JuJu Smith-Schuster has confirmed the prospect of playing with Patrick Mahomes was a key factor in his decision to join the Kansas City Chiefs.
The one-time Pro Bowler had spent his entire NFL career to date with the Pittsburgh Steelers but announced his departure on Friday.
On social media, Mahomes soon welcomed the arrival in Kansas City of a wide receiver with 323 catches for 3,855 receiving yards and 26 receiving touchdowns across 63 games in five seasons.
After Smith-Schuster secured a one-year, $10.75million deal, Mahomes sent him a Twitter message, which read: "Turn me up brotha!!!"
His new Chiefs team-mate replied: "Can't wait to get after it my boy!"
But that was not their first conversation around the move, as Smith-Schuster revealed when facing the media as a Chief for the first time.
"I had talked to a couple of guys, obviously, to make this happen. I talked to Pat a couple of times. I'd talked to Pat multiple times before even all this. I've known Pat for a while now, so, yeah, of course.
"You go into free agency, and you find out who's going to be throwing you the ball next year. It came down to Pat, and I'm excited. I'm happy with my decision."
Taken in the second round in the 2017 NFL Draft, Smith-Schuster was an instant hit with seven receiving TDs in each of his first two seasons, including a pair of 97-yard scores – becoming the first player in NFL history to have multiple offensive TDs of that distance or more.
There were 1,426 receiving yards in 2018, before a step back in 2019 was followed by a career-high nine receiving TDs in 2020.
Limited to five games by a shoulder injury while the Steelers toiled on offense with the retiring Ben Roethlisberger still at quarterback, Smith-Schuster's only score last season was his first career rushing TD.
The 25-year-old is confident the Chiefs are a good fit for him, though.
"I just thought that this opportunity fit more for me in the sense of coming here, playing for Andy [Reid] and obviously the OC [Eric Bieniemy], Joe [Bleymaier] and everyone else," he said.
"I've seen an opportunity that I can take on and where I can improve my skills and see what I can do.
"I'm a physical guy coming in here to showcase those talents. That's what I bring with myself, in the package.
"I'm here to work. We have a great team, there are some great guys, and this is why I came to be a part of this. I came here to win."
The Rugby Football Union's (RFU) claim England made progress during a tough Six Nations campaign has been criticised by ex-international Ugo Monye, who called their statement "dishonest".
Eddie Jones' side finished a distant third behind Ireland and Grand Slam winners France, managing just two wins from their five games.
It marked a second successive dismal Six Nations, far removed from reaching the final of the 2019 World Cup that marked the high point of the Australian's tenure in charge.
Now, a year-and-a-half out from the 2023 World Cup in France, the RFU has sought to frame their results as stepping stones, but Monye – a 14-time England international – believes such claims are untruthful.
"I want to know who in the RFU thinks that signifies progress and are happy with how things are," Monye told BBC Sport's Rugby Union Daily podcast.
"Fundamentally it's just dishonest. There isn't progress. With the financial backing, the player pool and the coaching staff they have you cannot be winning two out of five games two years in a row.
Lewis Hamilton admitted he does not think Mercedes will be more competitive at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, but believes his podium finish in Bahrain has still boosted spirits.
Mercedes struggled with their new W13 car through much of the weekend at Sakhir, but came away with a surprise third-place finish after both Red Bulls failed in the final laps, allowing Hamilton – who had qualified fifth – to capitalise.
While Hamilton has already stated their result was "the best result we could have got" in the circumstances, the seven-time world champion doubts they will be up to the pace in Jeddah.
"No, I don't think so," he said in a news conference. "Of course we've learned a lot from this week. The car was very hard to drive but it could always be worse.
"I’m hoping for the next race we manage to find some improvements but it's a fundamental issue that's going to take a little bit longer I think to fix."
Mercedes previously considered their objective in Bahrain to be damage limitation given their disadvantage, but Hamilton agreed they had been lifted by their unexpected reward.
"I think [it is] incredibly motivating for the whole team," he added. "Everyone’s stayed positive, everyone's just kept their head down and kept working. No one moaned.
"In terms of our processes, in terms of squeezing absolutely everything out of the car, I think that's what we did today. I think that's a true showing of strength within.
"It is such a long season. It's going to be such a hard battle but we love a challenge. I really do enjoy a challenge."
