IN BRIEF (Page 24)
Snooker
Higgins takes commanding 12-4 final lead
SHEFFIELD, England: Scotland's John Higgins dominated the second session of the world snooker championship final on Sunday, losing only one of the eight frames, to take a 12-4 lead over Englishman Mark Selby.
Higgins, who won the title in 1998, had been 5-3 ahead at the end of the opening session.
The evening belonged to Higgins as qualifier Selby struggled to repeat the form which saw him beat Shaun Murphy in the semi-finals.
Higgins compiled two century breaks and four half-centuries in a superb display of match-play snooker.
Selby will create a record if he does come back to win the title as he faces the largest overnight deficit in a world final.
The best-of-35-frames match, which is worth $438,400 to the winner, due to end late yesterday.
Motor racing
Johnson pulls away for fourth NASCAR win
NEW YORK: Jimmie Johnson won his fourth NASCAR race of the season with victory at Richmond, Virginia, on Sunday.
Johnson pulled away from teammate Kyle Busch for the win. Denny Hamlin finished third with points leader Jeff Gordon fourth. All drove Chevrolets.
Busch had the lead on a restart at lap 380 of the 400-lap race, but Johnson passed him two laps later and drove to his first victory at the Richmond track.
"I knew Kyle was going to be strong on a short run. But on a long run I felt our car was a little better," Johnson said.
Former Formula One driver Juan Pablo Montoya finished 26th.
Soccer
Ascoli and Messina go down, Milan held at home
MILAN: Ascoli and Messina were relegated from Serie A after defeats on Sunday while Champions League finalists AC Milan could only draw 0-0 at home to Fiorentina.
Bottom side Ascoli, on 21 points, went down with three games remaining after losing 1-0 at fellow strugglers Torino.
Messina will also play in Serie B next season after Hernan Crespo's close-range finish gave recently-crowned champions Inter Milan a 1-0 away victory.
Palermo's 2-1 home defeat by AS Roma meant Milan could have virtually guaranteed a Champions League berth for next season if Kaka's first-half penalty had not hit the post.
Milan made several changes from the side that won Wednesday's Champions League semifinal against Manchester United and were without the injured Ronaldo.
Werder beat Hertha to stay in German title race
BERLIN: Markus Rosenberg scored a hat-trick to give Werder Bremen a 4-1 win at Hertha Berlin on Sunday, keeping the Bundesliga's three-way title race finely poised with two games left to play.
Swedish forward Rosenberg grabbed the first two and Diego added the third before Hertha, who were reduced to 10 men in the 36th minute when Josip Simunic was sent off, got one back through Gilberto just past the hour mark.
Rosenberg, a $5.44 million signing from Ajax Amsterdam in January, completed his hat-trick eight minutes from time.
With 32 games gone, Schalke 04 lead the standings on 65 points after a 1-0 win at home to Nuremberg on Saturday. VfB Stuttgart are second, a point behind them, following their 2-0 success at home to Mainz.
Werder's victory on Sunday keeps them in third on 63 points.
Bayer Leverkusen's chances of making the UEFA Cup next season took a knock when they lost 2-1 at home to Arminia Bielefeld in Sunday's other game.
(China Daily 05/08/2007 page24)
