Monday, August 31, 2009 NEW YORK: US Open, the last Grand Slam tennis tournament of the year, is beginning today here at Flushing Meadows.World's top seed Roger Federer has an opportunity to bag the sixth US Open grand slam title as he has been placed in easiest draw at US Open.Federer will kick start his US Open campaign against America's wildcard entry Devin Britain here at Arthur Ashe Stadium court.He will meet 4th seed Serbian Novak Djokovic in the semifinals if no major upset happens in the Flushing Meadows. The year 2009 was special for Federer as he topped the list of most Grand Slam title (15) after winning French Open and Wimbledon this year. He broke the Pete Samprass' record of most Grand Slam title.Apart from this, Federer becomes father of twins this year too. Now, the Swiss player is eying third Grand Slam title of the year at Flushing Meadows.A fit Spaniard Rafael Nadal is the biggest hurdle between Federer and US Open title.In women category, top seed Dinara Safin and defending champion Serena Williams will vie for the title.Serena Williams is eyeing her third US Open title. However, she will not be able to grab the top rank despite being clinching the title.For India, Somdev Devvarman and Sania Mirza will vie for the title in the men singles and women singles category respectively. Prakash Amritraj failed to qualify for men's draw.
Sunday, February 28, 2010 HAVANA: Hundreds of wealthy merchants and cigar aficionados from all parts of the world gathered in Havana this week to bid high stakes for humidors full of premium cigars. Cuba's annual Habanos festival ended on Friday night with an auction of ornate humidors of cedar and mahogany stacked with hand-rolled stogies that raised 800,000 euros ($1.09 million dollars). Habanos S.A. executives this month said cigar sales fell 8 percent to $360 million in 2009, so they have created the Julieta, a smaller, milder version of the Romeo y Julieta cigar, aimed specifically at female smokers. Women now make up only 5 to 10 percent of customers for Habanos. But even with the creation of the Julieta, Garcia said Habanos has only modest hopes for 2010 sales, due largely to a weak economy in Spain, the biggest market for Cuban cigars. The flavor of premium tobacco relies on the soil and climate in which it is grown. The western province of Pinar Del Rio, famous fo...
Comments