Hamilton would have missed third without the double retirement that hit both Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez, but the seven-time world champion refused to consider it karma for last year's Abu Dhabi final.
"I don't have a response to it," he added. "I just focused on our job. Obviously it was unfortunate for them today but, yeah, I just focus on positives."
Charles Leclerc and Carlos claimed a Ferrari one-two to emerge as the early pacesetters of the season.
Houston Astros second baseman Jose Altuve was surprised about long-time team-mate Carlos Correa's move to the Minnesota Twins.
The pair, who won the 2017 World Series together and were part of the Astros' side that lost last year's edition 4-2 to the Atlanta Braves, will be split up after Correa inked a bumper deal with the Twins.
Correa was declared a free agent for the first time in his career in November and rejected a qualifying offer from the Astros, before the Twins won the race to land him amid interest from several top teams.
Despite that interest and two-time All-Star Correa arguably being the most coveted free agent left on the market, the 27-year-old ended up with the Twins, who finished last in the American League (AL) Central last season with a 73-89 record.
"I was surprised. I wasn't expecting that," Altuve said. "Obviously we're going to miss him. He's a great player and a great guy inside the clubhouse. He was one of our leaders."
Altuve, who played alongside Correa since 2015, added: "Now that he's on another team, I'm happy for him. He got a great deal. Happy for him. I know he's going to play good. He's going to make the Twins better."
Shortstop Correa has reportedly signed with the Twins on a three-year, $105.3million deal, making him the MLB's highest paid infielder on average annual salary.
Correa is a career .277 hitter with 133 home runs, batting at .279 with 26 home runs and 92 RBIs last season, along with claiming his first Gold Glove. Puerto Rico-born Correa finished fifth in AL MVP voting last season.
Denver Nuggets head coach Michael Malone has slammed his side claiming that they "gave in and quit" in Sunday's 124-104 loss to the Boston Celtics.
The Nuggets trailed 68-43 at half-time after a 46-21 run to the Celtics, leading to Malone benching several starters for the third quarter, including MVP Nikola Jokic who shot eight-of-23 from the field for his 23 points.
Malone was livid with his side, who slipped to a 42-30 record and seventh spot in the Western Conference.
"To me, it appeared we just kind of gave in and quit. I didn't want to reward that behaviour," Malone told reporters after the game.
"I thought the bench unit was at least going out there and competing and fighting."
Malone added: "If somebody’s kicking our ass and we’re fighting and competing, and they’re better than us, so be it,"
"They’re a very good team, but if we’re getting our butts kicked, and we’re just taking it, possession after possession, heads are dropped, body language giving in, I’m not going to reward that behaviour.
"There’s principles in life, and that goes against every principle inside my body."
Jokic was well down on his usual output with eight rebounds and four assists along with his 23 points, while starters Aaron Gordon (13 points, four rebounds), Monte Morris (seven points, four rebounds and four assists), Will Barton (eight points and five rebounds) and Jeff Green (six points and one rebound) struggled for impact.
"Tonight I can't point to one thing we did well," Malone said.
Jokic added: "Overall, they had a really good defensive game and I had a really bad offensive game."
Jayson Tatum, who was serenaded with "MVP" chants from the Celtics crowd, was joint top scorer with 30 points along with Jaylen Brown.
Boston's win improves their record to 44-28 and fourth in the east, having won three in a row and 10 of their past 12 games.
Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said his team needs to appreciate a decreased margin for error with Stephen Curry injured, after their 110-108 home loss to the San Antonio Spurs.
Curry is in a race to return to the court before the playoffs begin in April, and the Warriors felt his absence, getting out-shot from long range by the 28-44 Spurs, currently 11th in the Western Conference.
The Warriors have been undermanned all season with their big-man stocks as James Wiseman, the second pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, is yet to make his season debut.
Coach Kerr stressed this point, and pointed out that he did not feel like his team brought the requisite intensity before it was too late.
"We have to understand – and I told the guys this at half-time and after the game – that we're undermanned," he said.
"There's 11 games left now, and we're looking at the playoffs, and there's gotta be a sense of urgency.
"There's gotta be a sense of competitive fight that we take to the other team from the very beginning of the game, and I did not see that until we were really late in the game.
"We were great in that fourth quarter, fighting like crazy, but we need to fight like crazy from the start."
