Sports Briefs

■ Cricket
Warne ready for action
Australia leg spinner Shane Warne, banned for a year after a positive drugs test, will return to the national side today for a warm-up match against a Sri Lanka President's XI. Warne, 34, missed last year's World Cup after he was suspended for taking a diuretic. He was recalled to the Australia side for their tour of Sri Lanka after one first class match. "It's good to have him back around us again," captain Ricky Ponting told reporters yesterday. "Everyone understands that it has been a pretty tough 12 months for him. He has worked exceptionally hard, looks in great shape and is apparently bowling very well. He is one of the all-time greats and if you can slot those kind of guys back into your side then you will have a bit more of an aura when you take the field."

■ Soccer
Goalkeeper dies in match
Guatemala international goalkeeper Danny Ortiz died Sunday after colliding with an opponent during a Guatemalan league soccer match. Ortiz, who was playing for Municipal, crashed into Comunicaciones forward Mario Rodriguez, suffering a hard blow to the chest that left him briefly unconscious on the field. The 27-year-old was taken to a hospital, where he was said to be in stable condition, but he later died. "Unfortunately, his heart did not respond," said team physician Dr. Jorge Jerez in a joint news conference with hospital doctors. Comunicaciones won the match between Guatemala's two most popular clubs 2-0. Ortiz debuted in the first division in 1998, and also played for Comunicaciones. Two years ago, Municipal player Johnny Aldana died during a training session.

■ Motor racing
Hornish wins Indy 300
The IRL season opener turned into a Penske shootout, with newcomer Sam Hornish passing teammate Helio Castroneves on the last lap to win Sunday's Toyota Indy 300. "I just got the right move at the right time," said Hornish, a two-time IndyCar Series champion and now a three-time winner in four tries at Homestead Miami Speedway. The 200-lap race on the 2.4km oval was filled with passing and two- and three-wide racing that kept fans on their feet. Castroneves recalled that Hornish passed him on the outside on the last lap of the 2002 season at Texas to take away the series championship. "I said, `This guy's not going to beat me on the outside,"' Castroneves said. "If I let him go on the outside, I would not sleep today. Unfortunately, he beat me on the inside anyway."