Casper Ruud won his third ATP Tour title on Sunday thanks to a straightforward win over Federico Coria in the Nordea Open final.
The Norwegian needed just under 90 minutes to see off Coria, who was competing in his maiden tour-level final, getting the job done to win 6-3 6-3.
Ruud's electric start set the tone for the contest, as he raced into a 4-0 lead thanks to successive breaks – although Coria broke back to make it 4-1, his opponent's wobble was only brief.
Coria ensured the match was a little tighter initially in the second set, but Ruud's class showed as he rattled off three breaks on the trot and eventually converted his fifth match point in front of a joyous support.
"It was an incredible week, maybe the best week of my life," Ruud said after sealing the title without losing a single set.
"It's an incredible feeling playing here in Bastad with the Swedish, Norwegian and Danish support. There is nothing like that home crowd feeling.
"To win here means a lot. You get a little extra nervous as the No. 1 seed. Me and my father [former player Christian Ruud] have been joking about when I am going to beat him at this and this, and now I think I have beaten him in everything!
"The Ruud family can finally bring the trophy home to Norway. It is a special feeling having him here with me."
Tamara Zidansek recovered from a set and early break down to beat Clara Burel and win her first WTA singles title at the Ladies Open Lausanne.
The Slovenian had lost her previous two finals, including at the Copa Colsanitas in April, but she lived up to her top-seed billing on Sunday by beating Burel 4-6 7-6 (7-5) 6-1.
Burel had eliminated second and fifth seeds Fiona Ferro and Caroline Garcia en route to her first final and made a fast start by breaking Zidansek twice in the first three games.
Former junior world number one Burel was in control at 4-0 up and saw the job through in the first set, despite Zidansek pulling it back to 5-4 at one point, with a backhand winner.
Zidansek was a break down in the second set when beginning her impressive comeback, which saw the French Open semi-finalist take four of the next five games.
But Burel continued to match her opponent as the second set went to a tie-break, with Zidansek recovering from 4-2 down to take it 7-5 and level up the contest.
World number 50 Zidansek took control from that point and eased to victory in the third set with three breaks, clinching her maiden title when Burel miscued a backhand.
Lewis Hamilton was accused of "dirty driving" by Red Bull boss Christian Horner after a first-lap collision put Max Verstappen out of the British Grand Prix.
A breathtaking start to the race culminated in title rivals Hamilton and Verstappen making contact at Copse Corner.
Verstappen was sent spinning off the track and into the barriers, with his car left in a crumpled heap.
The championship leader was able to walk away from the wreckage but was left "massively winded", according to team principal Horner.
It was the most sensational moment of the season, reflective of the intensity of the rivalry between reigning champion Hamilton and this year's leader in the standings.
Hamilton was looking to get ahead of his rival on the inside when wheels touched and Verstappen was sent spinning off the track, Horner denouncing what he considered "a desperate move".
Horner was furious with Hamilton, whose driving was scrutinised by the stewards as the race was red-flagged, with the cars returning to the pit lane while the barrier was repaired.
Verstappen was said to have come out largely unscathed, while Hamilton received a 10-second time penalty when the race eventually resumed.
"He's gone to the medical centre for a check-up. But that's a hell of a relief to see him get out because that corner's one of the fastest on the calendar," Horner told Channel 4.
"[It was] completely out of order [for Hamilton] to stick out a wheel on the inside there. It was way too far. Every driver that's driven this circuit knows you don't stick up the inside at Copse.
"He's done it and obviously his front left has made contact with Max's right rear, on one of the fastest corners in the championship and he's put him in the fence. Thank god he's not been hurt. As you can imagine, we're pretty annoyed about things.
"I think it was a desperate move. He failed to make the move in the first part of the lap which he was obviously geared to do.
"Then it was a desperate move sticking a wheel up the inside. Copse is one of the fastest corners in the world, you don't stick a wheel up the inside, that's just dirty driving.
"That's just not on and I'm just relieved to see our driver's walked away because that could have been a very, very nasty accident."
Pablo Carreno Busta beat Filip Krajinovic in the final of the Hamburg European Open to lift his first ATP 500 trophy.
