Rafael Nadal wins Brazil Open

The last time Rafael Nadal won in Brazil, it was at the very start of the most dominant clay-court career tennis has had.

Eight years later, Nadal hopes his second title in Brazil will mark the restart.

Nadal beat David Nalbandian, 6-2, 6-3, in the final of the Brazil Open at Sao Paulo on Sunday, his first trophy since returning from a seven-month layoff to treat his left knee.

Nadal needed the lengthy layoff to treat a partially torn and inflamed tendon in his knee, and his comeback was further postponed by an illness.

He returned to play in Chile last week, losing in the final of both the singles and doubles tournaments.

Defending champion Victoria Azarenka beat Serena Williams, 7-6 (6), 2-6, 6-3, to win the Qatar Open at Doha, earning her 16th title and ending a 10-match losing streak against the American.

Azarenka extended her winning streak to 14 matches.

::

Milos Raonic won his third consecutive SAP Open at San Jose, beating Tommy Haas, 6-4, 6-3, for the title in the final year of the Bay Area tournament, which is moving to Memphis, Tenn.

::

Juan Martin del Potro beat Julien Benneteau, 7-6 (2), 6-3, to win the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament at Rotterdam, Netherlands.

ETC.

Langer wins Champions event

Bernhard Langer shot a final-round 72 and won his second ACE Group Classic title in three years by one stroke at Naples, Fla.

Langer two-putted from 50 feet on the 18th hole for par to finish at 12-under-par 204, ahead of Jay Don Blake.

Langer, who won the tournament in 2011 and was runner-up last year, survived three bogeys and a double bogey. It was his 17th victory on the Champions Tour.

::

Deena Kastor, the American-record holder in the marathon, won the Kaiser Permanente Rock ‘n’ Roll Pasadena Half Marathon, three days after her 40th birthday. Kastor, of Mammoth Lakes, easily won her division in the 13.1-mile race with a time of 1 hour 12 minutes 57 seconds.

Pasadena’s Mandy Gantz placed second in 1:19:44.

In the men’s race, Adam Kovacs of Hungary broke away from Glenn Randall of Mesa, Colo., at the 20-kilometer mark to win the in 1:06:42. Randall finished second in 1:07:08.