Formula One managing director Ross Brawn is tentatively satisfied by the racing impact of new regulations, following the Bahrain Grand Prix on Sunday.
Following an era dominated by the Mercedes team, significant regulation changes have been made for the 2022 season, to allow for closer racing.
Brawn, who was tasked with implementing the regulation changes by Formula One, praised the "raceability" of the current cars in comparison to previous years.
"We're delighted," Brawn told Sky Sports F1 post-race. "It is the first race so we have to be careful but all the signs are that we have moved in the direction that we wanted to move in, and the ability of the cars to race each other has improved.
"In the past we have always focused on car safety and performance. Now we should focus on raceability. That should be in there as well, because there's never been any attention paid to it."
Some of the biggest regulation changes for 2022 relate to aerodynamic output and cleaning up the turbulent wake that quickly overheated following cars in recent past, affecting the potential of wheel-to-wheel racing, despite the optimal increase in performance.
Though lap times during winter testing reflect slower overall performance, Charles Leclerc's win at Sakhir on Sunday didn't come until after a closely fought battle with reigning world champion Max Verstappen.
Brawn believes Formula One is on the path to finding balance.
"We could see from previous cars, you could simply see the downforce or the aerodynamic performance of the car that was following degrading hugely when it was behind another car," he said.
"We (Formula One) can't see the data because we're the commercial rights holder, but the FIA will now look at all the data of the cars and from that, put that into the research program to see how we can improve it further.
"I think anecdotally, you could see the cars can race a lot better."
The ascending Boston Celtics added another scalp to their resume, holding reigning MVP Nikola Jokic to his season-worst shooting percentage in a 124-104 win over the Denver Nuggets on Sunday.
In a stunning year-on-year improvement, the Celtics have been the best defence in the NBA this season after finishing 17th in that department this past season.
With new coach Ime Udoka going all-in on a switching defensive system, it was theoretically going to be tested against the best passing big man in league history, and arguably the league's most dominant offensive force.
However, Jokic was bottled up similarly to everyone else the Celtics have played in 2022, going 8-of-23 (34.7 per cent) from the field in the blowout loss.
Jokic, who is shooting 57 per cent from the field for the season, had previously had his worst shooting performance when he went 6-of-17 (35.3 per cent) in an early-December loss against the Chicago Bulls.
Boston's two superstar wings combined for 60 points, as Jayson Tatum posted 30 points (11-of-17 shooting, 6-of-10 from three) with seven assists, while Jaylen Brown had 30 points (12-of-19 shooting, 3-of-6 from three) with six rebounds.
The ascending Boston Celtics added another scalp to their resume, holding reigning MVP Nikola Jokic to his season-worst shooting percentage in a 124-104 win over the Denver Nuggets on Sunday.
In a stunning year-on-year improvement, the Celtics have been the best defence in the NBA this season after finishing 17th in that department this past season.
With new coach Ime Udoka going all-in on a switching defensive system, it was theoretically going to be tested against the best passing big man in league history, and arguably the league's most dominant offensive force.
However, Jokic was bottled up similarly to everyone else the Celtics have played in 2022, going 8-of-23 (34.7 per cent) from the field in the blowout loss.
Jokic, who is shooting 57 per cent from the field for the season, had previously had his worst shooting performance when he went 6-of-17 (35.3 per cent) in an early-December loss against the Chicago Bulls.
Boston's two superstar wings combined for 60 points, as Jayson Tatum posted 30 points (11-of-17 shooting, 6-of-10 from three) with seven assists, while Jaylen Brown had 30 points (12-of-19 shooting, 3-of-6 from three) with six rebounds.
Rafael Nadal is facing new injury concerns, after Taylor Fritz ended his unbeaten streak for 2022 in the Indian Wells Masters final on Sunday.
Having to take a medical timeout during his win in the semi-final against countryman Carlos Alcaraz, the 35-year-old was forced into another injury break against Fritz, before losing 6-3 7-6 (7-5).
Nadal, whose 2021 was halted mid-year due to foot injury after back pain at the start of the season, ultimately rued his inability to fully compete against Fritz.
"I had pain, honestly. I had problems breathing," he said post-match. "I don't know if it's something on the rib, I don't know yet. When I'm breathing, when I'm moving it's like a needle all the time inside. I get dizzy a little bit because it's painful.
