Spain midfielder Thiago Alcantara has been ruled out of next month's World Cup in Brazil after suffering a fresh knee injury, his club Bayern Munich confirmed on Thursday.

The 23-year-old will undergo more surgery after again tearing the medial ligament in his right knee -- the same injury which has kept him out since March -- in club training on Monday.

Miami and San Antonio both advanced to the NBA conference finals in contrasting fashion on Wednesday, with the Heat storming over the top of Brooklyn to pinch a narrow victory while the Spurs cruised past Portland.

Miami trailed almost the entire game and was eight points down with less than five minutes left but found a way to pull out a 96-94 win that clinched a 4-1 series victory and a place in the Eastern Conference finals for the fourth-straight year. The Heat will face either Indiana or Washington.

Penalty specialists Sevilla beat Benfica 4-2 in a shootout to win the Europa League after a 0-0 draw in the final on Wednesday, claiming another international title for Spanish football.

Sevilla goalkeeper Beto saved two spot kicks from Benfica forwards Oscar Cardozo and Rodrigo who failed to deceive with stutter-step approaches to the ball.

Roger Federer's focus appeared to drift away from the Foro Italico.

And that was understandable.

High-scoring Russia routed Kazakhstan 7-2 on Wednesday for its fourth straight victory at the ice hockey world championship.

Sergei Plotnikov scored twice on power plays, and Viktor Tikhonov had one goal. They each have four goals, tied for the most in the tournament. Tikhonov also added three assists, while Plotnikov had two.

Oscar Pistorius was ordered by a judge on Wednesday to undergo psychiatric tests, meaning that the double-amputee athlete's murder trial will be interrupted, possibly for two months.

The decision by Judge Thokozile Masipa followed a request for a psychiatric evaluation by the chief prosecutor, Gerrie Nel. The prosecutor had said he had no option but to ask for it after an expert witness for the defense testified that Pistorius had an anxiety disorder since childhood that may have influenced his judgment when he fatally shot his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp.

Luis Suarez is urging his Uruguayan teammates to learn from the fallout of Liverpool's season with the World Cup looming.

Suarez said on Friday that Liverpool's title run was wrecked because it "lacked concentration" in a late season 2-0 loss at home to Chelsea.

Luka Modric and Mario Mandzukic were included in Croatia's experienced 30-man provisional squad for the World Cup on Wednesday.

The skillful Real Madrid midfielder, with 73 appearances for Croatia, and the prolific Bayern Munich striker, with 54 caps, are expected to form the spine of country's team at the World Cup, where it will play host Brazil, Mexico and Cameroon in Group A.

Andy Murray kept his focus amid swirling winds to beat Spanish opponent Marcel Granollers 6-2, 7-5 Wednesday in the second round of the Italian Open.

After taking control early in the first set, the Wimbledon champion closed the match with a break.

UEFA is to propose a new rule that would see players temporarily removed from the pitch if a foul they have committed injures another player, referees' chief Pierluigi Collina said Wednesday.

Collina, speaking at a UEFA meeting in Turin ahead of the Europa League final between Sevilla and Benfica, said the change would be put forward to the International Football Association Board (IFAB) at the start of next year.