Two a penny

.The French navy has captured 35 suspected pirates off the coast of Somalia in what French officials are hailing as the most successful mission since the European Union began monitoring the seas in 2008.
Four mother ships and six smaller boats have been seized over three days. .
The EU’s mission has focused on the Gulf of Aden - one of the world’s busiest shipping routes.

.
Jurisdiction over the suspects remains unclear, and there have been renewed calls for an international tribunal to be set up

.Defending champions Spain proved there is life without Rafael Nadal when it swept aside Switzerland 4-1 overnight to set-up a mouthwatering Davis Cup quarter-final clash with France.
World number two Novak Djokovic won a five-set thriller to defeat America’s John Isner and hand Serbia a first ever place in the Davis Cup quarters.
Serbia will face bitter rivals Croatia at home on July 9-11 for a spot in the semi-finals after Djokovic claimed a 7-5, 3-6, 6-3, 6-7 (6-8), 6-4 win over Isner in a four hour, 16 minute marathon as his team took an unassailable 3-1 lead.
Croatia, the 2005 champions, the Czech Republic, which was runners-up to Spain last season, and France had already wrapped up their quarter-final places on Saturday.
Russia also went through thanks to a 3-2 win over India, its 17th successive home win, which gave it a last eight clash against Argentina who defeated Sweden 3-2 in Stockholm.
Nicolas Almagro then eased past Marco Chiudinelli 6-1, 6-3 in the dead rubber.
In Logrono, world number 16 David Ferrer scored the winning point for Spain as he easily saw off an exhausted Stanislas Wawrinka 6-2, 6-4, 6-0 to give the hosts an unbeatable lead after they had led 2-1 overnight.
Despite his heroics, Ferrer admitted that his place in the team for July’s clash with France was not guaranteed with Nadal and Fernando Verdasco expected to return. I just want to focus on the next tournaments,” said Ferrer. .
“It’ll be like a final, it’s the kind of thing you dream about,” said France captain Guy Forget.
France maintained their 72-year domination of Germany when they wrapped up a 4-1 win in Toulon, leaving the French eager to face Spain on home ground..
“Facing the defending champions with Nadal, Verdasco, Ferrer, Lopez…”
France will have the advantage of playing the tie at home and will - not surprisingly - opt for a hard court rather than the clay courts favoured by the Spanish. We have started to talk about it and I hope that the boys will be in peak form.
Croatia wrapped-up a 5-0 win over Ecuador in their first round tie.
“You play tennis for moments like this, at home, in front of your own fans and against a very strong team,” said Forget.
Rohan Bopanna won the dead rubber, beating Teimuraz Gabashvili 7-6 (7-5), 6-4, to ensure a final scoreline of 3-2, after veteran doubles pairing Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi won Saturday’s doubles to keep India in the tie.
In Moscow, Mikhail Youzhny eased Russia into the last eight when he beat Somdev Devvarman 6-2, 6-1, 6-3 to give his side a 3-1 lead over India.
“It was much easier for me in the first two sets.
“It wasn’t as easy as the scoreline may suggest,” Youzhny said.”
David Nalbandian was Argentina’s match-winner in Stockholm when he defeated Andreas Vinciguerra 7-5, 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 in the deciding rubber after Robin Soderling had seen off Leonardo Mayer 7-5, 7-6 (7-5), 7-5 to pull Sweden level. I won many points with drop shots as he (Devvarman) was not running well. Chile were 2-0 ahead after the opening singles. Chile were 2-0 ahead after the opening singles.
-