"It's a kind of pain that limits me a lot. It's not only about pain, I don't feel very well because [it] affects my breathing."
Nadal's 20-match unbeaten streak for 2022, which saw him claim the Australian Open and Acapulco titles in the process, also came to an end on Sunday. The world number four said the streak ending before coming into the clay season provides particular sadness.
"Honestly, I wanted to make it perfect before clay. [It] has been very, very, very beautiful," Nadal said.
"Honestly, I am sad because the way I was not able to compete. It's tough to have these feelings….but in the final it's very, very ugly. But in sport it's not about talking of the past, we need to talk about today. And today is a difficult day for me. "
Nadal commended Fritz on the victory, however. The 24-year-old claimed his maiden ATP 1000 title despite carrying an ankle injury.
According to the 21-time grand slam winner, it is a sign of things to come from the American, who had to back up from a tough win over Andrey Rublev in the semi-final on Saturday.
"Victories like today help. He played well. He went through some great matches during this week I think, especially yesterday," he said.
"A lot of credit to him on the victory of yesterday. In my opinion, his victory of yesterday is much bigger than his victory of today because he had [a] much tougher opponent in from yesterday.
"He already played great matches in Australia, this year if I'm not wrong, against [Stefanos] Tsitsipas.
"It's obvious that he is improving. With this victory, it's a great start of the season for him. He will have a chance to be very close if not in the top 10 very soon."
Legendary Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski is through to the Sweet 16 at his last March Madness before he retires.
'Coach K' is in his 42nd season in charge at the school, and is searching for his sixth national championship.
His Blue Devils took on Michigan State and fellow Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame coach Tom Izzo in the second round on Sunday, pulling away late to win 85-76.
Duke boasts three likely first round picks in this year's NBA Draft, and they showed exactly why, headlined by potential number one overall Paolo Banchero.
Banchero, who stands at six-foot-10, showed his all-round game, hitting tough pull-up jump shots, flashing an advanced interior passing game and defensive mobility to finish with a team-high 19 points on 8-of-14 shooting, including 2-of-5 from long range, and an equal team-high four assists.
Two-time NBA MVP Stephen Curry is optimistic he can return from his left foot injury prior to the playoffs.
Curry sprained a ligament in his left foot on March 16 against the Boston Celtics, with the Golden State Warriors stating on Friday that he would be re-evaluated in two weeks.
The Warriors, who held a 47-23 record prior to Sunday's game against the San Antonio Spurs and sit third in the west, will have five regular-season games remaining when Curry is due to be re-evaluated.
The NBA playoffs are due to commence on April 16 and Curry was optimistic about getting in some games prior to that when he spoke to the media on Sunday wearing a boot on his injured foot.
"I think I'll get enough time for that but I'm an optimist," Curry told reporters.
"It was definitely painful at first. But it's getting better by the day. Trying to assess the recovery in real-time, just knowing how much we can push it on a day to day.
"I'm just trying to stay patient and know that it will continue to get better."
Three-time NBA champion Curry has been a key part of the Warriors' success this season, after the side missed the playoffs in 2020 and 2021.
Curry, who broke Ray Allen's all-time NBA record for three-pointers made this season, has scored 25.5 points per game, with 5.2 rebounds and 6.3 assists this season.
Sunday's game against the Spurs will be Golden State's first without Curry since the injury, with the side hoping to hold on to the third seed in the west with the Memphis Grizzlies (49-23) ahead of them, while the Utah Jazz (44-26) and Dallas Mavericks (43-28) are a few games back.
Curry, however, said diligence in recovery was the key with a view to fully recovering from the injury ahead of the playoffs.
"You want to not rush the beginning phases of healing," Curry said. "That's where you can get the most progress so when you put the shoe back on, get back out on the court, you're not dealing with crazy soreness.
"You give yourself a better shot because this is one that if you push it too soon, it can linger and be a real nuisance."
Curry also had no hard feelings towards Celtics guard Marcus Smart who was involved in the incident that led to the injury after head coach Steve Kerr had criticized him for "dangerous play".
"He made the play that he did, but I don't think it was malicious or dirty," Curry said.
Taylor Fritz had never experienced "worse pain in my life before a match" before overcoming an ankle injury to end Rafael Nadal's winning start to the season and win the Indian Wells Masters on Sunday.
