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MADRID, Spain -- Canadas Milos Raonic won his opening match at the Madrid Open on Tuesday, defeating Jeremy Chardy of France 6-3, 6-3 in just over an hour. Frank Clark Jersey . Raonic, the No. 8 seed from Thornhill, Ont., fired 11 aces and did not have a double-fault as he comfortably advanced to the third round at the Masters Series event. Also Tuesday, Roger Federer pulled out of the tournament to spend more time with his family as his wife awaits the birth of another child. The fourth-seeded Swiss player is the second big name to withdraw after Novak Djokovic pulled out because of a wrist injury. Polands Lukasc Kubot takes Federers place to face Gilles Simon of France. David Ferrer struggled through Madrids high altitude and a bout of nerves to pull out a 7-6 (6), 5-7, 6-3 victory over Spanish countryman Albert Ramos. Ferrer saved four set points as he won five straight points to take the first set tiebreak, clinching the lead with a crosscourt forehand smash. After being broken to trail 6-5 in the second set, Ferrer reeled off four straight errors for his 115th-ranked opponent to even it before eventually pulling through in just under three hours. But it wasnt without repeated scenes of frustration when he mumbled to himself and his entourage nearby. "You say things when youre nervous in the match that you dont have a feel for. You can write a book about a match," said Ferrer about his motivation, before referring to thinner air and its effect on the ball. "The first day is not easy. You miss more, but thats all." Fabio Fogninis recent struggles on Spanish clay continued as the 13th-seeded Italian lost 7-5, 4-6, 6-3 to Ukraines Alexandr Dolgopolov. Fognini failed to get out of the second round at Barcelona last month. Nicolas Almagro will play Andy Murray next after finally dispensing with Andrey Golubev of Kazakhstan, 6-3, 6-7 (9), 7-6 (4) with his 11th match point. Other second-round winners included Ernests Gulbis of Latvia, South Africas Kevin Anderson, Igor Sijsling of the Netherlands, and Juan Monaco of Argentina -- who goes on to play defending champion Rafael Nadal on Wednesday. In womens play, Maria Sharapova avoided an early exit by rallying to beat Christina McHale to reach the third round. Trailing 4-1 in the final set, Sharapova steadied her erratic service game and took command again to beat the 56th-ranked American 6-1, 4-6, 6-4 on clay at the Magic Box tennis centre. The ninth-ranked Russian looked to be cruising before McHale broke late in the second set to tie the match and then took her commanding lead in the final set after breaking Sharapova. However, Sharapova didnt surrender a point after that as McHale netted to be broken to see her advantage dip to 4-3, and Sharapova eventually fired an ace down the middle to eliminate McHale for the second year running. "After a really good start (in Madrid) I didnt keep that level. I think I had a bit of a letdown," said 2013 finalist Sharapova, who is coming off a tournament victory in Stuttgart. Earlier, Li Na continued her recent dominance of Zheng Jie by easing into the third round 6-2, 6-3 for her fourth straight victory against her fellow Chinese player. Zheng hasnt won a set from the second-ranked Li since her last victory in 2006. Lucie Safarova of the Czech Republic also advanced with a 6-1, 6-2 win over Magdalena Rybarikova of Slovakia, while American Sloane Stephens was also a winner. Ed Budde Jersey . Henry, who missed three games with a knee injury, was charged with a handball in the penalty area in the 82nd minute as he went to block a strike from Patrick Mullins. On the ensuing penalty kick, Lee Nguyen picked up his fourth goal of the season, giving the Revolution a 2-1 win Saturday afternoon. Armani Watts Jersey . -- Joe Thornton scored the tiebreaking goal with 5:39 left in regulation to help the San Jose Sharks overcome a two-goal deficit to beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 5-3 on Thursday night. http://www.customchiefsjersey.com/custom-brian-waters-jersey-large-246n.html .com) - The Carolina Hurricanes placed defenseman John-Michael Liles on injured reserve Tuesday.BALTIMORE -- The three candidates in Major League Baseballs first contested election for a new commissioner in 46 years made presentations to the 30 teams Wednesday, a day ahead of the vote. MLB Chief Operating Officer Rob Manfred, Boston Red Sox Chairman Tom Werner and MLB Executive Vice-President of Business Tim Brosnan addressed team executives at a hotel a few blocks from Camden Yards