Djokovic to finish year as world number one

Novak Djokovic will move above Roger Federer to number one in the world rankings next week and is guaranteed to retain the top spot until the end of the year, the ATP Tour said. The Serbian, who lost the top spot to Federer in July, will be the first player to top the men's singles rankings at the end of consecutive seasons since the Swiss did it four times from 2004 to 2007. Djokovic has won five tournaments this year - including the Australian Open and Masters series titles in Miami, Canada and Shanghai - and pocketed more than $8 million in prize money. The 25-year-old, who is scheduled to compete at the Paris Masters this week, will be presented with a trophy to recognise his feat at next week's season-ending championships in London, the ATP said.

Golden Messi dreaming of ending career at Barcelona

FC Barcelona's Argentinian striker Lionel Messi  Lionel Messi dreams of retiring at Barcelona, the club who trained him as a teenager and where he began his professional career in 2004, the Argentine World Player of the Year said on Monday. Collecting his Golden Boot award for scoring a Europe-leading 50 league goals last season, Messi spoke of his gratitude to Barca for giving him the chance to realise his dream when they took him on at their youth academy as a scrawny 13-year-old in 2000. Now 25, Messi has four years left on his contract and a buyout clause worth 250 million euros ($322.63 million) and club officials have said an extended and improved deal may be imminent. "My dream is to finish my career at the club," Rosario-born Messi, who is poised to become a father for the first time, said at the ceremony in the Catalan capital. "The most important thing is that I continue developing here and I would like to do that until the end," he added. In line for an unprecedented fourth straight World Player award when the 2012 winner is announced in January, Messi took his senior career goals tally to 301 on Saturday when he scored twice in Barcelona's 5-0 victory at Rayo Vallecano. He has netted 270 goals for his club and 31 for Argentina.

Day-night tests now inevitable-Cricket Australia chief

James Sutherland, CEO of Cricket Australia  Day-night test cricket, possibly played with a pink, orange or yellow ball, is an inevitability now the way has been cleared for such matches, Cricket Australia (CA) chief James Sutherland said on Tuesday. The International Cricket Council (ICC) decreed on Monday that countries could agree to play day-night tests and Sutherland said CA would put them on the agenda when negotiating all future tours to Australia. "Test cricket is by definition played on at least three week days, times when most people are at work or school, and this limits the ability of fans to attend or watch on TV," he said in a news release. "We limit ourselves by staging cricket's premium format at times when fans often cannot watch. "We know that the audience for the Perth test, which is on TV in the evening on the east coast, is up significantly because fans in the East can tune in after work." Although he believes 50-over and Twenty20 cricket have proved that batting is possible under floodlights, Sutherland conceded finding a ball with the visibility for night play and the durability required for tests was a stumbling block. "Finding a test ball that is as easily visible in the day as it is at night is still a technical work in progress that the ICC is now leading and it has not yet been possible to predict when such a ball might be available," he added. "Experiments with other colours such as pink, orange and yellow have seen some promising developments in recent times and Cricket Australia will ... continue to encourage research and development that delivers a ball with the optimal colour and durability for test cricket."

Wiggins scoops Velo d'Or award

Britain's cyclist Bradley Wiggins  Tour de France champion Bradley Wiggins won the prestigous Velo d'Or award as the best rider of 2012. Briton Wiggins beat Paris-Roubaix and Tour of Flanders winner Tom Boonen and Spain's Joaquim Rodriguez in a poll of cycling journalists set up by French publication, Velo Magazine. In addition to the Tour de France, Wiggins also won the Paris-Nice, Tour de Romandie, Criterium du Dauphine and the Olympic time trial titles.

Southampton probe Boruc water bottle allegations

goalkeeper Artur Boruc  Southampton are investigating allegations goalkeeper Artur Boruc threw a water bottle into the crowd during their defeat by Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, the club said in a statement. The Poland international is alleged to have tossed the bottle into the crowd during the first half of Tottenham's 2-1 win that left Southampton 19th in the Premier League. "The club takes such allegations extremely seriously and will deal with the matter in the appropriate manner," Southampton said in a statement. "Southampton Football Club can confirm that it is investigating allegations of an incident involving Artur Boruc that occurred towards the end of the first half during Sunday's match against Tottenham Hotspur." Boruc, a former Celtic keeper, joined Southampton on a free transfer in September after leaving Italian club Fiorentina.

