Off the wire

LITTLE ROCK — TENNIS Djokovic beats Federer

Novak Djokovic defeated Roger Federer for the secondtime in a month, a 6-3, 6-3 victory Saturday for his third consecutive Dubai (United Arab Emirates) Championships title. Djokovic extended his unbeaten streak in 2011 to 12 matches with his 20th title. Thethird-ranked Serb beat Federer in the semifinals on his way to winning the Australian Open. Federer played by far his worst match of the tournament. He squandered a 3-1 lead in the second set, losing the last five games. Federer didn’t lose a set in the four matches before he faced Djokovic and had a 14-1 record this year. He compared this defeat to the thrashing he gave Nikolay Davydenko to win the Qatar Open in January. Federer leads Djokovic 13-8 for his career, but he has lost to the Serb at the past two Grand Slam tournaments, and now in Dubai. Federer will keep his No. 2 ranking ahead of Djokovic.

Vera Zvonareva defeated topranked Caroline Wozniacki 6-4, 6-4 to win the Qatar Ladies Open final in Doha. The third-ranked Russian earned her 11th career WTA title and first since a victory in Pattaya City a year ago. Wozniacki was hoping to add the Doha title to the one she won in Dubai last week. But the Dane lost her serve in the first game, and lost momentum early. Zvonareva rallied from 0-40 down in the eighth game and eventually served out the set. The second set followed a similar pattern with Wozniacki breaking in the second game, only to see Zvonareva break back in the next. After eight deuces in the seventh game, Zvonareva made the decisive break with a forehand winner. Woznaicki hit wide to end the match, dropping her record in finals to 13-7. Zvonareva evened her record against Wozniacki to 4-4 in their sixth meeting in 10 months.

FOOTBALL RB Ealey reinstated

Georgia running back Washaun Ealey has been reinstated to the team, less than three weeks after he was suspended for disciplinary reasons. Coach Mark Richt said Ealey, who led the team last season with 811 yards rushing and 11 touchdowns, will rejoin team activities Monday. Ealey was suspended Feb. 8, fueling speculation that he was on the verge of transferring. Richt didn’t give a specific reason for the punishment, but left the door open for Ealey’s return. ESPN.com reported that he failed to show up for disciplinary running. This wasn’t the first time Ealey had been in the coach’s doghouse. The sophomore was suspended for the 2010 season opener after his arrest for driving with a suspended license and leaving the scene of an accident. Despite missing the game, he was the top rusher on a team that finished 6-7 for Richt’s first losing season in 10 years at Georgia. Georgia’s other top tailback, Caleb King, missed the Liberty Bowl with academicissues and was suspended for two games last season for failing to appear in court to deal with a speeding ticket. Ealey and King will get competition this season from one of Georgia’s top signees last week, Isaiah Crowell of Carver High in Columbus, Ga. Richt said he expects Crowell to contribute heavily as a freshman, starting with the season opener against Boise State in the Georgia Dome.

St. Louis Rams scout Luke Driscoll has been accused of public intoxication and public indecency after urinating on an Indianapolis building. The 33-year-old Driscoll was arrested early Friday and released on his own recognizance. According to a police report, Driscoll was urinating on a downtown building when two police officers approached, one of them a woman. A spokesman for the Indianapolis police said Driscoll then exposedhimself to one of the officers. The Rams website says Driscoll joined the team’s scouting department in 2000. Driscoll graduated from Hastings College in Nebraska.

Ricky Bell, an NFL defensive back who went on to play in theCFL and won a Grey Cup with Calgary in 2001, has died. He was 36. He died Feb. 17 in Columbia, S.C., although no cause was given, Leevy’s Funeral Home in Columbia said. Bell’s mother, Florence Bell, and girlfriend, Tanisha Means, would not comment on the cause to The Canadian Press. Bell was a captain at North Carolina State and played three seasons in the NFL with Jacksonville and Chicago. He spent one season in NFL Europe and another in the Xtreme Football League before joining the CFL in 2001. In Canada, he played for Calgary, Ottawa, Winnipeg and Montreal before leaving the league in 2007. His career ended in 2008 with the Arena Football League’s Georgia Force. After Bell retired from football, he returned to South Carolina and went into real estate.BASKETBALL Pistons short-handed

After using only six players against the Philadelphia 76ers on Friday after several others missed the start of a shoot-around, the Detroit Pistons played short-handed again Saturday. Coach John Kuester said Tracy McGrady was sick and Tayshaun Prince had a back problem and wasn’t available for Saturday night’s game against Utah. Ben Wallace also missed the game following the death of his brother earlier in the day. Seven Pistons missed at least part of a shootaround Friday before the team’s loss at Philadelphia, and none of them played against the 76ers.

HOCKEY Capitals claim Sturm

The Washington Capitals have claimed forward Marco Sturm off waivers from the Los Angeles Kings. The 32-year-old Sturm, who can become an unrestricted free agent July 1, played in only 17 games with Los Angeles after he was acquired from Boston on Dec. 11. The Capitals will be Sturm’s fourth team in 13 NHL seasons. Because Sturm is earning $3.5 million this season, Los Angeles expected the veteran forward to clear waivers Saturday. The Kings placed him on waivers to create a roster spot in case theywanted to pick up another player before Monday’s NHL trade deadline. He had four goals and five assists in 17 games for the Kings. Sturm missed 13 games because of tendinitis in his left knee, before returning to the lineup Wednesday.

The Columbus Blue Jackets have claimed defenseman Craig Rivet off waivers from the Buffalo Sabres. General Manager Scott Howson announced the move Saturday. Rivet, 36, is expected to join the club in time for today’s game at Nashville. Rivet has 49 goals and 187 assists with 1,148 penalty minutes in 909 career games with the Montreal Canadiens, San Jose Sharks and Sabres. This year, he has 1 goal, 2 assists and 12 penalty minutes in 23 games.

SOCCER Cole shoots intern

Chelsea defender Ashley Cole accidentally shot a club intern with an air gun at the team’s training ground, a British newspaper reported Sunday. The England international was playing around with a .22 air gun he had brought into the dressing room last Sunday and hadn’t realized it was loaded, according to a report on the News of the World website. The Sunday tabloid said sports sciences student Tom Cowan, who is on a one-year work placement at Chelsea, was hit in the side by a lead pellet at the training ground in the Surrey town of Cobham, south of London.Chelsea’s medical staff reportedly treated the bleeding wound, and the 21-year-old Cowan did not require hospital treatment. The type of air gun involved in the incident doesn’t require a license in Britain and Surrey Police didn’t attend the scene. But the police said early Sunday that it will study print editions of the newspaper before deciding whether to launch an investigation. The 30-year-old defender made his 87th appearance for the English national team in last month’s friendly against Denmark. Chelsea has endured a tough season on the field and is fifth in the standings going into Tuesday’s match against Premier League leader Manchester United.