Sports News Roundup: Djokovic leads Serbia to ATP Cup; Ponting, Warne to play bushfire match and more

Following is a summary of current sports news briefs.

Djokovic leads Serbia to ATP Cup glory

Novak Djokovic inspired Serbia to victory in the inaugural ATP Cup team event in Sydney after defeating his long-term Spanish rival Rafael Nadal in singles on Sunday before playing a pivotal role in the deciding doubles match. With the final locked at 1-1, Djokovic partnered veteran Victor Troicki to beat Spain's Pablo Carreno Busta and Feliciano Lopez 6-3 6-4, triggering celebrations that would not be out of place at a Belgrade football match.

Warne, Ponting to play Twenty20 bushfire match, Serena donates winnings

Former Australian cricketing greats Ricky Ponting and Shane Warne will temporarily come out of retirement to play in a charity Twenty20 match next month as sports organizations and athletes seek ways to raise funds for bushfire relief. Since October, thousands of Australians have faced repeat evacuations as huge and unpredictable fires scorched more than 10.3 million hectares (25.5 million acres), an area roughly the size of South Korea.

Grace storms to SA Open title with superb closing 62

Home favorite Branden Grace carded a sensational nine-under-par 62 to lift the European Tour's South African Open trophy with a three-shot victory on Sunday. Grace mastered the Randpark Golf Club with eight birdies and an eagle, finishing on 21 under par for the tournament, ahead of defending champion and overnight leader Louis Oosthuizen (68).

Federer responds to Thunberg's 'wake-up' volley

Roger Federer has responded to criticism from teenaged climate change activist Greta Thunberg, saying he is "happy to be reminded" of his responsibilities. The Swiss 20-times Grand Slam champion came under fire from Swede Thunberg last week when she criticized bank Credit Suisse for its record of loans to fossil fuel industries.

Iran's only female Olympic medalist says she has defected

Iran's only female Olympic medalist has said on social media she had left her homeland because she had had enough of being used by its authorities as a propaganda tool. Taekwondo champion Kimia Alizadeh, who won a bronze medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics, implied in an Instagram post that she had moved to Europe. She wrote on an account she has used for some time, but it was not immediately possible to verify her location.

A little history for king Henry in Tennessee playoff win

Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry had two words for those wondering how his team has pulled off two underdog victories in the National Football League playoffs. "Just watch," Henry said, moments after the Titans thrashed the top-seeded Baltimore Ravens 28-12 in an AFC Divisional game in Maryland on Saturday.

ATP makes $500,000 donation for Australian bushfire relief

The ATP will donate $500,000 to the WWF Australian Wildlife and Nature Recovery Fund as part of the bushfire relief efforts, the governing body of men's tennis said on Sunday. The donation from players was announced by Novak Djokovic and Rafa Nadal after Serbia defeated Spain to capture the inaugural ATP Cup team event in Sydney.

NHL roundup: Lightning shut out Flyers for 10th straight win

Pat Maroon scored the only goal to lift the visiting Tampa Bay Lightning past the Philadelphia Flyers 1-0 on Saturday for their 10th straight victory. The 10 straight wins tied a franchise record set last season. The Lightning improved to 19-0-4 this season when leading after two periods, as goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 23 shots for his second consecutive shutout.

Hungry Titans emerge as surprise package of NFL playoffs

The Tennessee Titans have emerged as the surprise team of the National Football League (NFL) playoffs, running over opponents and surpassing expectations. The upstart Titans have posted victories over Super Bowl champion New England Patriots and top seed Baltimore Ravens to qualify for the AFC championship game."The Titans right now are just a dangerous, focused and hungry team," guard Rodger Saffold told the Tennessean newspaper following a 28-12 rout of the Ravens on Saturday. "That's all I can say about it."The Titans can credit a lot of their success to Derrick Henry, who has been one of the top runners in the league. Henry, a 6-foot-3 and 247-pound running back, exploded this season by leading the league in rushing. He punished teams in the post-season with a combined 377 yards in the two wins. Behind their locomotive, the Titans have been able to control games and limit throws from quarterback Ryan Tannehill, who has needed only 160 combined passing yards on 29 attempts. Tannehill has also played a major part in the team's resurgence. He replaced a struggling Marcus Mariota as the starter in Week Seven to lift the Titans to a 7-3 finish and a playoff berth with a win in the season finale. A free agent in 2020, Tannehill may be playing himself into a future with the Titans offense which also features game-breaking rookie receiver, A.J. Brown. Titans second-year coach Mike Vrabel is enjoying his own emergence. He earned a symbolic wild card round win against his former coach Bill Belichick for whom he played in New England en route to three Super Bowl wins as a player. Vrabel showcased his tactical ability with a defensive game plan that squeezed Baltimore quarterback Lamar Jackson, a strong candidate for the league's most valuable player honors, in the Ravens' lowest scoring output of the season."When (Lamar) had space, he took off. But when he did, we made him run laterally," Titans defensive back Kevin Byard said. "That was the key to the game. "He's an elite athlete and we couldn't let him beat us down the middle, but force him sideways and I think we did a good job of that."

NBA roundup: Harden crosses 20,000-point mark

James Harden became the 45th player in NBA history to score 20,000 career points, as the Houston Rockets rolled to a 139-109 victory over the visiting Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday. Harden drilled a stepback 3-pointer with 6:30 remaining in the first half to reach the milestone and finished with 32 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists. He also recorded 11 turnovers, all in the first half, but his wayward ball-handling did little to stem the offensive onslaught.