in attempts to gain the 23 votes needed to replace Bud Selig in January. They spoke for about an hour apiece, including PowerPoint presentations, and the owners attended an evening reception at the B&O Warehouse behind the ballparks right-field wall. The executives will split into three groups of 10 for question-and-answer sessions Thursday before the vote, which will take place by secret written ballot. A three-quarters majority is needed for election. "That certainly is the goal," New York Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner said. "Thats why were all here." Manfred was estimated to have the support of 20-21 teams headed into the meetings, Werner of about six and Brosnan one: the Cincinnati Reds. There is no limit to the number of ballots, and it remained possible no one would gain election. "I wouldnt even guess," Los Angeles Angels owner Arte Moreno said. Werner is supported by Chicago White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf and Moreno. Other teams have said Reinsdorf wants a commissioner who will take a harsher stance in labour negotiations for the deal to replace the collective bargaining agreement that expires after the 2016 season. "I havent been counting votes," Reinsdorf said. "I dont know where anybody stands." Selig, 80, has ruled baseball since September 1992, first as chairman of baseballs executive council and since July 1998 as commissioner. The second-longest-serving head of baseball behind Kenesaw Mountain Landis (1920-44), Selig announced last fall that he plans to retire in January 2015. The trio of candidates was picked by a seven-man succession committee chaired by St. Louis Cardinals chairman Bill DeWitt Jr. Manfred, 55, has been involved in baseball since 1987, starting as a lawyer with Morgan, Lewis & Bockius who assisted in collective bargaining. He became MLBs executive vice-president for labour relations and human resources in 1998, received an expanded role of executive vice-president of economics and league affairs in 2012 and last September was promoted to chief operating officer. He helped lead negotiations for baaseballs last three labour contracts with players and the joint drug agreement that was instituted in 2002 and has been repeatedly strengthened. Anthony Hitchens Jersey. Werner, 64, was the controlling owner of the San Diego Padres from 1990-94, triggering fan criticism for the payroll-paring departures of Fred McGriff, Gary Sheffield, Tony Fernandez, Randy Myers and Benito Santiago. He has been part of the Red Sox ownership group since 2002, a period that included three World Series titles. While working at ABC, he helped develop Robin Williams "Mork & Mindy" and later was executive producer of "The Cosby Show" and "Roseanne" at The Carsey-Werner Co., which he ran with Marcy Carsey. Brosnan, 56, was hired by MLB as vice-president of international business affairs in 1991, became chief operating officer of Major League Baseball International in 1994 and senior vice-president of domestic and international properties in 1998. He has held his current role since 2000. A lawyer like Manfred, he has been a key figure in the negotiations of MLBs national broadcasting contracts. MLBs last contested election for commissioner was after Spike Eckert was fired in December 1968. With the requirement then a three-quarters majority in both the American and National leagues, teams split between San Francisco Giants vice-president Chub Feeney and Yankees president Michael Burke and failed to elect anyone during 19 ballots during a meeting on Dec. 20-21 that ended at 5:05 a.m. Bowie Kuhn, a partner at the law firm Willkie Farr & Gallagher and counsel to baseballs Player Relations Committee, was elected commissioner pro-tem on Feb. 4, 1969, with a one-year term. He was voted a seven-year term that August and remained in office until October 1984, when he was replaced by Los Angeles Olympics head Peter Ueberroth. Former Yale President A. Bartlett Giamatti took over from Ueberroth in April 1989, died later that September and was replaced by his deputy commissioner, Fay Vincent. Selig, then the Milwaukee Brewers owner, teamed with Reinsdorf to head the group that pressured for Vincents forced resignation in September 1992. Selig led baseball as head of the executive council for nearly six years, including the 7 1/2-month strike in 1994-95 that cancelled the World Series. He repeatedly said he wouldnt take the job fulltime before he formally was voted commissioner in July 1998. Ueberroth, Giamatti, Vincent and Selig were elected unanimously. ' ' '