.France set-up a potential Davis Cup quarter-final blockbuster against defending champion Spain after extending its 72-year stranglehold over Germany overnight.
France cruised past Germany in their World Group first-round tie when Michael Llodra and Julien Benneteau defeated Philipp Kohlschreiber and Christopher Kas 6-1, 6-4, 1-6, 7-5 to take an unassailable 3-0 lead in Toulon.
France will face Spain in the last eight if the champions get past Switzerland in Logrono.
“The attitude was very good and the result was ideal,” said France skipper Guy Forget.
Spain, playing without the injured Rafael Nadal, opened a 2-1 lead in its tie when Marcel Granollers and Tommy Robredo defeated Yves Allegro and Stanislas Wawrinka 7-6 (10-8), 6-2, 4-6, 6-4. It will be another high level.
“We know what awaits us in the next round.”
Croatia, the 2005 champions, saw off Ecuador 3-0 and will face either bitter rivals Serbia or 32-time champions USA for a place in the semi-finals.
“It wasn’t one-way traffic in the doubles, it was as tough as we expected it to be and we are overjoyed to have secured a berth in the last eight,” said Cilic.
Marin Cilic and Ivo Karlovic coasted to a 7-6 (7-3), 6-3, 7-5 win over Nicolas Lapentti and Giovanni Lapentti in Saturday’s doubles to give Croatia an unassailable 3-0 lead.
Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi kept India’s hopes of advancing alive beating Igor Kunitsyn and Teimuraz Gabashvili in straight sets in Moscow.
In Belgrade, Bob Bryan and John Isner kept the US in their tie when they defeated Nenad Zimonjic and Janko Tipsarevic 7-6 (10-8), 5-7, 7-6 (10-8), 6-3 to leave Serbia 2-1 in front going into the final day.
The winner of the tie faces either Sweden or Argentina in the last eight.
The Indian doubles specialists, who won 14 grand slam titles during their career, outclassed the Russian duo 6-3, 6-2, 6-2 to make the tie score 2-1 to Russia ahead of Sunday’s reverse singles.
The Argentines took a 2-1 lead in Stockholm when David Nalbandian partnered Horacio Zeballos to a 6-2, 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (7-5) victory over Robert Lindstedt and Robin Soderling. .
The Czechs, runners-up in 2009, will face the winners of the delayed Chile-Israel encounter in the quarter-finals, where they would be away to Chile or home to Israel.
Tomas Berdych and Radek Stepanek gave the Czech Republic a 3-0 victory over Belgium in Bree, beating Steve Darcis and Olivier Rochus 7-6 (7-0), 6-0, 6-3.
-

.
Nicolas Massu gave the Chileans a 1-0 lead Saturday after winning the opening singles against Dudi Sela 4-6, 6-2, 6-2, 6-4

.Spain’s David Ferrer dispatched Marco Chiudinelli in straight sets to level the depleted champions’ Davis Cup first-round tie against Switzerland at 1-1 in Logrono overnight.
Seven of the eight World Group matches were under way around Europe, with the start of Chile’s tie at home to Israel delayed to Saturday (local time) as a result of the disruption caused by last weekend’s deadly earthquake.
Russia carved out a 2-0 advantage over visiting India, victories for Gael Monfils and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga put France 2-0 up at home to Germany, and last year’s finalists Czech Republic opened up a 2-0 lead in Belgium. Spain also won the title in 2000, 2004 and 2008.
The Swiss are bidding to become the first team to beat the Spanish in 19 home ties stretching back to a defeat by Brazil in 1999.
Ferrer, ranked 16th in the world, is the only survivor from last year’s Cup-winning team, with Rafael Nadal (3), Fernando Verdasco (12) and Juan Carlos Ferrero (14) hit by injuries.
Stanislas Wawrinka, leading the Swiss in the absence of world number one Roger Federer, drew first blood at the Plaza de Toros de Ribera bullring when he twice battled back from a set down to beat Nicolas Almagro 3-6, 6-4, 3-6, 7-5, 6-3.
Backed by the noisy, red and yellow-clad home support, he fought off stiff resistance from the powerful, 56th-ranked Chiudinelli in the second set on the clay before completing a 6-2, 7-6, 6-1 victory.
Real fighter
France’s Monfils earned his first Davis Cup point in Toulon when he fought past tenacious German Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-1, 6-4, 7-6 before Tsonga took four sets to beat Benjamin Becker.
The three-day, best-of-five tie is finely balanced ahead of Saturday’s doubles, when home pair Tommy Robredo and Marcel Granollers play Wawrinka, who won the Olympic doubles gold in Beijing with Federer, and Yves Allegro.
“It was one of my best matches of the season,” he added.
“To win that game was a matter of honour because Kohlschreiber is a real fighter,” Monfils said.”
Elsewhere, Sweden’s Robin Soderling beat Eduardo Schwank 6-1, 7-6, 7-5 in the opening singles in Stockholm to put the hosts ahead against Argentina.
“I’m very happy with the way I moved on the court and the way I controlled the match and, of course, very happy to bring the point for France for the first time.
Ivo Karlovic came through in five sets to give Croatia the advantage over Ecuador in Varazdin and Serbia moved 1-0 ahead against the United States in Belgrade thanks to Viktor Troicki’s hard-fought 7-6, 6-7, 7-5, 6-4 victory over John Isner.
Ivo Karlovic came through in five sets to give Croatia the advantage over Ecuador in Varazdin and Serbia moved 1-0 ahead against the United States in Belgrade thanks to Viktor Troicki’s hard-fought 7-6, 6-7, 7-5, 6-4 victory over John Isner.
-

