Annacone replaces Lundgren as Davis Cup coach

(GETTY IMAGES)

Peter Lundgren has resigned as Britain's Davis Cup coach. He will be replaced by the Lawn Tennis Association's men's head coach, Paul Annacone.

Lundgren, a former coach to Roger Federer and Marat Safin, was reported to have slurred his words while speaking to fellow coaches at the LTA's Roehampton headquarters the weekend before the 2007 Wimbledon championships.

The LTA's head of men's tennis, Paul Hutchins, refused to confirm exactly what had happened, but said Lundgren would be taking a leave of absence for around a month for "personal reasons".

Great Britain's opponents in September's World Group play-offs will be announced on 16 April.

Serena Williams made the world No 1 Justine Henin look like a novice yesterday with a stunning 6-2, 6-0 victory to reach the semi-finals of the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami. Williams barely put a foot wrong and won the last nine games to set up a last-four meeting with Russia's Svetlana Kuznetsova, who beat Serena's sister, Venus, 6-4, 6-4 in another quarter-final.

Henin, who came into the match with a 15-2 record for the year, looked flat-footed against Williams' power. Asked if she had expected to win so easily, Williams said: "Not over the No 1 player in the world who was clearly in the best form last year. Everything worked well for me. I'm feeling better and I'm keeping working hard. Being aggressive works."

On the men's side, Federer is on course for a first title of 2008. The Swiss top seed beat the unseeded Jose Acasuso of Argentina, 7-6, 6-2 to move into the quarter-finals. The world No 2, Rafael Nadal, beat Paul-Henri Mathieu of France 6-4, 6-4.