The American 20th seed, who has never been further than the fourth round at a major, claimed a breakthrough maiden ATP Masters 1000 title with a 6-3 7-6 (7-5) victory over Nadal in two hours and six minutes.
Fritz, 24, was not sure if he would be able to take his place in Sunday's decider after tweaking his ankle in Saturday's semi-final win over Andrey Rublev which he battled in the lead-up.
The injury was far from ideal preparation coming up against the Spanish fourth seed, who was on a 20-0 run to start 2022 having won January's Australian Open for a record-breaking 21st career major.
"I can't even begin to describe how ridiculous it is that I was able to play how I could play today," Fritz said during his post-match on-court interview. "I've never ever experienced worse pain in my life before a match.
"If I knew it was going to be that bad, I wouldn’t have come out here [beforehand] because I think people saw it. I took a couple of change-of-direction steps and screamed.
"I was trying to act tough as I had cameras on me. It probably looked like I was over-exaggerating the pain with how loud I screamed when I felt it.
"We did a lot of work leading up to the match. I went through a roller-coaster of emotions before the match, from thinking there's no way I could possibly play then to doing so much work on the ankle and going out again hitting on one of the backcourts and being really happy, thinking I can play.
"Really it didn’t affect me out on the court. Unbelievable."
California native Fritz, who reached last year's Indian Wells semi-finals, admitted winning the event was a "childhood dream" and that it did not feel real.
"I'm going to have to hold back tears for every single interview I do and every on-court speech," he said. "This is going to be tough. I'm such a happy crier.
"This is one of those childhood dreams, winning this tournament especially, you never thought would come true. I keep saying 'no way this is real'."
The title is the biggest of Fritz's career to date, triumphing in his first Masters 1000 final, and becoming the first American men's champion at Indian Wells since Andre Agassi in 2001.
Fritz is also the youngest male champion at the event since Novak Djokovic in 2011 and achieved that by ending Nadal's career-best 20-match win streak, denying him a record-tying 37th ATP Masters 1000 title too.
"I've lost these matches against the big guys my whole life," Fritz said. "It's always felt like they're unbeatable. To do it on the biggest stage, there's no other way. To win a big title, I feel like you've got to beat the best."
Taylor Fritz spectacularly claimed his first ATP 1000 trophy on Sunday, defeating Rafael Nadal 6-3 7-6 (7-5) to win the Indian Wells Masters.
Having only won once in his previous five finals, against Sam Querrey at Eastbourne in 2019, the 24-year-old displayed distinct maturity under pressure despite carrying an ankle injury.
The Spanish world number four's undefeated streak coming into Sunday's final ended at 20 with the loss.
For Fritz however, his first Masters title coming in as many finals was difficult to process, especially against an opponent in Nadal in front of his home crowd.
"I've lost these matches against the big guys my whole life," Fritz said in his on-court interview. "It's always felt like they're just unbeatable, so to do it on this stage, you have to beat the best."
"This is just one of those childhood dreams, winning this tournament especially at Indian Wells. This is one of those childhood dreams that you just never think will come true. I just keep saying 'no way this is real'."
Both faced pressure under their respective serves, but Nadal ultimately failed to capitalise on opportunies, converting only twice out of a possible 10 break points.
His 34 unforced errors in comparison to Fritz's 22, in such a closely contested match, contributed to the eventual result.
Fritz overcame his ankle concerns to race to a 4-0 lead in the first set before Nadal, facing his own physical challenges, took a medical time-out after losing the first set.
Nadal saved a championship point to force a tiebreak in the second set. Reflecting the pressure he was under after going down a mini-break, though, the Spaniard's ground strokes teetered dangerously close to the baseline.
The 35-year-old even made rare approaches to the net to turn defence into attack, amid some thrilling exchanges from the baseline, but a scuffed volley from mid-court to set up another Fritz championship point was the last straw despite displaying his trademark doggedness.
Houston Astros second baseman Jose Altuve was surprised about long-time teammate Carlos Correa's move to the Minnesota Twins.
The pair, who won the 2017 World Series together and were part of the Astros' side that lost last year's edition 4-2 to the Atlanta Braves, will be split up after Correa inked a bumper deal with the Twins.
