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ST. LOUIS -- The owners of the Edward Jones Dome said Tuesday they are hopeful the St. Louis Rams wont leave after city leaders rejected $700 million in publicly funded upgrades sought by the team under a clause some officials now regret signing. The Rams can break their 30-year lease after the 2014 season -- a decade early -- but have said little about their plans beyond expressing an interest to stay. That isnt keeping stadium boosters from hoping for the best. "Everything is in play," said attorney James Shrewsbury, chairman of the St. Louis Regional Convention and Sports Complex Authority, which owns the downtown dome. "Theres nothing off the table." The lease requires that the dome, which opened when the Rams arrived from southern California in 1995, remain among the top quarter of the 32 NFL stadiums. It was built with money from city, St. Louis County and Missouri taxpayers. The St. Louis Convention & Visitors Commission, which manages the dome, last year offered a $124 million improvement plan that included a bigger scoreboard and better club seating, with the Rams paying slightly more half those costs. The team countered with a far more ambitious proposal that called for a new roof with a sliding panel and a bevy of improvements that would keep the city convention centre in the dome closed for three years. The team didnt put a price tag on its request, but city officials estimated the upgrades would cost $700 million. Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon has taken over negotiations with Rams owner Stan Kroenke after arbitration between the team, the commission and the stadium authority failed. Visitors commission chairman Andrew Leonard said hes been assured by Nixon that keeping the Rams in St. Louis is a top priority. The city has already lost one NFL franchise -- the football Cardinals moved to Arizona after the 1987 season when owner Bill Bidwill was unable to get a stadium of his own rather than share Busch Stadium with the baseball Cardinals. "The governor told me he was going to (keep the Rams in St. Louis)," Leonard said Tuesday during a quarterly meeting of the sports authoritys governing board. "I took him at his word." Leonard served on that very board two decades ago, helping to craft the lease that could lead to the Rams departure. He wasnt circumspect about its long-term value. "That was the best deal we could get," he told the board. "We did what we could...Its the price we paid for getting the Rams." A Rams spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The Rams opposed the public release of their stadium proposal, but Missouris attorney general released the plan under the states public records laws. Nixons office also did not respond to an interview request. 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It was a sharp contrast from Djokovics last match, when he lost to Roger Federer in the Monte Carlo Masters semifinals last month, when he had his wrist heavily strapped and was unable to serve or return at his usual level. In first-round womens play, Italian wild-card entry Camila Giorgi upset ninth-seeded Dominika Cibulkova 6-4, 7-6 (2) in a match delayed briefly due to rain, and 10th-seeded Sara Errani of Italy eliminated Chanelle Scheepers of South Africa 7-5, 6-3.dddddddddddd The 22-year-old Giorgi, who reached the round of 16 at the U.S. Open last year as a qualifier, showed off her attacking game, stepping into the court to whip winners into the corners at every opportunity. Making her Rome main-draw debut, Giorgi had loud support on the picturesque Pietrangeli court, which is lined with neo-classical statues. "The pressure is positive. Its great that the fans come to see you," Giorgi said. "Playing at home happens only once per year." This tournament is the last key clay-court warmup before the French Open, which starts in two weeks. Seven-time champion Rafael Nadal, Federer and womens title-holder Serena Williams open play Wednesday. 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