a 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory over Nikolay Davydenko on Saturday.

Federer, playing in Rotterdam for the first time since capturing the 2005 title, will play for the championship Sunday against Juan Martin del Potro. The third-seeded Argentine downed second-seeded Tomas Berdych, 6-3, 6-1, in the other semifinal.

Defending champion Nicolas Almagro of Spain defeated countryman Albert Ramos, 6-4, 7-6 (4), to reach the final of the Brazil Open at Sao Paulo.

The top-seeded Almargo will play for the title Sunday against Italy’s Filippo Volandri, who eliminated fourth-seeded Brazilian Thomaz Bellucci, 5-7, 6-0, 6-2.

New No. 1 Victoria Azarenka reached the Qatar Open final by downing Agenieszka Radwanska, 6-2, 6-4, while hobbling on some points with an ankle injury.

Azarenka will meet Sam Stosur in the final Sunday at Doha. Stosur advanced from her semifinal after Marion Bartoli retired with a right calf injury after losing the first set, 6-3.

Serena Williams has pulled out of next week’s Monterrey Open in Mexico because of an ankle injury.

New Jersey Nets center Brook Lopez is poised to return from a broken right foot.

Coach Avery Johnson said Lopez will start Sunday against Milwaukee after missing the first 32 games because of the injury. Getting Lopez back should boost a team that had lost eight straight beating the league-leading Chicago Bulls on Saturday.

The Nets’ leading scorer last season at 20.4 points per game, Lopez was injured in the preseason against the New York Knicks.

NASCAR will probably penalize the crew chief for five-time champion Jimmie Johnson for infractions found during Daytona 500 inspection.

NASCAR President Mike Helton said there is a “high likelihood” crew chief Chad Knaus will be penalized. But, Helton indicated punishment would not be doled out until after the Feb. 26 season-opening Daytona 500 race.

Kenny Perry shot a 10-under 62 to break the Champions Tour’s 36-hole scoring record with an 18-under 126 total in the ACE Group Classic at Naples, Fla.

Perry broke the record of 17 under held by six players. He made five birdies on the front nine on The TwinEagles Club’s Talon Course and six more on the back.

First-round leader Larry Mize was three strokes back after a 67.

Jbe Kruger of South Africa shot a six-under 66 in the third round to take a one-shot lead in the Avantha Masters at New Delhi.

Kruger had two eagles and two birdies in a bogey-free round that helped him finish with 11-under 205 after three rounds, a stroke ahead of overnight leader Peter Whiteford of Scotland, Marcel Siem of Germany and Jean-Baptiste Gonnet of France.

Ai Miyazato shot a seven-under 65 on to take a one-stroke lead over top-ranked Yani Tseng after the third round of the LPGA Thailand at Chonburi.

Lindsey Vonn clinched her fifth consecutive World Cup downhill title Saturday after placing third in a race on the 2014 Sochi Olympics course in Russia won by German rival and friend Maria Hoefl-Riesch.

Hoefl-Riesch clocked 1 minute 49.17 seconds down the Rosa Khutor slope for her second victory this season and first in downhill. She beat Elisabeth Goergl of Austria by 0.43 of a second and Vonn by 0.59.

With two downhills remaining this season and wins worth 100 points each, Vonn holds an unassailable 231-point lead over Hoefl-Riesch in the discipline standings.

Hannah Kearney of the United States earned her 16th straight World Cup moguls victory at Naeba, Japan, to extend her record winning streak. Kearney edged Canada’s Audrey Robichaud in the final.

Last Sunday, Kearney won in China to break the all-discipline record for most consecutive FIS World Cup victories held by downhill great Ingemar Stenmark.

Canada’s Mikael Kingsbury won the men’s event for his eighth victory of the season. Jeremy Cota of the United States was second.

Marchel Hirscher took advantage of a mistake by rival Ted Ligety to win a World Cup giant slalom at Bansko, Bulgaria, and overtake the American for first place in the discipline standings.

Ligety led after the first run but dropped out of contention in the second run with a mistake in the upper part of the slope and placed last of the 27 finishers.

Vitali Klitschko unanimously outpointed British challenger Dereck Chisora at Munich, Germany, to keep the WBC heavyweight title.

Chisora found little support from the sellout crowd of 12,500 after his slap on Klitschko at the weigh-in Friday, and ensured the ill-feeling continued when he spat in the 40-year-old’s face as the champion’s record was being called out.

Klitschko’s younger brother, Wladimir, who holds the IBF and “super” WBA titles as well as the minor WBO and IBO belts, acted as a buffer as Chisora goaded his opponent.

Vitali was clearly incensed, but it took some time before he could assert control against the 28-year-old Briton’s aggressive approach. His greater reach and experience made the difference.

The judges scored it 118-110, 118-110 and 119-111.

Klitschko improved his record to 44-2 with the 10th successful defense of the title he won from Corrie Sanders in 2004.