Spanish second seed Carreno Busta wrapped up a convincing 6-2 6-4 win over Krajinovic of Serbia in one hour and 23 minutes.
Krajinovic, who beat Stefanos Tsitsipas in the quarter-finals, had no answer to Carreno Busta's serve as he won 81 per cent (21/26) of his first-service points.
Carreno Busta broke Krajinovic's serve twice in the first set before he served out.
Krajinovic showed more fight in the second set, but he was unable to create a break chance, and when he offered one to Carreno Busta his opponent seized it.
The victory gave world number 13 Carreno Busta, who did not drop a set in the tournament, his 17th win on clay this season.
Max Verstappen crashed out of the British Grand Prix on the first lap after a stunning collision with title rival Lewis Hamilton.
It had been a dazzling start to the race with the front-row pair going neck-and-neck in the opening corners.
They came close to making contact earlier on the lap before they finally did so at Copse Corner, Hamilton looking to overtake championship leader Verstappen on the inside but clipping the Red Bull driver's right rear wheel.
The tyre came flying off and Verstappen's car went crashing across the gravel and into the barriers at high speed.
Verstappen was able to walk away from the incident without any serious injury, but was said by team boss Christian Horner to be "massively winded".
Hamilton reported damage to his Mercedes car over the radio to his team, and told them: "I was ahead going in there, man. He turned in on me, man."
The result was that the race was red-flagged to allow for repairs to be carried out to the barriers, meaning it would have to re-start.
Barbora Krejcikova won the Prague Open on Sunday with a comfortable win in straight sets against Tereza Martincova.
World number 13 and tournament second seed Krejcikova eased to a 6-2 6-0 win over her Czech compatriot Martincova in one hour and five minutes.
The win was the French Open champion Krejcikova's first on hard courts and came courtesy of 26 winners across the 14 games.
At 2-2 in the first set Krejcikova secured a break against the world number 78 and from that point never looked back.
Krejcikova has now chalked up an impressive 20 wins from her last 21 matches.
The 25-year-old's solitary loss in that time was in the fourth round of Wimbledon at the hands of eventual champion, and world number one, Ashleigh Barty.
Louis Oosthuizen will tee off his final round at The Open on Sunday with a one-shot lead over playing partner Collin Morikawa.
The 2010 winner, who has finished as runner-up six times in majors, is eyeing a wire-to-wire victory at Royal St George's, where he starts his fourth round at 14:35 local time at 12 under.
American Morikawa also has a second major in his sights, having claimed the 2020 US PGA Championship.
Jordan Spieth is firmly in the mix, the three-time major winner and 2017 Champion Golfer of the Year at nine under, while pre-tournament favourite Jon Rahm is two strokes further back.
Corey Conners and Scottie Scheffler are each on eight under and hoping to earn maiden major triumphs.
Glorious weather means the course is set fair for low scoring for anyone who can summon the courage and accuracy to take on some tough pin positions at the Kent links.
There was promise in the early scores coming in, with American trio Rickie Fowler, Xander Schauffele and Bryson DeChambeau all shooting 65.
If any of the leading trio should go that low, it will rule out the chasing pack and reduce the contenders down to the final couple of groups on course.
That would mean Brooks Koepka's surge up the leaderboard would still leave him short, the four-time major winner having made the turn in 31.
South Africa have confirmed Bongi Mbonambi, Scarra Ntubeni and Dan du Preez have been cleared to link up with the squad after completing their mandatory self-isolation period following positive COVID-19 tests results.
The trio were forced to sit out South Africa A's victory over the British and Irish Lions on Wednesday, as well as the shock 17-14 defeat to the Bulls at Cape Town Stadium.
With six days to go until the series opener against the Lions in Cape Town, all three players have been cleared to resume training with their team-mates.
South Africa had not played a Test match in 20 months prior to beating Georgia two weeks ago, and Kwagga Smith accepts there is a lot of work ahead for the reigning world champions.
"We haven't played Test matches in almost two years, so we got together and started working on it in the last three games and we can now analyse that," he told SA Rugby's official website.
"We need to use our opportunities because in Test matches there aren't many of them, so we have to convert them into points, and we have to sharpen up and get into our system and enforce it onto them."
