Andrea Pirlo acknowledged his Juventus players are mentally drained but urged them to secure Champions League football next season "at all costs".
A late double from Cristiano Ronaldo helped Juve fight back from a goal down to beat Udinese 2-1 on Sunday as they climbed up to third place in Serie A.
The Bianconeri are level on 69 points with Atalanta in second and Milan in fourth, and two points above fifth-placed Napoli, with four games remaining.
Juve's performance against Udinese lacked intensity but the win eased some of the pressure on Pirlo's position as head coach as he explained the reason behind their struggles.
Pirlo told Sky Italia: "When you are not used to fighting for the Champions League, but you have always been used to the Scudetto, something changes in everyone's mind.
"There is a bit of everything. Tiredness, mental fatigue. But now the goal has changed for a few weeks now and we have to reach Champions League qualification at all costs.
"It will be tiring, but we must get there. The team knows what it wants, it's united to reach the Champions League goal. That's the most important thing."
No team has won more points from behind than Juventus in Serie A this term (17, alongside Sassuolo) and Pirlo praised his players for their capacity to fight back on the day Inter secured the Serie A title.
"This victory came with difficulty, with pride," he added. "It was also important in view of the results of the afternoon to win. We had complicated our lives for the umpteenth time by giving away a goal with big carelessness.
"But there was a great desire to bring home the result, right up to the end, so this is the most important thing.
"My congratulations to Inter and Antonio Conte – they had a great season and they deserved it.
"For us, a cycle of nine straight league titles comes to an end and another one begins. We want to fight for the Scudetto again."
Ronaldo has scored 16 of his 27 goals so far this season on the road, and no player has scored more away goals in the top-five European leagues.
He has also scored seven goals against Udinese in his Serie A career, and only against Cagliari (eight) has he done better in the competition.
"Ronaldo is a champion, he always wants to improve," Pirlo said of the Portugal forward.
"He gave the team positivity and made good plays. Today we clung to him, but the whole team did well reacting in the best way to get to three big points."
After the high of Saturday’s victory over three-time champion Johan Kristofferson, Jamaica’s Fraser McConnell had to settle for third place in today’s (May 2) round of competition at the 2021 RallyX Nordic Supercar competition in Denmark.
Lewis Hamilton is relishing his Formula One title fight with Max Verstappen and expects the battle to go to the wire, by which point the pair are "going to be sick of each other".
Defending champion Hamilton landed another blow at Sunday's Portuguese Grand Prix, winning ahead of Verstappen to stretch his championship lead to eight points.
The Mercedes and Red Bull rivals have been the top two in all three races so far this season, with Verstappen boosted by the apparent superior pace in his car.
That superiority was less apparent in Portimao, where the Dutchman repeatedly complained of a lack of grip, even telling Sky Sports: "I hope we don't come back."
But Verstappen was still Hamilton's nearest challenger and the Briton is enjoying a "great fight".
"It's very tight," Hamilton told a news conference. "I saw that he'd gone in for the fastest lap and got it but obviously Valtteri [Bottas] ended up with it at the end.
"As you can see, it's a great fight between Mercedes and Red Bull – I'm sure also down the field.
"It's clear that we just have to continue. We're going to be pushing each other right until the last race.
"We're going to be sick of each other, I imagine, or at least sick of racing, because there are so many races."
Verstappen responded: "It's close. I wish it was closer. But it's a long season and we can't afford to have any retirements or silly mistakes, so we have to keep on doing what we're doing."
Hamilton won the championship by 124 points in 2020 and even then Silver Arrows team-mate Valtteri Bottas was the man in second.
Although he suggested Red Bull's standards slipped this week – seemingly relating to the grip issue – Hamilton welcomed the competition.
"I'm massively excited and driven," Hamilton said. "I think we all are, as a team, to be in the fight with Red Bull.
"This weekend I feel like Red Bull lost a little bit of performance, because I don't think we improved. From the last race to here, I think they took a slight step closer to us for whatever reason.
"But this is great. This is what we all live for. This is what we live and breathe for, to get up and fight and try to pull out the smallest bits of performance to be able to fight a great competitor."
