Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal through in Qatar Open
World number two Roger Federer produced a stunning trick shot as he advanced to round two of the Qatar Open with a 7-6 (7-3) 6-3 win over Thomas Schoorel.
Federer had to save three set points when trailing the 21-year-old Dutch qualifier 5-4 in the opening set.
Having won the set and with a 5-2 lead in the second, Federer was facing the baseline when he flicked a shot through his legs for a winner into the corner.
World number one and top seed Rafael Nadal coasted past Karol Beck 6-3 6-0.
Nadal, seeking his first win in Doha, led 3-0 in the first set then broke Beck all three times in the next but insisted: "It was not an easy match. But I started well and kept playing well. I think I gave a good performance."
The 24-year-old Spaniard, who won three Grand Slams in 2010, added: "I try to do better every day and be consistent."
Meanwhile Federer, winner of this tournament in 2005 and 2006, reeled off five points in a row to level the score at 5-5 and then took advantage of three long returns by Schoorel to take the set on a tie-break.
The 29-year-old, winner of 16 Grand Slam titles, broke serve for the first time in the match in the fourth game of the second set before thrilling the crowd with his trademark trick shot and swiftly completing victory.
Federer has previously unveiled the shot between the legs, also known as a "Tweener", at the last two US Opens, at last year's Shanghai Masters and at the 2007 Dubai Open.
"It's one of the best shots again of my career, one I'm going to look back and smile, of course," he said of the latest example.
"In the first set, he played really well. This player has quality. I got confidence when I saved those set points. Then I picked up my game."
Next up for the Swiss maestro is compatriot Marco Chiudinelli, who beat Reda El Amrani 3-6 7-6 (7-3) 6-3.
In other matches, fifth seed Ernests Gulbis of Latvia beat Romanian Victor Hanescu 6-3 7-6 (7-6) and eighth-seeded Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany defeated Andreas Seppi of Italy 6-2 6-4.
Pakistan trio head for 'spot-fixing' tribunal in Doha
Pakistan bowler Mohammad Amir says he is confident of proving his innocence at the International Cricket Council's anti-corruption tribunal from Thursday.
An independent panel in Doha will judge if Amir, Salman Butt and Mohammad Asif, committed spot-fixing offences in the fourth Test against England in August.
They were suspended in September amid charges of bowling deliberate no-balls.
"I'm quietly confident I can come out of it with my head high," said 18-year-old Amir. "I have done nothing wrong."
"I've played so many Tests but this is going to be my toughest and hardest," added Amir, who has taken 51 wickets in 14 Test matches.
"Finally the time has arrived for me to prove my innocence. My lawyer has worked very hard on preparing this case."
The International Cricket Council - whose chief executive officer Haroon Lorgat said he will be "disappointed" if the players are found not guilty - believes it has prepared a strong case which requires proper scrutiny.
If found guilty of breaking the ICC's Code of Conduct, the trio could face a life ban.
They were provisionally suspended and charged by the ICC, and were also questioned by Scotland Yard detectives in London over the allegations when the case erupted in September last year.
Michael Beloff QC, who chaired the Code of Conduct Commission that rejected appeals from Butt and Amir in October, will chair the hearing along with fellow code of conduct commissioners Justice Albie Sachs of South
Butt criticised the ICC for victimising Pakistan cricketers when his appeal was rejected, while Asif - who did not appeal - has made no statement since the suspension.
Pakistan's Twenty20 and one-day captain Shahid Afridi will join coach Waqar Younis as witnesses at the request of the ICC during the tribunal.
Amir left from Pakistan for Qatar on Tuesday while Test captain Butt and Asif left on different flights.
Speaking to the BBC in December, Lorgat said that the trio will be entitled to appeal any ruling at the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Knicks cool off Spurs with victory
Wilson Chandler scored a season-high 31 points, and the New York Knicks overwhelmed the San Antonio Spurs with a sensational offensive performance, cooling off the NBA leaders with a 128-115 victory Tuesday night.
