Briefs

Lennon: Injured England winger Aaron Lennon should be available for next month's friendly with Egypt, Tottenham Hotspur manager Harry Redknapp said. "He should be fit by then," Redknapp told reporters at the Spurs training ground referring to the World Cup warm-up match against the African champions at Wembley Stadium on March 3.

Lazio: Lazio have refused to back down after Maccabi Haifa said teenager Eyal Golasa was staying with them despite signing for the Serie A club last week. The Israeli club claimed the 18-year-old midfielder was not a free agent because he had an agreement with them and had changed his mind about moving anyway. But Lazio president Claudio Lotito said Golasa's deal with the Rome side was valid.

Kranjcar: Former Croatian international striker Zlatko Kranjcar has been appointed coach of Montenegro, the national football federation confirmed. Kranjcar, a former coach of the Croatian national team and Dinamo Zagreb player, takes over from Serb Zoran Filipovic who failed to qualify the team for the 2010 World Cup finals. The 53-year-old's first match on March 3 will be a friendly against Montenegro in Macedonia.

Benin: Benin have sacked French coach Michel Dussuyer following their poor performance in last month's African Nations Cup, the national soccer federation said in a statement. Dussuyer's team lost two and drew one of their three matches at the tournament in Angola.

Johnson: Fulham's former England striker Andy Johnson will miss the rest of the season after having knee surgery, the Premier League club said. Johnson has been plagued by injuries this season, making just 13 appearances. Fulham are already without United States forward Clint Dempsey and recently loaned out Diomansy Kamara to Celtic.

Cricket: India's Yusuf Pathan lashed a double century to help West Zone record the highest successful fourth-innings chase in first-class cricket yesterday. All-rounder Pathan smashed 210 not out to help his team overhaul a target of 536 set by South Zone and win the five-day final of the Duleep Trophy regional competition by three wickets. West finished with 541-7, Pathan scoring the winning runs with his 10th six, beating the previous record of 513-9 scored by Central Province against Southern Province in Sri Lankan domestic cricket in the 2003-04 season.

Basketball: The Boston Celtics rebounded in the fourth quarter to beat the New Jersey Nets 96-87 on Friday and hand the NBA's worst team their 13th consecutive road loss. The Nets held a one-point advantage going into the fourth quarter but the Celtics' Eddie House scored all 10 of his points in the final session as Boston ran out winners.

Tennis: World number one Serena Williams has withdrawn from next week's Paris Indoor Open, organisers confirmed yesterday. Williams blamed a leg injury which she picked up on her way to victory in the Australian Open. The American has lifted the Paris trophy twice in five appearances, winning both her titles in 1999 and 2003 against France's Amelie Mauresmo. Former world number one Mauresmo will play her final tournament before retiring from competition.

Nordic skiing: Italy's Giorgio di Centa warmed up for the Winter Olympics later this month by winning the men's World Cup nordic skiing 15km freestyle race yesterday. Di Centa, the reigning Olympic champion over 50km, clocked 34 minutes over the distance, to finish 5.1sec ahead of compatriot Pietro Piller Cottrer with Switzerland's reigning World Cup champion Dario Cologna third at 11.9sec.