Despite his own complaints, Verstappen acknowledged Red Bull cannot afford to make excuses if they plan to beat Mercedes.
He added: "Clearly we still have to improve and do better because we should be fast on every single track in every single condition, because the track is the same for everyone."
Delhi Capitals piled on the pain for Punjab Kings and KL Rahul by racing to a seven-wicket victory in the Indian Premier League and going top of the table.
It was revealed earlier on Sunday that Kings captain and star batsman Rahul faces surgery after being diagnosed with acute appendicitis, and he was in hospital while this match played out at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
In his absence, stand-in skipper Mayank Agarwal made a dominant 99 not out in a total of 166-6, helming the Kings innings and cutting loose when he saw fit in a terrific 58-ball knock that contained four sixes and eight fours.
Shikhar Dhawan produced the key innings for the Capitals in response, making an unbeaten 69 and finding the sort of support that Agarwal lacked, helping Delhi to 167-3, winning with 14 balls to spare.
Agarwal had required five from the final ball of the Kings innings to post what would have been just the second IPL century of his career, but he could only crunch a four down the ground rather than clear the ropes.
Kagiso Rabada had earlier taken two wickets in his first two overs, the second coming when he bowled Kings veteran Chris Gayle with a full toss immediately after being cracked for six by the West Indies batsman.
That was the first of three sixes off Rabada's bowling, but the South African paceman also removed Prabhsimran Singh and Chris Jordan while taking 3-36 in his four-over allocation.
Dawid Malan made 26 but it was ostensibly a one-man show as Agarwal contended with a revolving cast of batting partners.
Delhi had more about them, with Prithvi Shaw making 39 in a 63-run first-wicket stand alongside Dhawan, before Steve Smith added 25.
Shimron Hetmyer launched Riley Meredith for two consecutive sixes followed by a cover drive for four in the 18th over, leaving Delhi just two short of their victory target.
Neither Hetmyer nor Dhawan had the privilege of finishing the job, however, with a pair of wides from Meredith carrying the Capitals over the line.
Agarwal deserved better
Not only did he take over as captain, Agarwal also led by proud example, just as Rahul as so often done. His innings was the standout performance of this match, but where he rose to the occasion, others in the Kings ranks wilted. Gayle, with 13, was the team's third highest scorer, and it is almost impossible to win matches that way.
Getting all Het up
Hetmyer's late care-free cameo of 16 from four deliveries would likely not have happened without his team-mates laying solid foundations. They did so in the face of largely unthreatening bowling from Punjab, who sit sixth with three wins from eight games, amid doubts over whether their leader will be back in action this season.
Nikoloz Basilashvili won a fifth ATP Tour title as he triumphed at the BMW Open on Sunday.
The Georgian completed an impressive week in Munich by beating Jan-Lennard Struff 6-4 7-6 (7-5) to clinch the trophy without dropping a set in his five matches.
The win continued what has been a solid 2021 for Basilashvili, who won the title in Doha in March after defeating Roger Federer in his second match following his return from injury.
After retiring from his opening match in Monte Carlo last month before losing to Jeremy Chardy in Barcelona, the world number 35 had looked in fine form in Munich before battling to victory against Struff in just under 86 minutes.
"It wasn't easy and I was super-tight at the end," said Basilashvili. "It was very difficult. It's never easy playing Jan, he's a very big fighter and serves really well.
"I am super happy. It seems like German conditions suit me. This is my fifth [ATP Tour] title and it will give me confidence for the upcoming tournaments."
At the Estoril Open, Albert Ramos-Vinolas emerged victorious from a marathon final against Cameron Norrie.
The 33-year-old was a set and a break down but rallied to win 4-6 6-3 7-6 (7-3) in two hours and 44 minutes in Portugal.
It was the Spaniard's third Tour title and took him to a 16-5 record on clay this season. He has at least seven more wins on the surface than any other ATP player this season.
Naomi Osaka suffered a shock second-round exit to Karolina Muchova at the Madrid Open, but there was no such trouble for Simona Halep as she held off Zheng Saisai.
Second seed Osaka was playing just her second match on clay since the 2019 French Open due to injury issues and became the latest big name to fall at the hands of Muchova.