The majority of the Boks' fringe players failed to impress in the defeat to Bulls, whereas the Lions flexed their muscles with a 49-3 win over the Stormers in their final warm-up match.
Cobus Reinach, one of the rare shining lights for South Africa on Saturday, agrees with Smith that a big improvement is needed if his side are to stop Warren Gatland's men.
"We left a lot of opportunities on the park, but that is something for us to look at, and each one of us has to look at our performance," he said.
"We can improve, and we have to ensure that we do better when we find ourselves in a similar situation. We are aligned as a squad and we know what we have to do.
"We need to execute what we want to do at a platinum standard, and everyone just needs to do their job and make sure they do it well.
"Collectively we didn’t put our stamp down, but we can fix that, and we are feeling confident going forward."
Devin Booker reflected on a tough loss for the Phoenix Suns in Game 5 of the NBA Finals, admitting they "let it go" against the Milwaukee Bucks after making a great start.
After suffering straight losses on the road, the red-hot Suns scored 37 points in the opening quarter on Saturday, landing 14 of their 19 attempts from the field.
However, trailing by 16 after one, the Bucks hit back in emphatic fashion to seize control. They had 43 in the second and then 36 in the third, meaning they led the pivotal contest 100-90 going into the final quarter.
The Suns were unable to close the gap down the stretch, a 123-119 defeat meaning Milwaukee holds a 3-2 lead in the series - they can clinch a first NBA title for the franchise since 1971 at home on Tuesday.
"It was tough. We came out and did what we intended to do, get off to a great start and we let it go," Booker, who finished with 40 points, told the media.
"They stayed resilient and they kept playing through. So, tough loss for us."
It was a second successive 40-point outing for Booker, who becomes the first player in NBA Finals history to lose back-to-back games despite reaching that mark. He is one of just five to have that happen in a playoff series, too.
The Suns now find themselves in a win-at-all-costs scenario in the series, a situation they have not faced previously during their impressive postseason run.
"We got to win one game to put them back on the plane. That's it. And you have to have that determination that you're willing to do whatever it takes to put them back on the plane," Phoenix head coach Monty Williams said.
"So, we can call it what we want to, mental toughness, all of that stuff, but it's going to be needed and our guys are capable of doing it. This is our first time in this position and we can do it."
Booker had the ball with the Suns down by one in the closing seconds, only for Jrue Holiday to steal possession. The Bucks guard then set up Giannis Antetokounmpo for a dunk with an alley-oop pass at the other end of the court, during which the two-time MVP was fouled.
The three-point play clinched the result in Milwaukee's favour, though Williams was more concerned by the problems his team had defensively in both the second and third quarters.
"You give up 79 points and the reasoning behind it, I got to look at the film to see it, but we just didn't have the same energy that we had in the first and fourth," he told the media.
"You look at the numbers, in the first and fourth, they have 44 points.
"So, whether it's schematics or just outright grit and toughness during those moments, to just get a stop, we couldn't get any consecutive stops in the second and the third.
"That ended up being the, not the difference, but it just put us in a hole and we felt, I felt like we were playing from behind for a long, long time."
Giannis Antetokounmpo is the centerpiece and Khris Middleton was coming off a career game, but Jrue Holiday made the biggest plays for the Milwaukee Bucks in their pivotal Game 5 win.
Bouncing back from a brutal shooting performance in Game 4, Milwaukee's point guard led the way on both ends of the court in Saturday's 123-119 win over the Phoenix Suns that left the Bucks one win away from an NBA title.
Holiday shook off a four-for-20 night the previous time out to serve as the catalyst in the second quarter that broke the game open for Milwaukee, and his steal and pass in the final minute sealed a pivotal win.
The latter play was the talk of the game afterward, as team-mates marveled at Holiday's move to knock the ball away from Devin Booker and try an audacious alley-oop feed to Antetokounmpo with 13.5 seconds remaining to stretch a one-point Milwaukee lead to three.
Max Fried did it all for the Atlanta Braves, pitching seven scoreless innings and collecting three hits in a 9-0 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays.
