It wasn't hard for Roger Federer to find a silver lining in his Masters Cup loss at Shanghai, China.

An aching back that forced him to withdraw from the Paris Masters 10 days ago was fine, and he still has a shot to win the season-ending event for the top eight players on the men's tennis tour.

"I'm definitely in a more positive mindset today just because my back feels good," the second-ranked Federer said after losing to Gilles Simon of France, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, yesterday.

In the other Red Group match, Andy Murray of Britain survived a second-set lapse to beat Andy Roddick of the United States, 6-4, 1-6, 6-1.

Federer also lost his opening match last year before going on to win his fourth Masters Cup title.

Ninth-ranked Simon, added to the field when No. 1 Rafael Nadal withdrew with knee tendinitis, capitalized on Federer's slips. He ripped a backhand crosscourt winner on break point as Federer served at 3-4 in the third set, then served his seventh ace on match point.

Nadal will miss Spain's Davis Cup final against Argentina because of a knee injury. Top-ranked Nadal said he was still struggling with tendinitis in his right knee after a week of treatment. Nadal's absence deals a big blow to Spain's bid for a third Davis Cup title since 2000. Spain captain Emilio Sanchez Vicario has until today to name his team. Spain plays Argentina on indoor hard court at Mar del Plata Nov. 21-23.

Negotiations to get the Indy 300 race on Australia's Gold Coast back onto the Indy Racing League calendar broke down after local backers and series organizers failed to agree on the timing of the event. The Indy 300, which has been held at Surfers Paradise every October since 1991, is expected to be replaced by a round of the A1 Grand Prix on the same street circuit.

• Driver Helio Castroneves will stand trial in March in Miami federal court on tax evasion charges. A U.S. District judge set the March 2 trial date for Castroneves, his sister and a Michigan lawyer. Prosecutors say Castroneves and the others tried to hide $5.5 million in income from the IRS.

Freshman point guard Daniel West (6 feet 1, 165 pounds) has been determined academically ineligible to play for No. 14 Tennessee this season, coach Bruce Pearl announced. He had not practiced with the Volunteers since team workouts began Oct. 17 because of the eligibility clearance issue.

The end might actually be near for Evander Holyfield, 46. But it won't arrive without one more title shot. Holyfield (42-9-2), who said he plans to retire by the end of 2009, will meet the 7-foot Russian, Nikolai Valuev (49-1, 34 KOs), for the WBA heavyweight title Dec. 20 in Zurich, Switzerland. Final contracts are expected to be signed before the end of the week.

Peter Farkas, a 1992 Olympic Greco-Roman champion from Hungary, is wanted for arrest after walking out of a courthouse before receiving a five-year prison sentence on a drug charge. A Hungarian court issued a European arrest warrant. Farkas, 40, may have escaped to Thailand, according to Hungarian news reports. Farkas and brother Karoly were sentenced Nov. 3, but both left court before the sentence was read by the judge. Karoly was later detained by police but Peter remains at large.

The Slippery Rock men's team earned a berth in the NCAA Division II tournament for the second time in the program's history. The Rock (13-6-1) is the No. 2 seed in the Atlantic regional and will play East Stroudsburg (15-6) in the first round at 4 p.m. Friday at Millersville. Host Millersville (16-3) takes on California (13-7-2) in the other regional match at 7 p.m.

Groups that regulate sports betting are calling for an international agency to coordinate the fight against illegal gambling and match-fixing. Illegal gambling, which is worth tens of billions of dollars each year to criminal gangs, ranks alongside doping as the biggest threat to the integrity of sport, speakers said at a conference in Zurich, Switzerland.