Correa was declared a free agent for the first time in his career in November and rejected a qualifying offer from the Astros, before the Twins won the race to land him amid interest from several top teams.
Despite that interest and two-time All-Star Correa arguably being the most coveted free agent left on the market, the 27-year-old ended up with the Twins, who finished last in the American League (AL) Central last season with a 73-89 record.
"I was surprised. I wasn't expecting that," Altuve said. "Obviously we're going to miss him. He's a great player and a great guy inside the clubhouse. He was one of our leaders."
Altuve, who played alongside Correa since 2015, added: "Now that he's on another team, I'm happy for him. He got a great deal. Happy for him. I know he's going to play good. He's going to make the Twins better."
Shortstop Correa has reportedly signed with the Twins on a three-year, $105.3million deal, making him the MLB's highest paid infielder on average annual salary.
Correa is a career .277 hitter with 133 home runs, batting at .279 with 26 home runs and 92 RBIs last season, along with claiming his first Gold Glove. Puerto Rico-born Correa finished fifth in AL MVP voting last season.
Sam Burns secured his third PGA Tour victory in 22 starts, defeating Davis Riley in a playoff at the Valspar Championship on Sunday.
Burns defended his crown against his friend and Junior Ryder Cup teammate, birdieing the second playoff hole with a tough putt from the edge of the green on the notoriously difficult par-four 16th at Copperhead.
"It was crazy. Davis played really well, especially the way he finished," Burns said afterwards. "We didn't make a lot of mistakes, and I think a lot of times on Sundays, if you can plot your way around, make a bunch of pars, throw in a few birdies here and there, a lot of times it works well.
"My coach actually came down on Monday. I struggled in the final round of The Players and I needed some help."
On going up against Riley in the playoff, Burns admittedly won with a tinge of lament.
"It [the playoff] was a blast," Burns said. "Unfortunately, I got the better end of it today but throughout our careers we're going to have a lot of battles. He's a heck of player and I'm happy for how well he's been playing."
Burns and Riley were tied at 17-under-par after 72 holes, after the former bogeyed the penultimate hole, his first for the day.
The world number eight, who made five bogies and a double bogey playing in the last group at The Players Championship at Sawgrass the weekend prior, almost went without a blemish at Copperhead. With the finish line in sight, he hit the bunker on the par-three 17th and couldn't recover.
Riley then had a chance to putt for the tournament on the closing hole, after he birdied the 17th to tie with Burns, and set up a makeable birdie on the par-four 18th.
His putt drifted agonisingly wide of the cup, forcing a playoff. Riley's tee shot on the opening playoff hole faded into the rough before finding the bunker, while Burns made the green in regulation, but both made par.
The defending champion managed to birdie the notorious par-four 16th despite hitting the rough from the tee.
Iga Swiatek claimed back-to-back WTA 1000 titles as she captured the Indian Wells Open crown after defeating Maria Sakkari 6-4 6-1.
Winning her 11th successive match, the Pole added to her triumph in Doha last month after prevailing in one hour and 20 minutes.
Swiatek subsequently climbed to a career-high second in the WTA rankings; making her the first Polish player to do so since Agnieszka Radwanska in July 2012.
The 20-year-old also claimed her fifth career title; becoming only the fifth woman to reach that tally before her 21st birthday after Kim Clijsters, Venus Williams, Serena Williams and Svetlana Kuznetsova.
"After playing so well in previous tournaments, I didn’t know it was possible for me to play that well for that long," said the former French Open champion, who claimed her second successive win over Sakkari having also prevailed in the Qatar Open semi-finals.
"I want to congratulate Maria. Every match against her is a great battle. I know that we've already started a cool rivalry.
"I think it's going to last for 10 more years, so it's going to be exciting, and I’m sure we're going to play many more finals.
"I want to thank my team; they're doing an amazing job calming me down and getting me to the place where I'm more confident and developing my tennis."
The two finalists struggled to settle during the opening set; both hitting five double-faults as six of the first seven games went against the serve.
But 12 unforced errors to her opponent's seven proved crucial for Sakkari, who had only been broken seven times in her five previous matches, as third seed Swiatek drew first blood after 45 minutes.
Losing only her second set of the week, sixth seed Sakkari had been beaten on all three occasions in 2022 when losing the opener.
Meanwhile, Swiatek had not dropped a set since her fourth-round victory over Angelique Kerber, and built on that momentum as she dominated the second.