Proving Shohei Ohtani is not the only multi-talented pitcher in the majors, Fried allowed just four hits and one walk while striking out seven on the mound and going 3-for-3 with a two-run double at the plate
Fried, who had a pinch-hit, walk-off single on July 4, boosted his batting average to .333 with his offensive effort Saturday.
In addition to their pitcher's heroics, the Braves also got home runs from new addition Joc Pederson and reigning National League MVP Freddie Freeman as they pulled to within a win of .500 at 45-46.
Giolito, White Sox dominate Astros
Chicago starter Lucas Giolito held the Houston Astros to just three hits and the White Sox pounded five home runs in a 10-1 victory over the Houston Astros.
Sixth-inning homers by Gary Sanchez and Gleyber Torres were the difference for the New York Yankees in a rain-shortened 3-1 win over the Boston Red Sox.
The Milwaukee Brewers scored three times in the 11th inning against Sean Doolittle to defeat the Cincinnati Reds 7-4 and extend their division lead to six games.
Robbie Grossman had a leadoff home run in Game 1 and Miguel Cabrera a walk-off bloop single in Game 2 as the Detroit Tigers swept a doubleheader from the Minnesota Twins 1-0 and 5-4.
Ohtani runs out of gas
After a busy week as the center of attention at the All-Star Game, Ohtani turned in his worst batting performance of the year, going 0-for-5 with a season-high four strikeouts in the Los Angeles Angels' 9-4 win over the Seattle Mariners. It was only the second time in 340 MLB games Ohtani has struck out four times at the plate. The other, on Aug. 30, 2019 against the Boston Red Sox, was a 15-inning game in which he made eight plate appearances.
Pirates slam Mets
Trailing 6-0 to the New York Mets, the Pittsburgh Pirates scored five runs in the eighth inning before Jacob Stallings' walk-off grand slam in the ninth gave them a 9-7 victory.
Saturday's results
Detroit Tigers 1-0 Minnesota Twins
Detroit Tigers 5-4 Minnesota Twins
New York Yankees 3-1 Boston Red Sox
Pittsburgh Pirates 9-7 New York Mets
Milwaukee Brewers 7-4 Cincinnati Reds
Atlanta Braves 9-0 Tampa Bay Rays
Chicago White Sox 10-1 Houston Astros
Baltimore Orioles 8-4 Kansas City Royals
St Louis Cardinals 3-1 San Francisco Giants
Los Angeles Dodgers 9-2 Colorado Rockies
Los Angeles Angels 9-4 Seattle Mariners
Chicago Cubs 4-2 Arizona Diamondbacks
Cleveland Indians 3-2 Oakland Athletics
San Diego Padres 8-4 Washington Nationals (suspended)
Philadelphia Phillies 2-2 Miami Marlins (suspended)
Toronto Blue Jays-Texas Rangers (postponed)
Astros at White Sox
After splitting their first two games, division leaders the Houston Astros and Chicago White Sox will square off again in Chicago with the series on the line.
The Milwaukee Bucks withstood a scorching start by the Phoenix Suns before their three stars carried them to a 123-119 road victory in Game 5 of the NBA Finals, putting them one win away from their first championship in 50 years.
Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 32 points, Khris Middleton had 29 and Jrue Holiday 27 in an entertaining to overcome a 40-point effort by Suns star Devin Booker and quiet the raucous Phoenix crowd.
Like their fans, the Suns came out hot. Booker attempted Phoenix's first two shots of the game and missed both, but the Suns made 11 in a row from the field after that and held a 16-point lead after the first quarter.
Their hot hand was short-lived, though, as the Bucks exploded for a 25-6 run and outscored the Suns 43-24 in the second quarter to take a 64-61 lead at the break.
Milwaukee appeared on the verge of running away with the game, extending the lead to as many as 14 early in the fourth quarter before the Suns staged a late rally.
Phoenix trimmed the deficit to three on a Booker three-pointer with 1:24 to play and Chris Paul fouled Antetokounmpo the next time down the court, forcing him to his least comfortable spot on the court: the free-throw line, where he would make just four of 11 Saturday.
The Greek star missed both free throws and Paul answered with a driving layup to bring the Suns within one with 56.6 seconds remaining.
