Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/769023
maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 4 JANUARY 2017 23 Sport Answers to the MaltaToday crossword will be published next Wednesday WEATHER: Partly to rather cloudy with some isolated showers at first, becoming partly cloudy VISIBILITY: Good WIND: West Northwest force 5 to 6 SEA: Rough SWELL: Low Southwest SEA TEMP: 17 °C A B C D E F G H 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 White to play and mate in four moves A B C D E F G H 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Last week's solution Sudoku rules are extremely easy: Fill all empty squares so that the numbers 1 to 9 appear once in each row, column and 9x9 box. WINDY 16 º C / 10 º C UV INDEX: 2 Today's Weather Chess Sudoku Pursuits Across 1. Allowable 6. Lecture 7. Indonesian resort island 10. Browned sliced bread 11. Undo 12. Female fowl 13. Soft felt-like fabric 14. Shut 16. Crustacean 18. Magician 19. Dorset town Down 1. Item having exchange value 2. Cocktail 3. Make smooth 4. Front part of an apron 5. Abrading tool 8. Person engaged in spaceflight 9. Intersection 13. German composer 15. Duck with soft down 17. Bleat of a sheep Qe7+ Nxe7 Be6# TENNIS Serena shakes out rust to advance in Auckland WORLD number two Serena Williams shook out any cobwebs from four months away from ten- nis with a 6-3 6-4 victory over France's Pauline Parmentier in the first round of the Auckland Classic on Tuesday. The 35-year-old had not played a competitive match since she lost to Karolina Pliskova in the semi-fi- nals of the U.S. Open last Septem- ber, withdrawing from all tennis to deal with a persistent shoulder injury. The American, who had partici- pated in a charity doubles match with sister Venus against All Blacks siblings Julian and Ardie Savea before the tournament start- ed, was appearing for the first time in Auckland and persistent rain on Monday postponed her first round match until Tuesday. She struggled with the wind and had some rusty moments in the second set when the Frenchwoman broke in the fourth game and held three break points in the sixth. The top seed was able to over- come them, however, and won the match with her eighth ace. "It was my first match back in several months and I played a re- ally good player," Williams said courtside after she wrapped up victory in 75 minutes to set up a second round clash against qualifi- er Jamie Loeb or Madison Brengle. "The wind was really getting to me. Every day I have practised here there was no wind but today it was so windy. So it was fun. Actually, it wasn't fun, it was interesting." She conceded she was feeling rusty and would be selective about her schedule in the new season. "I don't see myself playing a full, full schedule. But who knows? I'm going to take it tourney by tour- ney." Injury kept her out of much of the second half in 2016 even though she still triumphed in Wimbledon to equal Steffi Graf 's open era re- cord of 22 grand slam titles and her target this year was to surpass that. "Unfortunately I have the highest of goals usually, so obviously that involves winning grand slams," she said. Another former world number one, Caroline Wozniacki, dropped just one game in a ruthless 6-1 6-0 dismantling of Nicole Gibbs in their first round match. "It's the first match of the year for me so it's always tough," Wozni- acki said. "(But) today everything was going in, even with the wind I managed to keep control of the ball and the points. "I was pleased, especially with how I was serving."