r said.?Rumor had circulated that Jordan would be fined $5,000 per game for wearin

SINGAPORE -- Top-seeded Angelique Kerber struggled to defeat seventh-seeded Dominika Cibulkova 7-6 (5), 2-6, 6-3 on the opening day of the WTA Finals in Singapore on Sunday.Kerber, who secured the top ranking last month, battled Cibulkova for 2 hours, 17 minutes before the Slovakian finally succumbed.It was a really good match from both of us, especially the first set, Kerber said. Its a good start to the tournament like this, where you knew you had to play your best to win.Earlier on Sunday, third-seeded Simona Halep won the first match of the round-robin portion of the tournament by taking a 6-2, 6-4 decision over sixth-seeded American Madison Keys.In Red Group action, Kerber and Halep stand at 1-0, while Keys and Cibulkova are at 0-1.On Tuesday, Kerber will play Halep, while Cibulkova and Keys, both making their WTA Finals debut, will play each other.Kerber posted 29 winners and 32 unforced errors to 36 winners and 34 unforced errors for Cibulkova.Cibulkova dropped serve in the opening game of the match, which initially allowed Kerber to establish a 4-2 lead in the first set.Kerber didnt hold on to the advantage, surrendering her own serve on a second double-fault in the eighth game.That sent the first set to a tiebreaker, where the German eventually prevailed.At the beginning I was too excited, but after a few games I started to play my game, Cibulkova said. It was a really tough one, really close, and in these kind of games its about the small details.Cibulkova dominated the second set, racing to 4-0 lead.In the third, Cibulkova was temporarily in charge with a 2-0 lead, but lost five of the next six games to end up on the losing side of the result.Its been a stellar season for Kerber, who won her first two Grand Slam titles at the Australian and US Opens, and also brought home the Olympic silver medal from Rio.Kerbers never journeyed beyond the round-robin stage of the WTA Finals in three previous appearances in 2012, 2013 and 2015.In the opening match, Keys played erratic tennis throughout the 69-minute contest, losing serve on four of 10 break points faced.I definitely think there were some nerves, Keys said. I think one of her strengths is making you feel like you have to go for more and take the risks. I think sometimes she makes me uncomfortable and I back away from playing my game.Keys held serve in the opening game of the match, but then saw Halep win the next five games for a 5-1 lead in the first set.Halep lost an initial 4-2 lead in the second set, but from 4-4 won the final two games.The Romanian reached the final here in 2014 and now holds a 5-1 head-to-head record against Keys.I think I played exactly what I had to play against her, Halep said. I was focused. Everything went as I wanted, so Im happy. Custom Oakland Athletics Jerseys . Dukurs winning time was 1 minute, 45.76 seconds, a quarter-second better than Russias Alexander Tretiakov. Lativas Tomass Dukurs was third, 1.41 seconds off the pace. Jon Montgomery of Eckville, Alta. Custom Manchester City Jerseys . -- Aldon Smith believes he is on the path to being sober for good. https://www.cheapcustomjerseysonline.com/custom-san-jose-sharks-jerseys/ . They were putting most of their energy into a record-setting offensive display. Custom Wales Jerseys . As the crowd erupted, Davis knocked the ball off the glass and back into his hands. With 1:14 to go in overtime, Davis sixth block also became his 17th rebound. That, along with his 32 points -- which tied a career high -- proved too much for Denver to overcome, and the Pelicans held on for their third straight victory, 111-107 on Sunday night. Custom Jerseys Cheap . Reassurance came from Paul Tesori, his caddie and close friend whose newborn son is in intensive care in a Florida hospital. "Paul sent me a text this morning, just told me he loved me and wanted to go out and fight as hard as I would any other day," Simpson said Sunday after doing just that. The Jordan brand unveiled the Air Jordan XXXI in Las Vegas on Wednesday night, with the lead colorway giving a nod to the buzz that initially kick-started the signature line.The red and black colorway of the shoe is a tribute to the Air Jordan I, which debuted in 1985. It features elements of that shoe, including a leather upper, and is the first time the shoe has an Air Jordan logo and a swoosh since the original.The Jordan XXXI will be available on Sept. 3 for $185.On the bottom of the shoe is the word BANNED, a reference to the legend that gave the brand a defiant beginning.On Feb. 25, 1985, then-NBA deputy commissioner Russ Granik sent a letter to Nikes marketing chief Rob Strasser stressing that the red and black shoes violated the leagues uniform code.In accordance with our conversations, this will confirm and verify that the National Basketball Associations rules and procedures prohibited the wearing of certain red and black NIKE basketball shoes by Chicago Bulls player Michael Jordan on or around October 18, 1984, the letter said.?Rumor had circulated that Jordan would be fined $5,000 per game for wearing the red and black shoes, but there was no evidence that Nike ever paid a fine.dddddddddddd The shoes Jordan was wearing for that preseason game in 1984 were not even Air Jordans; they were a shoe called the Air Ship.But Nike famously told its consumers that the shoe was banned in a television commercial, which featured Jordan dressed in red and black.On Sept. 15, Nike created a revolutionary basketball shoe, the voiceover said. On Oct. 18, the NBA threw them out of the game. Fortunately, the NBA cant stop you from wearing them. Air Jordans by Nike.The Air Jordan I came out in March 1985, at the then-exorbitant price of $65. Over the next nine months, Nike sold $100 million worth.The 31st iteration of the shoe will be worn, as has been tradition, by Jordan brand spokesman Russell Westbrook. Only the initial colorway will have the words BANNED on the bottom.In June, Nike said the sale of Jordan brand products equaled $2.7 billion, up 16 percent from the previous year. Jordan himself gets an undisclosed royalty from sales of the signature line. ' ' '