Former French Open winner Francesca Schiavone and reigning Wimbledon champ Petra Kvitova have joined the growing list of players forced to pull out of the Indian Wells tennis.

The 31-year-old Italian was a set down (6-2) in her third round match against Czech Lucie Safarova when she packed it in Monday, joining several others who have withdrawn or retired because of a virus, tournament officials said Monday.

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger believes Theo Walcott is emerging as a key figure in the north London club's fight to finish third.

The England winger provided vital assists for both his team's goals in the dramatic added-time victory over Newcastle United that moved Wenger's side to within one point of third-placed Tottenham.

IOC President Jacques Rogge says he's optimistic that Saudi Arabia will send female athletes to the Olympics for the first time at this summer's London Games.

Rogge tells The Associated Press the IOC is in talks with Saudi Arabia on the "practicalities" of including women on its Olympic team.

The mascot for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil will be an armadillo, according to a report on Sunday in the Brazilian weekly Veja.

The Brazilian three-banded armadillo, native to the country's north-east, is capable of rolling itself into the shape of a ball when it feels threatened.

AC Milan extended their lead to four points at the top of Serie A with a 2-0 win over Lecce as Juventus were held 0-0 at Genoa on Sunday.

Goals from Antonio Nocerino and Zlatan Ibrahimovic gave Milan a comfortable victory.

Kobe Bryant's 26 points included a go-ahead basket with 41.7 seconds to play as the Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Boston Celtics 97-94 in an NBA contest.

Lakers superstar Bryant on Sunday scored 10 points in the final quarter, but it was Andrew Bynum who capped the 8-0 scoring run Los Angeles used to close out the game.

The Champions League could have one of the most diverse and understated quarterfinal lineups in its 20-year history if four of Europe's major powers fail to up their game in this week's last-16 second legs.

Unheralded APOEL, the first Cypriot team to reach the knockout stage of the competition, and Benfica, whose best days in Europe came in the 1960s, reached the last eight last week along with Barcelona and AC Milan.

American teenager Christina McHale stunned Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova with a 2-6, 6-2, 6-3 victory in the night session of the PNB Paribas Open, which has seen several withdrawals because of illness.

Gael Monfils of France, Jurgen Melzer of Austria, and American Vania King each battled an intestinal virus that has sidelined at least a half-dozen players.

Lionel Messi continued his rich vein of form with a double as Barcelona beat Racing Santander 2-0 on Sunday, but the champions remain 10 points off leaders Real Madrid.

After scoring a remarkable five in the Champions League in midweek against Bayer Leverkusen, Messi scored in both halves, the second from the penalty spot, to take his total in the league to 30.

Schalke 04 defeated Hamburg 3-1 on Sunday to stay in touch with Bundesliga leaders Borussia Dortmund who finished the weekend with a five-point advantage at the top of the German league.

The Royal Blues took an early lead at Gelsenkirchen's Veltins Arena when Finland striker Teemu Pukki scored with a header after only five minutes from a superb cross by Japan defender Atsuto Uchida.