FOOTBALL | Dick Advocaat introduced as Serbia coach

Dick Advocaat, who coached the Netherlands and South Korea at previous World Cups, has been formally introduced as the new Serbia coach. Advocaat will seek to guide Serbia — which failed to qualify for this year’s World Cup in Brazil — to the 2016 European Championship. He says yesterday that Serbian players are talented but need more to achieve success. Serbian football officials have said Advocaat’s contract could be extended if Serbia qualifies for the Euros.

Athletics
Olympic high jump champion out of Euros

Russia’s team coach says Olympic high jump champion Anna Chicherova will miss next month’s European championships in Zurich because of an injury. Chicherova jumped a world-leading 2.01 meters to win the Diamond League meet in Eugene, Oregon in May, but only managed 1.75 in Glasgow earlier this month. Coach Valentin Maslakov tells the R-Sport agency that Chicherova will miss the August 12-17 European championships because “an injury is not giving her peace” and “she needs to heal.”

Sri Lankan players

Cricket
South Africa win Sri Lanka test series 1-0

South Africa frustrated Sri Lanka’s spin attack with a defensive batting strategy to earn a draw in the second test yesterday and win the two-match series, 1-0. Sri Lankan spinner Rangana Herath bagged five wickets but couldn’t prevent the draw after Sri Lanka set a 369-run target for the visitors on the final day of the test. The South Africans were defensive from the start, scoring just 159 runs in 111 overs in nearly six hours of batting at the Sinhalese Sports Club.