Amare Stoudemire and Raymond Felton added 28 apiece for the Knicks, who snapped the Spurs' four-game winning streak and dropped them to 29-5. New York rang up the highest point total San Antonio has allowed this season, shooting 55 percent and leading most of the way in its second straight victory.
Tony Parker had 26 points for the Spurs, who will try to regroup when they head to Boston on Wednesday for a matchup of conference leaders. DeJuan Blair added 17, Manu Ginobili scored 15 and Tim Duncan finished with 14 on just 5-of-14 shooting.
Rookie Landry Fields had 13 points for the Knicks in a big victory before they head west for a tough four-game trip that starts Friday in Phoenix and includes games against the Lakers, Portland and Utah.
NBA teams have started at least 30-4 nine times, but the Spurs gave up hope of that with a little more than 3 minutes left, when coach Gregg Popovich pulled Duncan, Ginobili and Parker after one last Knicks flurry made it a double-digit lead again.
Unlike its four championship teams, San Antonio has built this strong start more with offense than defense. The Spurs have played it well enough to put them on pace for one of the best records in NBA history, but Popovich doesn't expect it to last.
"We're not going to keep up this pace, that's for sure. It's not going to happen," he said before the game.
Not if the Spurs defend the way they did Tuesday too often.
Even without anyone who could guard Chandler, they were still within five midway through the fourth quarter before Toney Douglas and Felton made 3-pointers, and consecutive baskets by Felton and Stoudemire pushed it to 122-111 with 3:27 remaining.
The Knicks easily surpassed their league-leading average of 107.2 points per game even without starting forward Danilo Gallinari, who is expected to miss two to three weeks with a sprained left knee.
San Antonio is fourth in the league with its 105.6 points per game and nobody got any stops early. The teams combined to hit 11 of their first 12 shots and barely cooled off as the Knicks took a 36-35 lead after one quarter. Duncan (1 of 5) was just about the only player who couldn't capitalize on the lack of defense.
New York pushed the lead to nine midway through the second after consecutive jumpers by Stoudemire and was ahead 72-69 at halftime, the most points San Antonio has surrendered in a half this season.
Chandler scored 11 in the third quarter, when the Knicks opened a double-digit lead before settling for a 101-95 advantage.
US car sales confirm auto industry recovery
US carmakers have reported strong sales for December, confirming the auto industry's steady recovery during 2010.
Chrysler said sales for the month rose by 16% against a year earlier, while General Motors posted sales growth of 7.5%. Ford said sales rose by 7%.
Japan's Nissan fared even better, reporting US sales growth of 28%.
Most major carmakers reporting sales figures on Tuesday also posted strong rises in sales for the full year 2010 compared with the previous year.
Ford reported a jump of 19%, Chrysler an increase of 16%, while GM posted a rise of 6%.
The figures confirm a remarkable turnaround for the so-called Detroit three carmakers, two of which - Chrysler and GM - went into bankruptcy protection in 2009.
Other carmakers were equally upbeat.
"I think people are a lot more confident in making big purchases now. That's the story of the fourth quarter," said Ali Castignetti, head of Nissan sales in the US.
"I think we're going to see slow, steady growth."
Bail-out
Despite strong gains from Ford and Chrysler, GM retained its position as the US's top-selling carmaker, with sales of 2.2 million cars in 2010.
"Our sales this year reflect the impact of GM's new business model," said GM's vice-president of US sales Don Johnson.
"The consistency of results that we achieved demonstrates the focus on our brands, dealers and customers, and how we compete aggressively for every sale, every day."
In the summer of 2009, the company needed $50bn in government assistance as it went through bankruptcy protection. Following the bail-out, the government owned 61% of the company.
Comprehensive restructuring, including selling off a number of brands, has helped the carmaker to return to profitability.
It posted a net profit of $2bn (£1.2bn) in the three months to the end of September, its third consecutive quarter of profitability.
In November, GM raised $20.1bn through a public share offering - the largest share sale in the US to date.
This will allow the government to reduce its stake to as low as 33%.
Improving fortunes
Chrysler also went into bankruptcy protection in the summer of 2009 after being bailed out the by the government following a sales slump during the downturn, but it has struggled to return to profitability since.