The world number 20, who had already defeated two top-five players this season, prevailed 6-4 3-6 6-1 in a time of one hour and 49 minutes in the Spanish capital.
Osaka has now lost two of her last three matches, having been eliminated from the Miami Open quarter-finals by Maria Sakkari at the end of March.
"I think today for me it was quite different from the last time I lost in Miami, and I actually think I played much better here, so I'm very happy about that," Osaka said.
"I think what I can take away from this is that I tried my best throughout the entire match. I think tennis-wise, I felt I was too defensive in the first set.
"I wouldn't say I’m happy that I lost, but I think I learned a lot. So that's all I can hope for."
Two-time champion Halep has yet to drop a set in this year's tournament after seeing off unseeded opponent Zheng 6-0 6-4.
Halep took nine games in a row at the start of the match but, like in her opening-round win over Sara Sorribes Tormo, she had to hold off a late surge from her opponent to advance.
Next up for Halep is a last-16 showdown with Elise Mertens, who beat Elena Rybakina 7-6 (7-4) 7-5 in the last of Sunday's matches.
Fifth seed Aryna Sabalenka safely advanced earlier in the day thanks to a 6-3 6-3 win against Daria Kasatkina, while Sakkari beat Anett Kontaveit 6-3 6-1.
Sabalenka was on course to face Victoria Azarenka for a place in the quarter-finals, but the Belarussian withdrew from her match with Jessica Pegula because of a back injury.
Elsewhere, Jennifer Brady, who knocked out fellow American Venus Williams in the first round, eased past Jelena Ostapenko 6-2 6-1.
Brady faces a tricky test in the next round with Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, who defeated sixth seed Karolina Pliskova 6-0 7-5, seeking another scalp.
A late Cristiano Ronaldo double gave Juventus a 2-1 win over Udinese in Serie A on Sunday which boosted their hopes of qualifying for next season's Champions League.
Udinese went into the break ahead when Juve's defence switched off after a free-kick was awarded and Nahuel Molina's low shot found its way beyond Wojciech Szczesny.
Juventus fleetingly showed moments of quality but equalised with an 83rd-minute spot-kick from Ronaldo, awarded after the Portugal forward's free-kick moments earlier struck the arm of Rodrigo de Paul.
Ronaldo added a second with one minute left when he headed in Adrien Rabiot's cross at the back post to secure a dramatic late win for Andrea Pirlo, who raced down the touchline to celebrate with Juve's players.
Kemar Roach took career-best figures of 8-40 and 10 wickets in the match as Surrey defeated Hampshire by an innings and 289 runs in their English County Cricket match that ended on Friday.
Roach began the match taking 2-40 in Hampshire’s first innings of 92 all out. However, it was Jordan Clarke who did the bulk of the damage taking 6-21. Lewis McManus top-scored with 31 for Hampshire in their innings that lasted just 34.3 overs.
The situation would only become even direr for Hampshire as 215 from Hashim Amla, 131 from Ollie Pope 131 and knocks of 80 and 78 from Jamie Smith and Roy Burns, respectively, propelled Surrey to 560 for 7 declared.
Roach then moved in for the kill.
Getting prodigious swing both ways, the Barbadian took three in eight balls towards the end of his first spell, two in seven in his second, and three in 13 in his third as Hampshire folded for 179 in their second turn at-bat.
“It was going conventionally, not reversing," Roach said.
"The way I gripped the ball was a little looser today. It was overcast conditions so the ball was going to do something once you put it in the right areas and stayed strong at the crease. The guys worked incredibly well on the ball and the information I got on the field about different batsmen and their weaknesses worked fantastically."
Once again, McManus was Hampshire’s top scorer with 51.
Roach’s 10-80 was also a career-best for the veteran West Indies pace bowler.
Juventus chairman Andrea Agnelli congratulated Inter on their Serie A triumph but promised his club would make every effort to win back the Scudetto.
After nine consecutive league titles, the long reign of Juventus was officially ended on Sunday as Inter wrapped up the 2020-21 championship.
Atalanta's failure to beat Sassuolo – that game finished 1-1 – meant Antonio Conte's Inter were home and dry with four games to spare.
Juventus, meanwhile, face a battle just to secure a top-four finish and Champions League football next season.
