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Eastbourne, England  - Former finalist Amelie Mauresmo saved three match points before exiting in the second round of the Eastbourne Championships Wednesday to Russian Elena Makarova 7-6 (10-8), 7-6 (15-13).

The slow-moving struggle took more than two hours to complete on the lawns at Devonshire Park, with 2006 runner-up Mauresmo failing to take it into a deciding third set despite having four set points.

Makarova, ranked 46th, had never faced France's former world number one, with both women fighting to prepare for Wimbledon starting Monday.

Amman  - Jordan and Britain will on Monday sign an agreement for cooperation in peaceful uses of nuclear energy, Chairman of the Jordan Atomic Energy Commission (JAEC) Khalid Touqan said Wednesday.

The accord will be signed in London by Jordanian Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh and his British counterpart David Miliband on the fringes of an upcoming visit to Britain by King Abdullah II, he added.

Munich - Bayern Munich insisted Wednesday that French star Franck Ribery, reportedly sought by several of Europe's leading clubs, was not for sale.

Bayern denied a Sports Bild report that the supervisory board had agreed to consider selling the 26-year-old midfielder should the right offer come along.

A statement said there was no truth in the report which appeared Wednesday.

"There is a unanimous decision from the board of directors of FC Bayern Munich AG that the player Franck Ribery is not for sale," the statement said.

Geneva  - The Swiss economy is expected to contract by 2.7 per cent in 2009, the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) said Wednesday, in the second time the forecast has been downgraded this year.

A previous forecast in March had predicted a 2.2 per cent decline in Gross Domestic Product in 2009 and a slim expansion of 0.1 per cent next year. The downgrade now expects 2010 to see a continued contraction, with likely contraction of 0.4 per cent.

Rome - Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi described Wednesday as "trash," news reports that prosecutors are examining possible evidence that several women received money in exchange for attending parties hosted by the premier.

Italy's most respected daily, Corriere della Sera, said the probe stems from wiretapped conversations of businessmen based in the southern city of Bari, in which they mentioned payments made to women recruited for the parties.

Hamburg - Motorsport's world governing body FIA and the Formula One teams' association FOTA appeared no nearer to ending their differences Wednesday.

Rejecting a proposal to extend a deadline on new entries, FIA president Max Mosley told FOTA to accept the rules for 2010 by Friday at the latest.

If necessary these could be revised in new negotiations, he said.

Mosley was responding to a letter from FOTA which put forward "compromise" proposals in a bid to end the row over rules and funding.