Defending Australian Open champion Maria Sharapova has withdrawn from a Hong Kong exhibition tournament because she is still recovering from a shoulder injury just weeks ahead of the first Grand Slam of the year. The three-time Grand Slam winner started playing tennis again just over two weeks ago and isn't in proper condition, organizers of the Jan.

Two-time Grand Slam champion Mary Pierce isn't ready to hang up her racket just yet. Despite being sidelined by a knee injury since 2006, the Frenchwoman told sports daily L'Equipe that she'd like to play again at the French Open. "I care about Roland Garros. If I could stand in center court for one match, that would already be a big victory," she said.

Former Wimbledon semifinalist Jelena Dokic won a wild-card spot at next month's Australian Open by beating Monica Wejnert 6-7 (3), 7-5, 6-3 in a playoff on Sunday. The 25-year-old Dokic, a former No. 4 in 2002, fell behind 3-0 in the opening set but recovered for the win in a playoff organized by Tennis Australia to allocate the spots for local players.

Former French Open champion Albert Costa was named Spain's Davis Cup captain on Thursday, a month after the team beat Argentina for the 2008 title. The 33-year-old Costa replaces Emilio Sanchez Vicario, who stepped down after leading Spain to its third Davis Cup title with a 3-1 win over Argentina in Mar del Plata.

Lindsay Davenport is pulling out of the Australian Open because she is pregnant with her second child. The three-time Grand Slam singles champion and former No. 1-ranked woman gave birth to a son, Jagger, in June 2007. Davenport then returned to the tour, although she hasn't played since the U.S. Open in August of this year.

The city of Birmingham, Ala., will host the 2009 first-round Davis Cup matches between the United States and Roger Federer-led Switzerland on March 6-8. The Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex Arena is expected to seat more than 17,000 for the best-of-five series. It's the first time a Davis Cup match will be played in Alabama.

Top-ranked Rafael Nadal and Jelena Jankovic were honored Wednesday as the International Tennis Federation's world champions of 2008. Nadal, who overtook Roger Federer at the top of the men's rankings shortly after beating the Swiss star in the Wimbledon final, is the first Spanish man to receive the honor.

The first match under the new retractable roof of Wimbledon's Centre Court will be played in May, almost two months before the Grand Slam tournament.

The first match under the new retractable roof of Wimbledon's Centre Court will be played in May, almost two months before the Grand Slam tournament. Wimbledon will hold an event May 17 "to test the new roof and air conditioning system," the All England Club said Tuesday in a statement. The sliding roof will help alleviate Wimbledon's perennial rain delays.

Three-time Grand Slam-winner Lindsay Davenport has signaled a return to the WTA Tour by entering the Australian Open.