For all their defending of Andrea Pirlo, the first-time head coach has not made the impression that Juventus would have wanted this season.
They followed up last season's Scudetto by winning the Supercoppa with a win over Napoli in January, but it has been a largely disappointing campaign for the Turin giants.
"For ten years in a row we have won a trophy ... not bad, but the best will always be the next!" Agnelli wrote on Twitter.
In an apparent message to Inter chairman Steven Zhang, Agnelli added: "Well done Steven! Happy for you and proud of being your loyal opponent on the pitch and friend off the pitch. We’ll be back..."
Agnelli was one of the main protagonists behind the recent failed Super League project, with Inter and Milan having also been lined up to join that now apparently quashed competition.
Juventus sporting director Fabio Paratici mixed praise for triumphant Inter with reflection on what the Bianconeri achieved in past seasons.
Paratici told Sky Sport Italia: "I congratulate the club and Conte. We know that behind every success there is passion and sacrifice.
"We know how much effort we have given to win and be top of the class for 2,382 days. We have accomplished a historic feat, unique in Italian football and, probably, also in world football. Congratulations to Inter for a well-deserved Scudetto."
La Rochelle earned a convincing 32-23 victory over Leinster at Stade Marcel Deflandre to reach their first European Champions Cup final.
The French side, who had never previously made it as far as the last four, will now face fellow Top 14 club Toulouse at Twickenham on May 22.
Leinster have won the competition on four previous occasions and started Sunday's contest brightly through Tadhg Furlong's eighth-minute try.
The hosts were a man short at that point after Wiaan Liebenberg was sin-binned for an offside infringement, but they hit back thanks to a penalty and drop goal from Ihaia West.
West was successful from a couple more kicks before half-time, but only after Ross Byrne had added six points from the boot for Leinster in a tightly-contested opening period that ended with the visitors ahead by one.
That kicking battle ensued in the early stages of the second period when Byrne responded to West edging La Rochelle in front for the first time in the contest.
Leinster were a point to the good at that point but lost James Lowe to a yellow card for not rolling away in what proved to be a pivotal moment in an entertaining clash.
West split the sticks once more to restore his side's advantage and Gregory Alldritt found a way over the line 15 minutes from time, which West inevitably added to with the extras.
La Rochelle pushed for another try to seal the win and they found it as Will Skelton broke away from the driving maul to start the celebrations.
Byrne had the final say in terms of the scoring by finding a gap and dotting down late on, but La Rochelle comfortably held on to set up an all-French final at Twickenham.
Lewis Hamilton insisted Sunday's win at Portimao was "such a tough race" despite easing clear of Red Bull title rival Max Verstappen and pole-sitting Mercedes team-mate Valtteri Bottas.
Hamilton qualified in second and fell to third early in the race as Verstappen raced past him coming out of a safety car situation.
But the defending champion's skill and speed came to the fore as he outmanoeuvred the two men ahead of him.
Hamilton also reeled in Sergio Perez, who had stayed out on his tyres in a desperate attempt to hold up the 2021 Formula One leader.
A comfortable margin of victory gave Hamilton a second win of the season, having finished second in the other race, but he was keen to emphasise the difficulty of the task.
The Mercedes superstar, while acknowledging "today wasn't all perfect", said: "That was such a tough race, physically and mentally, just keeping everything together.
"It was very windy out there, obviously, so it was very easy to put a foot wrong.
"I didn't quite get as good a start as Valtteri and then lost out on the restart, which I was not happy about, naturally. I really had to try to position myself the best I could.
"I think Max made a mistake at some point through the lap, which was perfect. I knew that was going to be the lap I was going to get as close as I could to him in the last sector.
"With Valtteri, I had to make the move early on before the tyres were destroyed. I managed to just get him at Turn One, just where I wanted him. It was a great race."
Verstappen had bemoaned the tricky conditions after qualifying, saying the Portuguese Grand Prix had "not been a lot of fun to drive".
"Hopefully everything stabilises," he added on Saturday, but Turn 14 continued to test the Red Bull, errors at that corner letting Hamilton in and later denying the Dutchman the fastest lap as he ran wide.