.
Kunitsyn, drafted in after the injured Igor Andreev pulled out, said: “It was a surprise for me and there is no way you can prepare yourself with just an hour to go before your match”

.France captain Thierry Henry said he understood why fans were jeering him after persistent booing from the home crowd during the 2-0 loss to Spain in a World Cup warmup match at the Stade de France on Wednesday.
France, in its first game since Henry’s infamous handball against Ireland in a World Cup play-off in the same stadium last November, was outclassed by the European champions and the 32-year-old captain was the main focus of French fans’ wrath even before Spain opened the scoring.
“I understand people who were eager for us to play well against Spain and, when you don’t play well, you have to expect being jeered at.
“It’s the same story as usual and it’s not the first time I’ve experienced that kind of situation at the Stade de France,” he said.
“I absolutely had no pace. I don’t know if I deserved that but there is nothing I can do.
Coach Raymond Domenech, who had been a firm supporter of France’s all-time topscorer until Wednesday night, expressed his concern at Henry’s present state. .
“[His situation] raises some questions but we’ve not reached the point yet when it has become alarming.
“Obviously, everybody knows Titi has performed better in the past and it’s obvious that it is becoming a problem for him to play high level games such as this one while he’s got less playing time [at Barcelona],” Domenech, the only man French fans booed more than Henry, said.”
-

.Files containing reported sightings of missing British girl Madeleine McCann and held by Portuguese police should be handed to investigators still searching for her, a family spokesperson says.
Several British newspapers are reporting that thousands of previously unseen pages of information passed to police after the case was closed had been released to them after they applied to a Portuguese court.
“Kate and Gerry [McCann] have made it clear that they were shocked to see the lack of follow-up work done by the Portuguese police since the investigation was shelved,” he said.
Family spokesperson Clarence Mitchell says the girl’s parents are very disappointed.”
The Portuguese are no longer investigating the case, but other investigators acting on the couple’s behalf are still examining for the missing girl and appealing to the public for information.
“All the information in these files must go to the private investigators as they are the only people still examining for Madeleine.
Other reported sightings crop up in Portugal, Spain, France and the United States.
Fresh leads reported by the newspapers include security camera footage in New Zealand showing a girl resembling Madeleine being led into a supermarket by a man. .
Madeleine went missing from a holiday apartment in the Algarve resort of Praia da Luz on May 3, 2007, a few days before her fourth birthday, as her parents and their friends dined at a nearby restaurant.
-

