Sporting briefs

Hitzfeld: German coach Ottmar Hitzfeld yesterday signed a new two-year contract with Switzerland that will take him through to summer 2014. Hitzfeld took the Swiss national side to the World Cup finals in South Africa last year after taking up the job in July 2008.

Barrios: Bundesliga leaders Borussia Dortmund are set to be without striker Lucas Barrios for tomorrow’s German league clash with Hoffenheim. The 26-year-old Paraguay striker has a calf problem, sat out training yesterday and is unlikely to play at Hoffenheim.

Martins: New Nigeria coach Samson Siasia invited Obafemi Martins, who recently helped Birmingham to win the English League Cup, for a forthcoming 2012 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Ethiopia. This will be Siasia’s first call-up of the 26-year-old striker since he took over the Super Eagles in December.

Kashima: Young Brazilian forward Igor Torres Satori, son of prolific former J-League star Alcindo, has signed for Kashima Antlers. It is the 18-year-old’s first professional contract after playing for Centro de Futebal Zico Sociedade Esportiva, in Brazil, as an amateur.

Mathijsen: Hamburg will be without injured Dutch defender Joris Mathijsen for tomorrow’s clash at Bayern Munich. The 30-year-old has a knee injury.

Charged: Celtic manager Neil Lennon and Rangers assistant Ally McCoist are facing touchline bans after being charged with misconduct by the Scottish FA. Lennon and McCoist incurred four and two-match touchline bans respectively for their altercation at last Wednesday’s Scottish Cup fifth round replay, which Celtic won 1-0.

In Scotland : Premier League – Dundee United vs Hamilton 2-1.

Tennis: Argentina’s David Nalbandian was due to undergo surgery for a hernia problem and a torn adductor muscle last night and will be out of action for two months, a member of his entourage said. The world number 19 aggravated the problem playing in the Davis Cup last weekend which saw the South Americans advance past Romania 4-1 to the quarter-finals of the World Group. Nalbandian, 29, should be back in action for the Madrid Masters or the Rome tournament in the build-up to Roland Garros at the end of May.

Rugby Union: England centre Mike Tindall has agreed a one-year contract extension at Gloucester which will keep him at the Premiership side until 2012, it was confirmed yesterday. Tindall, who has captained England to three consecutive victories in this year’s Six Nations, is currently in his sixth season at Gloucester after joining from local rivals Bath in 2005. “I didn’t really entertain the idea of being anywhere else to be honest. I love the club, the supporters, the area. Signing on again wasn’t a difficult decision,” Tindall said.

Badminton: Taufik Hidayat, the former Olympic and world champion from Indonesia, became the All-England Open’s first major casualty when he lost an engrossing late night tussle to unheralded Japanese player Kazushi Yamada on Wednesday. Hidayat, whom many regard as the finest player never to have won the world’s oldest tournament, may have lost his last chance to do so as he slipped to a 21-10, 21-14 defeat. “I don’t know why I was so bad – I just wasn’t feeling well,” the second seed said. “I don’t think he was really good. I just made so many unforced errors.”

Basket, NBA: The San Antonio Spurs bounced back from their blowout loss to the Los Angeles Lakers to beat Detroit 111-104 and clinch an NBA play-off berth. Tony Parker scored 23 points for the Spurs and Tim Duncan, whose two points against the Lakers on Sunday matched a career low, finished with 15 points and 12 rebounds. The Spurs clinched their 14th consecutive play-off appearance, dating back to the 1997-98 season. That’s the longest active streak in the NBA.