"I think this was a bit of an odd weekend in terms of grip," Verstappen said. "We were not on top of it, but we'll see what we can do in Barcelona."
Bottas, who profited to claim the fastest lap but finished third, was not happy either.
"It was a little tricky day today," the Finn said. "I don't know what happened in the first stint, I just didn't have the pace for unknown reasons.
"I need to have a look at that. The second stint was pretty good but there was an issue with some sensor or something."
Manchester United's home match against Liverpool was postponed after Red Devils fans earlier entered Old Trafford in an anti-Glazer protest.
Lewis Hamilton continued his excellent start to the 2021 Formula One season with a masterful display to win the Portuguese Grand Prix.
Defending champion Hamilton – pursuing a record-breaking eighth title – won the opener at Bahrain and battled back to a heroic P2 after a crash at Imola last month.
That gave the Mercedes superstar a one-point lead over Max Verstappen in the standings heading to Portimao, and he increased that advantage on Sunday.
Hamilton started from second, behind team-mate Valtteri Bottas in pole, but produced another inspired performance.
The Briton initially trailed Bottas, who caught his colleague cold and pushed further clear coming out of a safety car for Kimi Raikkonen's tangle with team-mate Antonio Giovinazzi.
Verstappen beat Hamilton into Turn One to climb to second after the safety car and was then hunting Bottas.
But after failing to sufficiently close the gap, Verstappen lost pace on the remainder of that lap and Hamilton went past him as they crossed the same section of the track again.
It was Turn One again that gave Hamilton the opening for another smart manoeuvre, making use of DRS to take the outside when Bottas stayed tight on the inside.
Hamilton informed his team those overtakes had left his tyres "pretty shot", prompting a tactical battle.
Verstappen pitted first and Bottas quickly followed, but a slower stop meant he was soon caught and overtaken despite emerging ahead of the Red Bull.
Hamilton had enough of a lead to pit without falling behind either man, instead eventually catching Sergio Perez, who had been left out on the track until that point, perhaps hoping for a safety car.
There would be no further twist as Hamilton claimed a second consecutive Portimao triumph, leading a familiar podium – Hamilton, Verstappen and Bottas have now shared the steps on a record 15 occasions.
Verstappen missed out on the consolation of the fastest lap, his best time deleted after both he and Bottas, who would claim the extra point, had pitted for the final lap while Hamilton opted not to take the risk.
'YOU'RE RACING HIM!'
So slow was Perez by the time Hamilton caught him, the Mercedes man thought he was lapping a straggler.
Apparently unaware he had not himself been leading the race to that point, Hamilton appealed for a blue flag for the Mexican.
"No, you're racing him," replied Mercedes over the team radio. "He's yet to stop."
THE MIDFIELD MASTER
While Hamilton is again proving himself to be the best driver among those in the leading cars, Lando Norris heads the midfield battle.
He was fourth in Bahrain and third in Imola but this time had to settle for fifth – beaten by Perez for the first time this season.
That was an impressive result after qualifying in seventh, Norris following Bottas and Verstappen in making a fast restart after the safety car but, unlike those two, making his advantage last.
Ajax wrapped up a 35th Dutch league title as Erik ten Hag saw his team thrash Emmen 4-0 at the Johan Cruijff ArenA.
Their latest Eredivisie triumph arrived on Sunday as Ajax completed a league and cup double.
It came just two days after head coach Ten Hag signed a new two-year contract with the club, amid reported interest from Tottenham.
Goals from Jurrien Timber, Sebastien Haller, Devyne Rensch and Davy Klaassen saw the Amsterdam giants sweep to a crushing win.
The result took them to 79 points from 31 games, with second-placed PSV no longer able to catch their great rivals.
Ajax also won the KNVB Beker – the Netherlands' cup competition – by beating Vitesse 2-1 in the final two weeks ago.
Last season's Eredivisie was abandoned due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with Ajax level on points with AZ Alkmaar at the top after 25 games, and no champions were crowned.
They have dominated in this campaign, losing only two games so far, with three full rounds of matches remaining.
Only twice before have they clinched the title with at least three rounds left to play, doing so previously in the 1971-72 and 1997-98 campaigns.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