Tsonga makes Paris third round with Benneteau win

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France returns the ball to Julien Benneteau of France Jo-Wilfried Tsonga started his quest for an ATP World Tour final spot with a 6-2 4-6 7-6 second-round victory over fellow Frenchman Julien Benneteau at the Paris Masters on Tuesday. The sixth seeded Tsonga will claim one of the two remaining spots for next month's season-ending showdown at the O2 in London if he reaches the quarter-finals in Paris. Tsonga, who will take on either Spain's Nicolas Almagro or Albert Ramos in the next round, looked set for a routine win when he breezed through the opening set but Benneteau proved to be a tough nut to crack. Tsonga, the 2008 champion, played better on the key points, converting two of his three break chances while saving five break points to bag the first set. Benneteau, however, was much more consistent in the second set, breaking decisively in the fifth game to level the contest. Tsonga served for the match after breaking in the eighth game of the decider, only for Benneteau to break back and force a tiebreak, though he promptly lost five points in a row as Tsonga claimed it 7-2. Six players have already qualified for the ATP World Tour finals, which will be contested between the top eight players of the 2012 race as of Nov. 5. Earlier on Tuesday Japan's Kei Nishikori, the 15th seed, qualified for the third round by beating France's Benoit Paire in straight sets. The Croatian 13th-seed Marin Cilic was the first seeded player to be knocked out when he lost in the second round against Poland's Jerzy Janowicz 7-6 6-2.

City's Richards out for up to 16 weeks after knee surgery

Manchester City defender Micah Richards will be out of action for up to four months after undergoing a knee operation, the Premier League champions said on Tuesday.

The England international had surgery to repair a torn meniscus after being stretchered off in the second half of City's 1-0 win over Swansea City on Saturday.

"The positive thing is that the injury has been repaired so the knee will be as good as new," Richards said on the club website (mcfc.co.uk).

"I have a brace on it and I am using crutches. I can't do anything at all for the next four to six weeks and I am probably looking at 12-16 weeks before I am back in action."

Richards was four games into a comeback after missing the first two months of the season with an ankle injury he suffered playing for Britain at the London Olympics.

"I knew straight away in the game that it was quite a bad injury. The knee locked and I couldn't straighten it," he said.

"I suppose it could have been even worse and not repairable which would have meant removing the meniscus; so I am being positive. Injuries are all part and parcel of the job but this coming on top of the other one I do feel a little hard done to."

Kaka keeps Brazil place, no room for Shakhtar players

Brazil's Kaka  Kaka has kept his place in the Brazil squad after his impressive return last month but Shakhtar Donetsk players were again overlooked by coach Mano Menezes. Menezes, naming his squad for next month's friendly against Colombia in the United States, also declined to give Ronaldinho another chance despite some good recent performances for Atletico Mineiro in the Brazilian championship. The Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) said the match, at the Metlife stadium in New Jersey on Nov. 14, would be Brazil's 1,000th although it was not clear if this included fixtures against club and representative teams. Kaka scored in both the 6-0 win over Iraq and the 4-0 win against Japan last month as he made his international comeback after an absence of more than two years, forming an impressive partnership with Oscar in midfield. "The combination of Oscar and Kaka gave us more tactical variations," Menezes told reporters after announcing his squad. "We were very complete. You can't just think about the attacking side and the team was good in winning back the ball and this requires the participation of everyone, including Oscar and Kaka." Ukrainian champions Shakhtar won their first 12 league games of the season and raised eyebrows as they drew with Juventus and beat Chelsea in the Champions League, inspired by Brazilian quartet Willian, Fernandinho, Alex Teixeira and Luiz Adriano. However, none of them are well known in their homeland and their combined international experience has been limited to two appearances last year by Willian and five for Fernandinho. Brazilian coaches have rarely picked players based with Eastern European clubs, even when they have experience in European competitions. Zenit forward Hulk and Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk midfielder Giuliano were the only two players from the region in Menezes' squad on Tuesday. On the other hand, the squad included nine Brazilian-based players. Ronaldinho last played for Brazil in the 2-1 win over Bosnia in February and Menezes implied that the former Barcelona and AC Milan forward had already had his chance. "When you are in charge of a complicated process such as this one with so many players to observe, you can't afford to go around in circles and end up at the same place where you started," said Menezes. Goalkeepers: Jefferson (Botafogo), Diego Alves (Valencia) Defenders: Adriano (Barcelona), Daniel Alves (Barcelona), Fabio Santos (Corinthians), David Luiz (Chelsea), Thiago Silva (Paris St Germain), Leandro Castan (AS Roma), Rever (Atletico Mineiro) Midfielders: Arouca (Santos), Paulinho (Corinthians), Ramires (Chelsea), Sandro (Tottenham Hotspur), Giuliano (Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk), Thiago Neves (Fluminense), Oscar (Chelsea), Kaka (Real Madrid), Lucas (Sao Paulo) Forwards: Hulk (Zenit St Petersburg), Leandro Damiao (Internacional), Neymar (Santos)