In the third quarter of last year, the carmaker lost $84m, following a $172m loss in the previous three months. It has, however, forecast a profit for the full year 2010 of $700m.
Ford, which did not enter bankruptcy protection or take financial assistance from the government, made a profit of $1.7bn between July and September, its sixth consecutive quarterly profit.
Mega Millions: A long shot at $355 million
Gamblers lined up Tuesday at newsstands and gas stations in 41 states and Washington, D.C., hoping to overcome astronomical odds and win one of the largest jackpots in U.S. lottery history.
"The odds are 1 in 176 million," said Carolyn Hapeman, a spokeswoman for New York State's lottery division. "But plenty of people have done it before."
The winner of the $355 million Mega Millions jackpot can accept it two ways: as a $224 million lump sum or as 26 annual payments before taxes. Uncle Sam and state and local governments all get their piece, said Hapeman, adding that most winners go for the cash option.
The promise of sudden riches has put dollar signs in the eyes of lottery players.
"Help my family, give some to my church, enjoy my life," said Jose Guzman, a hotel worker from New Jersey and Mega Millions player, when asked what he would do with the jackpot.
The winner, or winners, will be announced Tuesday night -- assuming that there is a jackpot winner. There hasn't been one since Nov. 25, when a winning $25 million ticket -- as yet unclaimed -- was bought in Broadview Heights, Ohio, according to the Mega Millions website.
In order to win, players have to hit the first five numbers plus the so-called mega ball. Players who hit the first five numbers without the mega ball win $250,000.
There have been several quarter-million winners, but no jackpot winner, allowing the jackpot to grow over time. It will continue to grow if no one strikes all six numbers on Tuesday.
The largest U.S. jackpot ever, $390 million in Mega Millions, was won on March 6, 2007, split by two people from Georgia and New Jersey.
The second-largest jackpot -- and the largest ever in the other big multi-state lottery, Powerball -- was $365 million won by ConAgra Foods co-workers in Nebraska on Feb. 18, 2006.
Many of the winners, including the ones from New York, are required to make a public appearance after they win, but after that they can fade from public view, according to Hapeman.
Curse of the lottery
Some winners don't live happily ever after. The so-called lottery curse, popularized by the corpulent character "Hurley" on ABC's show "Lost," has ruined at least a dozen winners over the years who couldn't handle the sudden influx of fortune and fame.
The most infamous case is that of Andrew "Jack" Whittaker, a construction company owner from West Virginia who won $315 million from Powerball in 2002.
Already a millionaire before he won the lottery, Whittaker pledged part of the winnings to his church.
But it all went downhill from there, according to published reports.
Whittaker's post-lottery problems are said to have included lawsuits, divorce, drunk driving, the theft of a cash-stuffed briefcase in a strip club, and the untimely deaths of his daughter and granddaughter.
Hapeman said the curse hasn't touched any lottery winners from New York, the most recent being Garina Fearon of Brooklyn, a corrections officer who won a $54 million jackpot from Mega Millions on Sept. 17.
"When I saw I had the numbers I started running, jumping and screaming all over the parking lot," said Fearon, according to Mega Millions. "Everyone saw me running around. They must have thought I was crazy or something."
BP shares jump 6% on takeover reports
BP shares have surged almost 6% after reports that rival Royal Dutch Shell considered a takeover bid following the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
Speculation that BP may not need to tap all of its $20bn (£13bn) compensation fund also helped to push the company's shares up by 27 pence to 493p.
The Daily Mail newspaper reported that Shell mulled a bid for BP when its shares slumped because of the spill.
The share price rise comes despite a sharp fall in the price of oil.
US light crude fell by $2.17, or 2.4%, to $89.38 a barrel in Tuesday trading, while London Brent dropped by $1.55, or 1.6%, to $923.29 a barrel.
Oil prices have hit two-year highs in recent days, partly because of increased demand due to the cold weather in the US and Europe and continuing optimism about the global recovery.
