Sports Briefs

Ferrer ousted

by Baghdatis

NOTTINGHAM, England (AP):

Top-seeded David Ferrer lost to Marcos Baghdatis 6-2, 7-6 (4) in the second round at Nottingham yesterday.

Ferrer, the world No. 7, lost his first two service games to Baghdatis, who earned his first win over a top-10 player in more than two years.

"For me, the first set was difficult because it was the first set back on grass," Ferrer said after his first appearance in Nottingham in 11 years. "He (Baghdatis) played more hours on court, and had more confidence in his game."

Paris launches bid for 2024 Olympics

PARIS (AP):

Declaring they have learned from their past mistakes and failures, French officials launched a bid yesterday to bring the Olympics to Paris in 2024 - 100 years after the games were last held in the city.

Paris became the fourth city to enter the 2024 race and, with a bid team led by athletes and sports officials rather than politicians, believes it has found a winning formula after a string of stinging defeats.

"We've learned our lessons," bid CEO Etienne Thobois said. "This time around, this is about winning."

The Paris bid, which had been in the works for months, was formally announced at the headquarters of the French Olympic Committee in a ceremony attended by dozens of leading French athletes in a packed hall.

Wins for Wozniacki, Bouchard

EASTBOURNE, England (AP):

Second-seeded Caroline Wozniacki made a winning start to her grass court season with a 7-6 (4), 6-2 victory over qualifier Jarmila Gajdosova in the second round of the Aegon International yesterday.

Wozniacki fell behind to an early break before rallying to reach the tiebreaker, where Gajdosova paid for a series of errors. Wozniacki broke her opponent's serve three times on the way to sealing victory in the second set.

Earlier, Eugenie Bouchard earned her first win of the grass court season when the 2014 Wimbledon runner-up beat Alison Riske of the United States 7-6 (5), 6-3.