IN BRIEF

TENNIS

Sharapova tumbles to Shuai in China Open

Maria Sharapova was eliminated from the China Open on Wednesday, losing to Peng Shuai of China 6-2, 6-4 in Beijing

Svetlana Kuznetsova moved into the quarterfinals by defeating Alona Bondarenko of Ukraine, 6-3, 4-6, 6-0.

Peng broke Sharapova twice in the first set and again in the sixth game of the second. Sharapova saved two match points at 5-4 before losing to the 53rd-ranked player.

The former top-ranked Russian appeared to show the strain of her three-set win over Victoria Azarenka the night before.

Nikolay Davydenko of Russia advanced in the men's field, beating Philipp Kohlschreiber, 6-1, 6-0. Davydenko will face Croatian Marin Cilic, who defeated Julien Benneteau of France, 6-2, 2-6, 6-0.

Second-seeded Novak Djokovic trounced fellow Serb Viktor Troicki, 6-3, 6-0.

Also: The Davis Cup final between Spain and the Czech Republic in December will be played in either Valencia or Barcelona.

Spain's tennis federation said the ITF had rejected bids by Tenerife and Malaga to host the best-of-5 series from Dec. 4 to 6 because they were open-air venues. Malaga's stadium also fell under the 12,000-seating capacity minimum.

HOCKEY

Wranglers to host Reign in exhibition

The Wranglers will open their abbreviated preseason with a home game tonight against the Ontario Reign.

Las Vegas, in its first season under first-year coach Ryan Mougenel, will face Ontario at 7:05 p.m. at the Orleans Arena. The Wranglers then will travel to Ontario for a Friday game to wrap up the preseason.

The Wranglers will open the regular season Oct. 16 at home against the Utah Grizzlies.

Also: The NHL fined the Toronto Maple Leafs an undisclosed amount after ruling that coach Ron Wilson was guilty of tampering when he expressed interest in Vancouver Canucks forwards Henrik and Daniel Sedin before they reached free agency.

NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly announced the penalty in a news release. Wilson made reference to the Canucks twins during an interview when they were still under contract with the Canucks. Both players reached new deals to stay with Vancouver.

A separate charge by the Canucks against the Maple Leafs was dismissed by the NHL.

Forward Milan Lucic signed a three-year contract extension with the Boston Bruins, passing on the chance to become a restricted free agent next summer.

The son of NHL great Patrick Roy pleaded guilty to assault in Saguenay, Quebec, for an on-ice beating that sparked a nationwide debate about violence in hockey.

In addition to the guilty plea, Jonathan Roy offered a $5,000 check to charity.

The Hall of Famer was coaching behind the bench when his son, a goalie with the Quebec Remparts, skated across the rink during a junior game in March 2008 to pummel an opposing goalie.

MISCELLANEOUS

FIFA official seeks cap on runaway salaries

FIFA vice president Jack Warner called for the introduction of a salary cap in soccer and the widespread introduction of technology.

At a conference in London, the CONCACAF president "plotted a new future" for soccer and railed against "super clubs" amassing large debts.

"A salary cap should be introduced to allow for a more level playing field among clubs," Warner said. "Otherwise, smaller clubs will never be able to compete with high-spending ones. Never."

Also: The New York Racing Association said four days will be added to the season at Saratoga Race Course next year, bumping the 142nd meeting to 40 days.

UCLA basketball player James Keefe will miss four to six weeks after injuring his left shoulder. He averaged 3.0 points and 3.4 rebounds last season.