Dividend return
The Mail reported that Shell decided against a bid for BP as it was unwilling to risk taking responsibility for the potentially unlimited liabilities from the spill.
However, Shell management did agree to bid for BP if another oil giant, such as the US's Exxon Mobil, launched a takeover attempt, the report said.
Reports also suggest that Kenneth Feinberg, the US lawyer responsible for BP's compensation fund, suggested that $10bn might be enough to pay the victims of the spill.
"These reports may give investors reason to believe that a dividend could be brought back sooner rather than later, and that could have quite a positive impact on the share price," said David Hart at Westhouse Securities.
BP was forced to suspend dividend payments last year following pressure from the US government.
The Deepwater Horizon drilling rig explosion in the Gulf in April killed 11 workers and spilled millions of barrels of oil over several months.
The oil leak became the worst environmental disaster in US history.
Bank of America pays Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac $2.6bn
Bank of America has agreed to pay US mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac about $2.6bn (£1.7bn) to settle claims it sold them bad home loans.
There had been fears the bank would be forced to buy back billions of dollars of mortgage loan investments.
"These actions resolve substantial legacy issues in the best interest of our shareholders," the bank's boss Brian Moynihan said.
Shares in the US's biggest bank closed up 6.5% following the announcement.
The bank said it had made a cash payment of $1.28bn to Freddie Mac and one of $1.34bn to Fannie Mae on 31 December.
It said these payments "extinguish all outstanding and potential mortgage" claims made against it by Freddie Mac, and "substantially resolves" those made by Fannie Mae.
"Bank of America believes that it has addressed its remaining exposure to repurchase obligations for residential mortgage loans sold directly to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac," the bank said.
The claims relate to loans sold by Countrywide Financial Corporation, which Bank of America bought in 2008.
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac said the loans were made without meeting investors' underwriting requirements, such as income levels and home values.
"This significant agreement with Bank of America is a fair and responsible resolution of these outstanding claims," said Fannie Mae boss Michael Williams.
Porsche shares surge on hopes of VW merger
Shares in German carmaker Porsche have soared after a US judge dismissed a lawsuit that had threatened to de-rail a planned merger with Volkswagen
Two hedge funds claimed more than $2bn (£1.3bn) in damages over a 2008 deal in which Porsche bought a stake in VW.
But last week, a judge dismissed claims by funds Elliott Associates and Black Diamond of securities fraud by Porsche.
Shares in Porsche, trading for the first time since the judge's decision, jumped 7.5%, while VW shares rose 2.5%.
Earlier in the session, Porsche shares were up 12%.
"We regard this [decision] as positive news for Porsche shareholders as the biggest risk to the merger with VW has been removed," Credit Suisse analysts said in research note.
The lawsuit had delayed VW's attempts to merge with Porsche, which is also planning a 5bn euros (£4.3bn) rights issue.
The hedge funds had alleged they lost out when Porsche covertly bought a stake in Volkswagen using swap instruments as part of a plan to take over Europe's largest carmaker.
When Porsche's stakebuilding was revealed in October 2008, VW shares soared and the company briefly became the world's biggest business by market value.
Hedge funds that had bet on VW's share price falling lost money.
The planned merger of the two carmakers also received a boost after Martin Winterkorn agreed to extend his contract as chief executive of VW until the end of 2016.
Mr Winterkorn is one of the architects of the deal.
Convicted killer could inherit victim's assets
A man imprisoned for killing his mother-in-law in 2008 could soon inherit his victim's assets, valued at a minimum of $250,000, authorities said.
The strange twist of fate was made possible after the death of Deanna Palladino, wife of convicted killer Brandon Palladino and sole inheritor of her slain mother's assets, according to Suffolk County court documents.
The money she inherited from her mother, Dianne Edwards, could soon become the inheritance of her husband, who is awaiting formal sentencing for Edwards' killing at Suffolk County jail in Long Island, New York, according to District Attorney spokesman Robert Clifford.
Palladino pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter on October 12, in exchange for a plea deal, Clifford said.
He is expected to face up to 25 years in prison, Clifford added.
