ously is the best shot.He already was ahead 6-4, 4-3 when a brief shower led organizers to shut Ashes $150 million cover that is making its debut

NEW YORK -- Beating Rafael Nadal at the U.S. Open took a lot out of Lucas Pouille, and Gael Monfils took full advantage, reaching his first Grand Slam semifinal since 2008.The 10th-seeded Monfils beat an error-prone Pouille 6-4, 6-3, 6-3 in an all-French quarterfinal that concluded under Arthur Ashe Stadiums retractable roof.Monfils, who turned 30 last week, had lost six consecutive major quarterfinals since reaching his only previous semifinal, 8 1/2 years ago in front of a partisan crowd at the French Open. But the entertaining Monfils has been playing the best tennis of his career lately, winning all 15 sets hes played during this tournament.Its a court I love, he told the crowd during an on-court interview. I always say that the French is my home, but this one is my second.The 24th-seeded Pouille quite simply ran out of steam, winding up with just about three times as many unforced errors as Monfils, 44-15. He never had won a U.S. Open match or any match that lasted five sets until last week; his 4-hour-plus win against Nadal on Sunday was his third five-setter in a row.Monfils repeatedly used lobs to try to take points from Pouille.I know he was maybe a bit flat today, so he wanted to close at the net, Monfils said. And the lob obviously is the best shot.He already was ahead 6-4, 4-3 when a brief shower led organizers to shut Ashes $150 million cover that is making its debut this year.Up next for Monfils will be a matchup against No. 1 Novak Djokovic, the defending champion, or No. 9 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, whose quarterfinal was scheduled for Tuesday night. Monfils, Pouille and Tsonga gave France a trio of quarterfinalists at the American Grand Slam tournament for the first time in 89 years.Monfils said he might watch a little bit of Djokovic vs. Tsonga, pulling for what he called a full French semifinal.In the days first womens quarterfinal, Roberta Vinci fell apart after losing the opening set on a foot fault, allowing No. 2 seed Angelique Kerber to take the last nine games and win 7-5, 6-0.Vinci was the runner-up at Flushing Meadows a year ago, reaching her first major final by stunning Serena Williams to end the Americans bid for the first calendar-year Grand Slam in tennis in more than a quarter-century.But after being two points from taking the first set against Kerber while serving for it at 5-4, 30-all, the No. 7-seeded Vinci faltered badly. She missed a forehand long, then netted a backhand to get broken there -- and that was just the beginning of her collapse.Trailing 6-5, and serving at love-40, Vinci missed her first serve, then was called for a foot fault on a second serve. That resulted in a double-fault, ceding the set.As she walked to the sideline, Vinci looked at the line judge who made the call and smiled sarcastically, giving him a thumbs up and applauding with her racket.Its a rare ruling in Grand Slam tennis, especially at a critical juncture, although there was, of course, the most famous foot fault of all on the very same court. In the 2009 U.S. Open semifinals, Williams was angered by the same type of call: a foot fault that resulted in a double-fault; in that instance, it set up match point for her opponent, Kim Clijsters. Williams brandished her racket and yelled at the line judge, and the point she was docked for that ended the match.This time, the call ended the competitive portion of Vincis quarterfinal: She managed to take only 10 of 38 points the rest of the way.Vinci has been dealing with an injured left Achilles tendon -- she wore black tape in the shape of a V that framed her left calf -- and a bad back. Still, her varied game, filled with slices and drop shots and net rushes, gave Kerber fits for most of the first set.Kerber, who has a chance to overtake Williams at No. 1 in the WTA rankings after the tournament, moved into her third Grand Slam semifinal of the year. She beat Williams to win the Australian Open for her first major championship, then lost to Williams in the Wimbledon final in July.Kerbers first U.S. Open semifinal since 2011 will come against an unseeded player, either two-time runner-up Caroline Wozniacki or Anastasija Sevastova.---Follow Howard Fendrich on Twitter at http://twitter.com/HowardFendrich Custom Todd Helton Jersey . Barcelonas entertaining victory ensured the defending Spanish champions retained their share of the league lead with Atletico Madrid two rounds ahead of their meeting in the capital. Real Madrid needed a late goal by substitute Jese Rodriguez to earn a 3-2 victory at Valencia to stay in third place and three points behind its title rivals. Cheap Rockies Jerseys . Oaklands loss to Seattle clinched the ALs best record for the Red Sox with one day to spare in the regular season. "I think everybody was kind of watching," catcher David Ross said. "Demp (Ryan Dempster) came out before he went to the bullpen and was just yelling that they lost. http://www.customrockiesjersey.com/ . On Tuesday, Ottawa placed forward Cory Conacher and defenceman Joe Corvo on waivers as trade rumours swirl around the Senators. Custom Rockies Jerseys . Catch all the action on TSN2 at 11pm et/8pm pt. The nine-time Big 12 champion Jayhawks are positioning themselves for another title, as they have run out to a flawless 6-0 mark in conference play thus far. Cheap Custom Rockies Jersey . The Redskins announced Monday that the quarterback who led the team to the Super Bowl championship in the 1987 season will serve as a personnel executive. SAN FRANCISCO -- The Philadelphia Phillies placed two-time Cy Young Award winner Roy Halladay on the 15-day disabled list Monday because of inflammation in his throwing shoulder. Manager Charlie Manuel said Halladay had travelled to Los Angeles, where he was scheduled to be examined by Dr. Lewis Yocum on Tuesday. "Im sure hell find out his problem tomorrow," said Manuel, noting he appreciated the pitchers will to do his job despite the shoulder injury. "Ive been around the game a long time and I never liked to tell someone I couldnt play. I played with a broken arm, I played with a whole lot of things. I got hit in the face and my lip was over my eye and I missed one day. ... Yeah, I understand that. He felt like he could go out there and still pitch. He wasnt thinking about pitching bad, he wanted to try. Hes an upstanding guy, hes a straight guy. There should be more guys like that." Halladay is 2-4 with an 8.65 ERA in seven starts this season after missing nearly two months last season -- from late May to mid-July -- with a strained right lat muscle. He allowed nine runs in 2 1-3 innings against Miami on Sunday for his second straight loss and second outing in a row of less than four innings -- third in all this year. The 35-year-old right-hander is in the final season of his contract, making $20 million this year.dddddddddddd Halladay said Sunday this is a new injury for him, and he started feeling discomfort the morning after an April 24 start against Pittsburgh. He has struggled his two times out since and has given up at least five earned runs in four of his seven outings this season. Halladay was replaced on the roster by left-hander Joe Savery, recalled from Triple-A Lehigh Valley in time to join the club before the start of a three-game series in San Francisco. "Hes on our team and well use him when we have to," Manuel said. Yet the Phillies hadnt decided how to cover what would have been Halladays next turn to pitch, Friday at Arizona. Manuel didnt speak with Halladay on Sunday night during the teams cross-country trip, saying Halladay was sleeping when the skipper walked back to see him. "I didnt want to wake him up," Manuel said. Manuel is hopeful his club is better equipped to handle the loss of Halladay this season than a year ago, when the team struggled during his absence and wound up missing the playoffs for the first time in six years. "If you look and you see our rotation and you our bullpen, the back end of our bullpen has been pretty consistent," Manuel said. "Weve been inconsistent from the middle until we get to the eighth inning." ' ' '