The former Roland Garros champion broke her opponent twice more, as she only required an additional 35 minutes to wrap up victory; a sweeping forehand sealing the deal.
Carlos Sainz declared Ferrari "properly back" after finishing second in a Scuderia one-two that gave Mattia Binotto sweet relief following two barren years.
Ferrari had not celebrated a race win in Formula One since Sebastian Vettel led a one-two at the 2019 Singapore Grand Prix.
Charles Leclerc was the junior driver on that occasion, but in Bahrain on Sunday he moved to the top of the drivers' standings for the first time in his career.
Leclerc was a deserving winner, while Sainz profited from a double Red Bull retirement to claim second.
"Ferrari is back and properly back with a one-two, where the team should be and should have been the last few years," Sainz said afterwards. "The hard work is paying off and we are there."
Team principal Binotto had expected Red Bull to be "stronger" and expects both they and Mercedes will "come back very soon", but for now he enjoyed being able to revel in a precious victory.
"It's a relief, it's fantastic. A one-two was unexpected," he told Sky Sports. "It has been a great race and Charles defended the position.
"It was nice to see him battling and fighting for the position, for the win.
"In the end, it was a bit lucky, certainly. It was a heart attack for me on the pit wall, when you're consolidating the position and you've got the safety car 10 laps from the end [before Verstappen retired]."
There is always expectation on Ferrari, so this result should go some way to easing the pressure very slightly.
"The pressure is high, very, very high," Binotto said, "but what we need to do is try to focus on what we are doing and forget about it; otherwise, I think it would be too much stress.
"We came here focused on the performance, trying to have a clean race. The drivers have done the job."
Christina East and Renee Rickhi shattered another glass ceiling earlier this month when East was elected the first female president and Rickhi, the first female club captain respectively, of the 16-year-old Driftwood Hunting Club.
Both women are also the first females to be named to lead any gun or hunting club in Jamaica.
"The shooting world is a man's world and when I started learning to shoot over 20 years ago, it was a male-dominated sport with few women, whether it was sporting clays or rifle or pistol and when the influx of women came into the sport it drew a lot of attention. And when women started to do better than men in the different classes whether it was JRA (Jamaica Rifle Association) or the Skeet Club, it made the sport more competitive,” said East.
“Women made it more fun and more entertaining and women brought more flair to the shooting fraternity. Being a founding member of the Driftwood Gun Club, for the last 15 years we have managed a lot of charity and donations events across St. Elizabeth.
“The aim is to continue to assist those in need from the early childhood institutions in Treasure Beach that we do support and the bird boys to help them personally develop themselves and to continue to grow the club's membership.”
She believes the time was right for the club to have a female president.
"As the first female president of the gun club in Jamaica, I think that It’s the right time for a woman to ‘start leading and to start to make an impression on the shooting fraternity. Driftwood is a young club but has made a big impression on all the gun clubs. We are considered trendsetters among the shooting clubs and I have been among the group that has brought new ideas, events and vibes to the shooting arena. We host great shoots and other events and we intend to grow the members and to continue to personally and professionally teach them safety and to sharpen their skills.
"I also think it’s important that women be encouraged to be responsible firearm users and to be able to defend themselves, especially in a high-crime area. Under my leadership, we will specifically target women and encourage women to participate and learn to defend themselves and to take up competitive shooting and to really be great at it.
“It’s great that the club, which is predominantly male, has chosen two women to hold the two most prominent positions in the club. With Renee as the club captain, it demonstrates that women are highly regarded and respected in this sport.”
Rickhi said she was happy that the club has demonstrated its confidence in her abilities.
"I am honoured to be the first woman club captain of a hunting club in Jamaica. I am grateful to the members of Driftwood for having the confidence in me to give me this task,” she said.
“ A club captain of a hunting club has a lot of responsibility; land acquisition, field preparation and shoot management. We have to make sure that our birds are there, we are getting enough rise, they are coming to the field, watching the flight to determine the best position for the members. The good thing about my club is that we have a lot of fun but you still want them to have a great shoot no matter what. It’s a lot of work, especially closer to the season, but it's also a great time as well, especially the road trips and I want to commend Driftwood for choosing me as their club captain, as a woman and for choosing Christina East as their president."
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