.Real Madrid has become the first team in any sport to post revenues in excess of 400 million euros ($602 million) in a single year, according to an annual survey of the richest soccer clubs by accountancy firm Deloitte.
In its survey released today, Deloitte said the figure of 401.4 million euros had been helped by high broadcast revenue.
European and Spanish champion Barcelona overtook Manchester United, which was hit by the weak pound, into second position.
Real topped the “Football Money League” report, which ranks the 20 biggest clubs by revenue, for the fifth consecutive year. The club’s revenue rose by 57 million euros to 366 million euros.
Barcelona posted the largest absolute increase in the Deloitte report, from the 2008-09 season.
“Real Madrid and FC Barcelona have created a clear revenue gap between themselves and their European competitors, and look set to contest the top two positions in the Money League for the foreseeable future, particularly if the pound doesn’t strengthen against the euro,” Alan Switzer, director in the Sports Business Group at Deloitte, said in a statement.
The combined revenue growth for the 20 clubs slowed compared with previous years to over 3.
Top clubs weathered the worst economic crisis in decades thanks to their loyal fan bases and large broadcast audiences, according to the report.8 billion).9 billion euros ($5.
The top 20 was little changed from last year, with Werder Bremen and Manchester City replacing VfB Stuttgart and Turkish club Fenerbahce.
“However, it will not be until 2009-10, the season currently in progress, before we see the full impact on clubs’ revenues,” said Paul Rawnsley, director in the Sports Business Group at Deloitte.
The list was again dominated by European clubs, with seven English clubs, four from Italy, and two each from France and Spain.
The list was again dominated by European clubs, with seven English clubs, four from Italy, and two each from France and Spain. (1) Real Madrid (ESP) 341.
Rankings (position, last year’s position, club, country, revenue in millions of pounds, revenue in million of euros):
1.4
2.9, 401.7, 365. (3) FC Barcelona (ESP) 311. (2) Manchester United (ENG) 278.93.0 4.5, 327.6, 289.6, 289.5 5. (6) Arsenal (ENG) 224.0, 263.06. (5) Chelsea (ENG) 206.4, 242.3 7. (8) Liverpool (ENG) 184.8, 217.0 8. (11) Juventus (ITA) 173. .29. (10) Inter Milan (ITA) 167.4, 196.510. (7) AC Milan (ITA) 167.4, 196.511. (15) Hamburg SV (GER) 124.9, 146.712. (9) AS Roma (ITA) 124.7, 146.413. (12) Lyon (FRA) 118.9, 139.614. (16) Marseille (FRA) 113.5, 133.215. (14) Tottenham Hotspur (ENG) 113.0, 132.716. (13) Schalke 04 (GER) 106.0, 124.517. (n/a) Werder Bremen (GER) 97.7, 114.718. (20) Borussia Dortmund (GER) 88.1, 103.519. (n/a) Manchester City (ENG) 87.0, 102.220. (17) Newcastle United (ENG) 86.0, 101.0 -

.Australian filmmaker George Miller is to be honoured with a prestigious French award for his contribution to cinema.
Miller will join a select group of foreigners when he receives the Order of Arts and Letters at a ceremony at a French Film Festival gala later today in Sydney.
Mr Garnier says Miller will be presented with the award for “his life achievement as director and what he gave to cinema in Australia and around the world. .
He went on to direct Witches Of Eastwick (1986), Lorenzo’s Oil (1992) and Babe: Pig In The City (1998).”
Miller gave up a career as a doctor to concentrate on film, directing and co-writing 1979’s Mad Max starring Mel Gibson.
Miller is currently working on a 3D sequel to Happy Feet, as well as Mad Max 4.
In 2007, he won an Oscar for the animated penguin movie Happy Feet.
- ABC/AFP

.A pay telephone line for French Roman Catholics to confess their sins has drawn criticism from bishops.
“For advice on confessing, press one. To listen to some confessions, press three,” says a soothing male voice, welcoming the caller to “Le Fil du Seigneur”, or “The Line of the Lord” service. To confess, press two.34 euros a minute.
“In case of serious or mortal sins - that is, sins that have cut you off from Christ our Lord, it is indispensable to confide in a priest,” warns the service, which charges 0.”
The service was set up this month at the beginning of the Christian fasting period of Lent by a group of Catholics working for AABAS, a small Paris company that provides telephone messaging services, its creator told AFP.
The Conference of French Bishops warn in a statement that the line has “no approval from the Catholic Church in France.
She asked for her second name not be cited because she had received threats about the service.
The creator, known only as Camille, says it does not offer absolution for sins, which only a priest can provide.
It is believed the line received about 300 calls in its first week.
“The idea is to confess sins which are not capital sins, but minor sins, directly to God,” she said.
The bishops say telephone services have a role to play in lending an ear to the aged, isolated or those with disabilities, but “it is unacceptable to allow confusion over the notion of confession”.
Callers do not talk to a person but are offered an “atmosphere of piety and reflection,” where they can listen to prayers, music and other people’s confessions and can opt to record their own.”
Camille says part of the money received for the calls goes to charity. .
-

.A storm that killed at least 47 people in France on the weekend has been officially declared a national disaster.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy has visited the storm-battered Atlantic coast, where most of the storm’s victims drowned. . Others were killed by falling buildings or trees.
France’s Prime Minister Francois Fillon declared the storm a national disaster and said money would be allocated to help communities rebuild.
The Atlantic storm hit the western coasts of France, Portugal and Spain on Sunday, then swept towards Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands.

.
He said the focus would now turn to protecting those left homeless and those threatened by rising waters