Sporting briefs

Iaquinta: Juventus striker Vincenzo Iaquinta will be out for a considerable period after being told he requires knee surgery. The 29-year-old missed Sunday's 1-0 win at Siena because of the problem and will undergo an operation today.

Bratislava friendly: The United States will face fellow World Cup qualifiers Slovakia in a friendly in Bratislava on Nov. 14. The match is scheduled to take place four days before the US play Denmark, who have also secured a place in next year's finals in South Africa, in Copenhagen.

Figueroa: Wigan Athletic defender Maynor Figueroa faces a lengthy spell on the sidelines after suffering knee ligament damage in the 3-1 victory at Burnley on Saturday. The 26-year-old, likely to be a key player for his country at the World Cup finals next year, was injured early in the match at Turf Moor.

Zanetti: Last weekend, Javier Zanetti played his 139th consecutive match, between Serie A and Champions League, for champions Inter. The match against Catania was also the Argentine's 115th on the trot in Serie A. The Argentine's 476th top-flight appearance for Inter matches the tally of Giacinto Facchetti.

Sidibe: Stoke manager Tony Pulis will start with a second string line-up in today's League Cup tie at Portsmouth. Mamady Sidibe is set to make his first senior appearance since undergoing knee surgery.

The Championship: Reading vs Leicester 0-1.

In Italy: Serie B - Vicenza vs Mantova 1-1. Prima Divisione A - Monza vs Cremonese 3-0. Prima Divisione B - Verona vs Pescina 5-1.

MFA Division III: Sta Lucija vs Naxxar Lions 2-4; Kirkop vs Sirens 0-1.

Doping: China's women's 100 metres champion Wang Jing was banned for life yesterday after she failed a drugs test during the National Games. Wang tested positive for the performance-enhancing metabolites epitestosterone and testosterone after winning the 100 metres race on Thursday at the Games in Jinan. Organisers stripped the 21-year-old of her gold medal and the Chinese Athletics Administration Centre banned Wang and her coach for life.

Golf: American Troy Matteson birdied the second play-off hole to win the five million-dollar US PGA Frys.com Open, holding off young Rickie Fowler and Jamie Lovemark for the title. Matteson, whose only prior PGA crown came at the same event in 2006, made bogeys on the par-4 17th and 18th holes in regulation. In the play-off, Matteson put his approach at the second extra hole two feet from the cup and sank the birdie to finally capture the title.

Basketball: US player Kevin Widemond died on Sunday in Portugal after collapsing during a break in a game for his Ovarense side. "The federation laments to inform that Kevin Widemond, the north-American guard for Ovarense Dolce Vita, died on Sunday," the federation said. "The player, 23, collapsed unconscious in the changing room, victim of a cardiac arrest after having been on the pitch for 10 minutes. The Leiria hospital confirmed his death."

Tennis: Long-serving Tennis Australia president Geoff Pollard has fought off a leadership challenge from former Davis Cup player Paul McNamee. Pollard, who has served as president and board chairman for 20 years, was unanimously endorsed for another year in office by a board vote yesterday. Pollard's endorsement comes despite a marked decline in Australian professional tennis in recent years, with only two men and two women currently in the world's top 100.