IS CHATTING HOOPS ALL DAY
The sixth-seeded Davydenko broke decisively in the sixth game of the second set to earn his 18th career title. His flat groundstrokes and angled winners denied the Spaniard a sixth title for this year and his first since the Rome Masters in May.
"I think I was a little bit lucky, but mostly I was playing very well today. I did a good job in 3 weeks in Asia," said Davydenko, who won in Kuala Lumpur 2 weeks ago.
Nadal returned last week after a month out due to a pulled stomach muscle at the U.S. Open. He looked rusty, having advanced twice when his opponents retired.
Nadal had reached the semifinals at Beijing last week on his return to the tour. The winner of six Grand Slam tournament titles also was sidelined after the French Open for 2 months with tendinitis in both knees.
In another tournament:
* Third-seeded Samantha Stosur earned her first WTA singles title with a 7-5, 6-1 win over Francesca Schiavone at the Japan Women's Open in Osaka.
* Martin Laird won the Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open in Las Vegas for his first PGA Tour title, beating George McNeill with a birdie on the third hole of a playoff.
* John Cook won his third career Champions Tour title and first of the season, closing with a 4-under 68 to hold off Jay Haas and Bob Tway by two strokes in the Administaff Small Business Classic in The Woodlands, Texas.
* Lee Westwood ended a 2-year drought with a two-shot victory over Francesco Molinari at the Portugal Masters in Vilamoura.
* Jenson Button clinched his first Formula One title on Saturday by capitalizing on his rivals' miscues to finish fifth in a Brazilian Grand Prix in Sao Paulo won by Mark Webber. The fifth-place finish gave Button an insurmountable lead in the drivers' standings ahead of the season-ending race on Nov. 1.
* Santa Clara center Scott Thompson will miss the basketball season because of a heart condition. It's unclear whether his career might be over.
* China capped off the world gymnastics championships in London with its sixth gold medal, as Zou Kai won the high bar.
* Jockey Kyle Kaenel has retired because of extensive injuries the 21-year-old rider sustained in an accident. Kaenel said he was quitting after 5 years because he broke his right collarbone and shoulder blade and pinched a nerve in his back in a spill at Fairplex Park in Pomona, Calif., on Sept. 27.
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