But the possibility that Palladino could become the new owner of Edwards' assets has outraged some of Edwards' family members.
"He's going to benefit from this crime, he's going to profit from a murder," said Donna Larsen, Edwards' sister. "When he gets out of jail and is in his 40s, he's going to have a quarter-million dollars to move on with his life after murdering somebody."
Edwards' brother-in-law, Andy Larsen, said, "It's terrible that you have to fight a killer for the victim's assets when he's a confessed murderer and he's going to be profiting from the crime."
Repeated attempts to reach Palladino's attorney, Raymond Perini, for comment were not successful.
Dennis Lemke, an attorney advising Larsen, said he is going to do "whatever is necessary to make sure the money doesn't get into the hands of the murderer."
He said "a person can't benefit from their own criminal conduct, so the Larsens have to prove that the daughter was in fact involved in Edwards' murder."
Police would not comment whether Deanna Palladino was suspected in the death of her mother, and did not provide evidence that supports Lemke's allegation.
Assassination of Pakistan's Salman Taseer condemned
There has been strong international condemnation of the assassination of one of Pakistan's best-known liberal politicians in the capital Islamabad.
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton regretted the death of Salman Taseer, governor of Punjab province, saying he had promoted tolerance.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon called his death "a loss for Pakistan".
Mr Taseer was shot dead by one of his bodyguards angered over the governor's opposition to blasphemy laws.
The governor - a senior member of the governing Pakistan People's Party (PPP) - had recently angered Islamists by appealing for a Christian woman, sentenced to death for blasphemy, to be pardoned.
"I had the opportunity to meet Governor Taseer in Pakistan and I admired his work to promote tolerance and the education of Pakistan's future generations," said Mrs Clinton in a statement.
"His death is a great loss. The United States remains committed to helping the government and people of Pakistan as they persevere in their campaign to bring peace and stability to their country."
UK Foreign Secretary William Hague said he was "shocked" by the killing.
Pakistan's high commissioner to London, Wajid Shamshul Hassan, told the BBC's Newshour programme that the assassination exposed the divisions in his country.
"It has shown that you can be held hostage by a minority of religious people and they can do whatever they want. That is not the way we are going to allow in the country," he said.
"We will be tough on them. Unless we get rid of such people in our society, unless we purge them from the various security agencies, you can't feel that justice will be done."
Witnesses said Mr Taseer, 66, was riddled with bullets from an automatic rifle as he returned to his car at the Kohsar Market, a shopping centre in Islamabad.
Pakistan's interior minister Rehman Malik said the guard - named as Malik Mumtaz Hussein Qadri - had confessed to the killing.
Mr Malik told a news conference: "The police guard who killed him says he did this because Mr Taseer recently defended the proposed amendments to the blasphemy law. This is what he told the police after surrendering himself.
"But we are investigating to find out whether it was his individual act or whether someone else was also behind it," he added.
Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani declared three days of national mourning and appealed for calm. He also ordered an immediate inquiry into Mr Taseer's killing.
Mr Taseer's body has been taken to Punjab's capital, Lahore, where a state funeral will be held.
Mr Taseer - a close associate of President Asif Ali Zardari - made headlines by appealing for the pardon of Christian woman Asia Bibi who had been sentenced to death for allegedly insulting the Prophet Muhammad.
Pakistan instability
Friends of the governor say he knew he was risking his life by speaking out.
"Salman's murder has given [us] an opportunity to rededicate ourselves to his ideals," Mr Hassan told the BBC.
"He talked to [Asia Bibi] because he wanted to send a message of assurance to the minorities that we will not allow injustice to happen against them."
Mr Taseer's death is the most high-profile assassination in Pakistan since former prime minister Benazir Bhutto was killed in December 2007.
The BBC's Aleem Maqbool in Islamabad says Mr Taseer was one of Pakistan's most important political figures and his death will add further instability to the country.
PPP supporters wept and shouted as the governor's coffin was driven away from a hospital in Islamabad.
Dozens took to the streets in Lahore, burning tyres and blocking traffic. There were also protests in the central city of Multan.