Courier Wins Seventh in a Row Over Muster

The matches have become more challenging, but Jim Courier continued his mastery over Thomas Muster of Austria.

This time Courier defeated top-seeded Muster, 6-3, 7-5, in the quarterfinals of the Qatar Open at Doha. It was Courier’s seventh consecutive victory over Muster since the 1992 Australian Open.

“Even though I’ve beaten Thomas seven times in succession now, I still know that I have to play well to beat him,” Courier said. “I’ve got three good matches under my belt here now, and I’m very satisfied with the direction I’m heading, especially so early in the season.”

Courier, who has won four Grand Slam tennis titles, will meet two-time French Open winner Sergi Bruguera of Spain in today’s semifinals. Bruguera defeated Petr Korda of the Czech Republic, 6-1, 2-6, 6-3.

Courier has yet to drop a set in the tournament.

“Jim has always played well against me, so it’s not a big surprise that he won,” said Muster, who needed treatment for an injured ankle during the match.

In the other semifinal, Hicham Arazi of Morocco will play Britain’s Tim Henman. Arazi defeated Magnus Larsson of Sweden, 7-6 (7-3), 7-6 (7-2), and Henman edged Magnus Gustafsson of Sweden, 6-3, 7-6, (7-3).

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South Africa defeated Romania, 2-1, and will play the United States team of Justin Gimelstob, a UCLA standout, and Chanda Rubin today in the finals of the Hopman Cup at Perth, Australia. Wayne Ferreira and Amanda Coetzer of South Africa defeated Adrian Voinea and Irina Spirlea of Romania in mixed doubles, 4-6, 6-1, 6-4, to give the South Africans their first Hopman Cup final appearance in five tries.

Baseball

The Cleveland Indians signed former Dodger infielder Mike Busch to a minor-league contract.

Busch batted .217 with four home runs and 17 runs batted in in 38 games with the Dodgers last season. He also played in 38 games with triple-A Albuquerque of the Pacific Coast League.

Cincinnati Red pitcher Jose Rijo said he will retire if he can’t come back this year after sitting out two seasons because of elbow injuries.

“If I’m not able to return in 1997, then I’ll retire from baseball,” Rijo said.

Rijo, 31, underwent his third elbow operation in 15 months in November. He had reconstructive surgery on his right elbow in August 1995 and did not pitch during the 1996 season.

Winter Sports

Erik Rasmussen scored two goals to lead the United States to a 5-2 victory over the Czech Republic and a berth in the gold-medal match against Canada in the world junior hockey championships at Geneva.

Canada, looking for a record fifth consecutive title, advanced with a 3-2 victory over Russia, setting up the first North American final in the championship’s history.

Sabina Panzanini of Italy earned her second World Cup victory of the season in Maribor, Slovenia, defeating teammate Deborah Compagnoni and Austrian Anita Wachter in giant slalom.

Panzanini completed the two runs in 2 minutes, 34.74 seconds. Compagnoni and Wachter tied for second at 2:34.82.

Olympians Robert Pipkins of Bloomfield, N.J., and Bethany Calcaterra-McMahon of Waterford, Conn., won the men’s and women’s luge singles during the 1998 Olympic trials competition at Lake Placid, N.Y.

Pipkins posted the four best heat times over the two-day event to win the men’s division, and Calcaterra-McMahon used a teammate’s error to win the women’s race.

Maryann Baribault of La Canada, two-time world junior champion, was the women’s leader after three heats. But she made a critical error along an upper turn during the final run that cost her a second of time and a first-place finish.

Miscellany

Naim “Pocket Hercules” Suleymanoglu denied a newspaper report that he has retired.

“I want to leave the sport at my peak,” said Suleymanoglu, the 4-foot-11, three-time Olympic gold medal weightlifting champion. “But I have not made up my mind yet.”

Alejandro “La Cobrita” Gonzalez Loera, a former World Boxing Council featherweight champion, has been arrested for illegal arms possession and making threats.

Gonzalez, 23, of Mexico, allegedly threatened the manager of a Guadalajara nightclub with a handgun.