Holders Dortmund, Schalke cruise through in German Cup

Holders Borussia Dortmund strolled into the German Cup last 16 with a 4-1 victory at second tier VfR Aalen on Tuesday as all the Bundesliga clubs advanced against lower-ranked opponents. Defender Mats Hummels fired the ball in from a tight angle midway through the first half before left back Marcel Schmelzer added another goal 10 minutes later. Germany international Mario Goetze was also on target with a fine chip over keeper Jasmin Fejzic before Julian Schieber made it 4-0 in the 79th minute. Aalen cut the deficit five minutes from time with a well-struck free kick from Michael Klauss. Fellow Champions League competitors Schalke 04 eased past second tier Sandhausen 3-0 with in-form Dutch forward Ibrahim Afellay opening their account in the 11th minute. Romania international Ciprian Marica's bicycle kick midway through the second half doubled the lead before Dutchman Klaas-Jan Huntelaar slotted in from 10 metres. Freiburg won 2-0 at Eintracht Braunschweig while Bundesliga rivals Augsburg defeated Preussen Muenster 1-0 and Mainz 05 defeated Erzgebirge Aue 2-0. Bayern Munich take on second tier Kaiserslautern on Wednesday looking to bounce back quickly from their first league defeat of the season last week.

Beckham, Henry search for glory in MLS Playoffs

Major League Soccer's Playoffs begin on Wednesday with 10 teams searching for the title-deciding MLS Cup in the knockout phase of the North American season. Defending champions L.A. Galaxy, featuring former England midfielder David Beckham, take part in the single-game knockout 'play in' round of the competition, aiming for a spot in the Western Conference semi-finals. The Galaxy only finished fourth in the Western Conference and so must defeat fifth-placed Vancouver Whitecaps, who became the first Canadian team to reach the MLS post-season after pipping national rivals Toronto and Montreal. "I think they've got a lot of character as a team, a few good players as well and they've got a lot of unity," said Beckham of the Whitecaps, who are in just their second season in MLS. "When we've played them in the past they've shown it is difficult to break them down and win the game. There will be many obstacles, especially with it being a one-off playoff game. It's going to be difficult," he added. Should the Galaxy get through they will face the top team in the Western Conference regular season -- the San Jose Earthquakes, who possess the league's top scorer Chris Wondolowski whose 27 goals matched MLS's all-time record. The other 'play in' features the Chicago Fire against the Houston Dynamo, winners in 2006 and 2007, with the victor in that tie facing Sporting Kansas City. "We have guys who have been there and we believe in our team mentality," said Dynamo midfielder Brad Davis. "The playoffs come down to everybody fighting for one another, stepping up that intensity a little bit and we know we are able to do that when our backs are against the wall," he added. HENRY INFLUENCE The New York Red Bulls, featuring former Arsenal, Barcelona and France striker Thierry Henry, have never won the MLS title and their bid to end that barren spell going back to 1996 begins with a two-legged Eastern Conference semi-final against D.C. United. Henry is no longer the pacey striker of his youth but, in a deeper, probing role has struck a great understanding with American forward Kenny Cooper who scored 18 goals in the regular season. "It's amazing to feel so much confidence in the people around you when you play with someone like Thierry Henry, who is incredible and assisted on so many of my goals this year," said Cooper. The other semi-final, which is already set, features Real Salt Lake, winners in 2009, against the league's best supported team, the Seattle Sounders. The Sounders have reached the playoffs in all three of their previous seasons since coming into the league but have never won a series. RSL have developed an attractive passing style of play under coach Jason Kreis and will start as favourites, especially if Seattle striker Eddie Johnson, the team's top scorer with 14 goals, fails to recover from a hamstring injury. A huge crowd is expected for the second-leg in Seattle. The Sounders have averaged 43,144 in the regular season, by far the largest in the league.

El Shaarawy rescues point as Milan fight back

AC Milan bounced back from a dismal first-half performance to draw 2-2 at Palermo in Serie A on Tuesday, Stephan El Shaarawy scoring the equaliser with his seventh league goal of the season. Fabrizio Miccoli converted a penalty on the stroke of halftime to put Palermo ahead and Franco Brienza made it 2-0 immediately after the break as they threatened to hand another defeat to struggling Milan and their coach Massimiliano Allegri. But Milan suddenly reacted with Riccardo Montolivo pulling one back after 69 minutes before the 20-year-old El Shaarawy rescued a point with 10 minutes left, denying 17th-placed Palermo a second win in 10 games. Milan have 11 points from 10 games and lie 11th, 14 behind unbeaten leaders Juventus, while Palermo have eight. Miccoli was a constant menace for Milan in the first half as he dragged a shot wide of the goal, skimmed the crossbar following a bad back pass and curled a free kick narrowly past the post. It was no surprise when Palermo's playmaker put them ahead from a penalty awarded after an Ignazio Abate handball. Milan's situation worsened two minutes into the second half when Brienza scored with a low, curling left-foot shot from just outside the area which was misjudged by goalkeeper Marco Amelia. As the media began sharpening their knives again for Allegri, the coach changed the face of the game by bringing on Bojan Krkic and Giampaolo Pazzini. Milan suddenly took control with Krkic in a central role and Montolivo pulled one back with a deflected shot. The visitors continued to dominate and El Shaarawy, the bright spot of an otherwise turbulent season, fired a deserved equaliser 11 minutes later after Samir Ujkani could only parry a Milan shot.