Ibrahimovic named player of year at Italy's 'Oscars'

MILAN: Former Inter Milan striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic was named Italian players' association player of the year on Monday despite now being with Barcelona.

Lampard: World Cup talk no bother for England

LONDON: Frank Lampard is adamant England will not get swept up in the hype surrounding their prospects at this year's World Cup in South Africa.

Mancini plays down rumors of Robinho rift

MANCHESTER, England: Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini insisted he had not fallen out with Robinho after bringing him off the bench only to substitute him during last weekend's defeat by Everton.

IN BRIEF (Page 22)

Nowitzki, Mavs turn it around vs Celtics

Lakers surge late to beat Magic in replay of last season's NBA Finals

Europeans warm to playing for chilly Toronto

TORONTO: Southern Europeans on the Toronto Raptors NBA team agree the city's multicultural feel makes it a great destination for foreign players, as long as they pack a snow shovel and long underwear.

Score board

Golf

IN BRIEF (Page 23)

Federer leaves Rod Laver Arena in a better place

Former champion and world No 1 made to battle against Andreev

No Grand Slam gag for clinical Serena in Open opener

MELBOURNE: Although Serena Williams opened her title defense with a clinical 6-2, 6-1 victory over Poland's Urszula Radwanska yesterday, her subdued performance provoked questions about whether she was reining in her personality.

I'm no Paris Hilton, says low-key Russian Davydenko

MELBOURNE: A lesson for Melbourne locals: the little balding bloke sitting in the corner having dinner may be Nikolay Davydenko. Or it may not be.

'Fly-away' move works wonders for Li and company

China's elite women's tennis players rose steadily on the international stage in 2009, their first year outside the state-support system, thanks to the ground-breaking move initiated by the Chinese Tennis Association (CTA).