Sporting Digest: Tennis

CEDRIC PIOLINE, dropped from the French Davis Cup squad last year for making excessive demands of the team management, was yesterday named to lead the team in this year's world group first-round tie against Hungary. Pioline, who is ranked 12th in the world, will be joined by Arnaud Boetsch, Henri Leconte and Olivier Delaitre for the match in Besancon from 25 to 27 March.

LIPTON CHAMPIONSHIPS (Key Biscayne, Fla) Men's singles second round: J Courier (US) bt J Tarango (US) 2-6 6-4 6-4; P Korda (Cz Rep) bt M Knowles (Bah) 4-6 6-2 6-0; A Krickstein (US) bt S Bryan (US) 1-6 7-6 6-4. Third round: J Siemerink (Neth) bt A Chesnokov (Rus) 6-2 6-3; J Yzaga (Peru) bt J Bjorkman (Swe) 6-4 6-3; M Chang (US) bt A Bersategui (Sp) 1-6 6-4 6-2; C Pioline (Fr) bt J Stark (US) 6-4 7-5; P Haarhuis (Neth) bt J Apell (Swe) 6-4 6-3; M Woodforde (Aus) bt J Palmer (US) 6-7 6-4 6-3; G Ivanisevic (Croat) bt R Reneberg (US) 6-4 6-4; B Black (Zim) bt J Sanchez (Sp) 7-6 7-6; P Rafter (Aus) bt M Rosset (Swit) 6-2 6-3; A Agassi (US) bt B Becker (Ger) 6-2 7-5; P Korda (Cz Rep) bt B Gilbert (US) 7-6 6-3; J Grabb (US) bt S Bruguera (Sp) 7-6 6-3; S Edberg (Swe) bt J Stoltenberg (Aus) 7-6 6-1. Women's singles third round: A Sanchez Vicario (Sp) bt P Fendick (US) 6-1 6-3; B Schultz (Neth) bt L Meskhi (Geo) 6-4 6-2; L Davenport (US) bt N Tauziat (Fr) 6-0 7-5; K Date (Japan) bt N Sawamatsu (Japan) 6-2 6-4; J Novotna (Cz Rep) bt F Labat (Arg) 6-4 6-2.

CASABLANCA ATP MEN'S TOURNAMENT First round: R Furlan (It) bt G Markus (Arg) 6-1 6-4; Horacio de la Pena (Arg) bt M Tahri (Mor) 6-3 6-0; G Solves (Fr) bt Harazi (Mor) 6-0 7-6; G Schaller (Aut) bt F Clavet (Sp) 6-3 6-4; J Arrese (Sp) bt G Puentes (Sp) 6-3 6-2; D Poliakov (Rus) bt A Corretja (Sp) 3-6 6-2 7-5.

DAVIS CUP American Zone Group Three (Castries, St Lucia): First place play-off: Haiti bt Bolivia 2-1. Third place: El Salvador bt Dominican Republic 2-1. Fifth place: Costa Rica bt Trinidad and Tobago 2-1. Seventh place: Eastern Caribbean bt Barbados 3-0.