Sporting briefs

Guidolin: Francesco Guidolin revealed he will not be Parma coach next season. "I announce that next season I will no longer be the coach of Parma," he said. "I leave this club convinced that it has been truly a great experience." Guidolin, linked with a move to Udinese, took over from Gigi Cagni in September 2008 when the side was still in Serie B.

Idrizaj dies: Swansea yesterday announced that their young striker Besian Idrizaj had died. "Swansea can confirm that the agent of Besian Idrizaj has informed the club that the striker has sadly passed away," said a club statement. "It's understood that the popular 22-year-old died in his sleep on Friday night while at home with his family in Austria. The exact cause of death has not been confirmed."

Africa Cup: The African Nations Cup tournament will be staged in odd years from 2013, an African Football Confederation statement released in Cairo said yesterday. This means two editions of the African football flagship event being staged within a year as Gabon and Equatorial Guinea co-host it in 2012 followed by Libya 12 months later.

Vargas: Fiorentina midfielder Juan Manuel Vargas will skip his team's last match of the season today as he is out with ankle trouble that requires surgery to heal. The Peruvian has been struggling all season with his ankle. He will fly out to Amsterdam for surgery and "complete recovery for sporting activity should be in around four weeks."

Irvine: Alan Irvine has ruled himself out of the running for the vacant managerial post at Coventry. The Sheffield Wednesday boss was among the names heavily linked with the position as Sky Blues chairman Ray Ranson looks to find a replacement for Chris Coleman. But Irvine insists he is not about to jump ship after the Owls' relegation to League One.

In England: League One SF play-off (first leg) - Huddersfield vs Millwall 0-0. League Two SF play-off (first leg) - Aldershot vs Rotherham 0-1.

Badminton: South Korea made history yesterday by ending China's 12-year stranglehold on the women's Uber Cup with a 3-1 victory that saw China's no.1 Wang Yihan sensationally lose in straight sets. The South Koreans were expected to buckle under the might of a team that fired a massive 686 points in four ties, finishing victors in every one of their 16 rubbers. But the fans sensed an upset when Bae Seung Hee, ranked 16, outclassed Wang in the first singles rubber.

Winter sport: Austrian cross-country skier Juergen Pinter, banned for four years after the 2006 Turin Olympics doping scandal, is planning a comeback at next year's world championship in Oslo. Pinter, 31, whose ban expired in March, said he would rejoin the Austrian ski federation after good results in end-of-season FIS competitions. Pinter will not take part in any more Olympic Games however, after receiving a life-long ban from the IOC in 2007.

Cricket: The World Twenty20 is set for a final to savour today after Michael Hussey brought Australia back from the dead to sneak past Pakistan and book their place against England. Pakistan coach Waqar Younis could hardly believe Hussey's heroics in a 24-ball innings of 60 not out as he almost single-handedly lifted Australia to an unlikely three-wicket win at the Beausejour Stadium, having needed 18 off the last over.

Basket, NBA: Los Angeles Lakers coach Phil Jackson says Suns superstar Steve Nash plays basketball like he's in a gridiron game. Jackson said the two-time NBA MVP holds onto the ball too long without trying to dribble which is a violation of NBA rules. "You can't carry the ball like he does in practice," Jackson said. The Lakers and Suns meet in the NBA semi-finals beginning tomorrow in Los Angeles.

Rugby Union: World Cup winner Ben Kay confirmed he will leave reigning Premiership champions Leicester at the end of this season. "I've had 11 fantastic years at Leicester, and this has been a very important part of my life," said Kay, 34, who will join his fellow England international Lewis Moody in departing Welford Road. The second-row forward won 62 England caps and played in the 2003 and 2007 World Cup finals.