Antetokounmpo redeemed himself moments later, running the floor after Holiday stole the ball from Booker to finish an alley-oop dunk that put Milwaukee's lead back at three.
After missing yet another free throw, Antetokounmpo tipped the rebound back out to Middleton, who was fouled and broke the Bucks' free-throw drought for a four-point advantage with 9.8 seconds remaining.
That proved to be enough as Booker missed a jumper with five seconds to play and Phoenix could not get off another shot.
According to Stats Perform, the Bucks are just the fourth team in NBA history to win Games 3 through 5 after dropping the first two games of the NBA Finals.
The 2006 Miami Heat were the last to do it and ended up closing out the series against the Dallas Mavericks in Game 6.
Suns at Bucks
The Bucks can claim their first NBA title since 1971 with a win in Game 6 Tuesday in Milwaukee.
Saturday's Washington Nationals-San Diego Padres game was suspended in the sixth inning after a shooting occurred just outside the stadium.
Washington, D.C.'s Metropolitan Police Department said on Twitter that two people were shot on South Capitol Street, which runs behind the third-base line of Nationals Park.
Police said there was no "ongoing threat" after the initial incident.
As the Nationals walked off the field after recording the final out in the top of the sixth, a series of loud reports could be heard inside Nationals Park.
Videos posted to social media showed people scrambling for cover inside the stadium, and both teams left the dugouts to return to their clubhouses.
Some players were seen coming back out to the field and leading family members to safety inside the clubhouses.
The Nationals initially put a message on the stadium video board asking fans to remain inside the ballpark, and announced about 40 minutes later that the game had been suspended "due to an incident surrounding Nationals Park."
The game will resume in the bottom of the sixth inning at 1:05 p.m. local time Sunday, with the regularly scheduled game to follow.
New York Mets ace Jacob deGrom has been shut down by injury concerns once again.
The pitcher experienced tightness in his right forearm during a bullpen session Friday after having similar issues earlier in the week, and manager Luis Rojas said the team will not allow him to throw again until the issue has subsided.
An MRI scan Saturday revealed no structural damage, but deGrom will not make his second-half debut Monday as scheduled.
The 33-year-old has posted staggering numbers this season, going 7-2 with an MLB-best 1.08 ERA in 15 starts and striking out a remarkable 14.3 batters per nine innings while walking just 1.1 per nine.
Amid performances like that, the only real struggle for deGrom has been staying on the field. He previously spent two weeks on the injured list with tightness in his side, and has departed starts early due to flexor tendinitis and shoulder soreness.
Those concerns led to deGrom sitting out this week's All-Star Game in Colorado, but Rojas said the pitcher does not believe his current issue is related to his earlier troubles.
“I talked to him and I asked him if there was a correlation, and he said no,” Rojas told reporters. “He said that this is different tightness.
"We'll find out more. ... They're going to do some more treatment and I don't know if they're going to do more tests after an MRI, but we should find out more about it, to see what it is and if it goes away.”
Losing deGrom for any significant length of time will be a blow to the Mets' chances of winning the National League (NL) East division.
They have been in first place every day since May 8 but the Philadelphia Phillies and Atlanta Braves expect to make a push in the second half.
Atlanta already has made a trade to acquire outfielder Joc Pederson from the Chicago Cubs and they and the Phillies could make more moves before the July 31 trade deadline.
Jon Rahm still believes he has a chance to win the Open Championship, though warned a famous comeback will be tougher to achieve than it was at the U.S. Open.
A third-round 68 from Rahm left him at seven under for the tournament, five shots behind leader Louis Oosthuizen going into the final day.
Rahm charged from behind to win his first major at the expense of Oosthuizen last month but the pre-tournament favourite knows he needs to produce something close to perfection to repeat the feat.
Collin Morikawa is one shot behind Oosthuizen, while Jordan Spieth is at nine under with Corey Conners and Scottie Scheffler, both in search of maiden majors, also sitting ahead of Rahm on eight under.
"I believe I can do it, yeah," said Rahm. "I've been playing really good golf. Believe it or not [on Friday] I shot 64 and I left a few out there. I played really good golf.
"[On Saturday] I made a couple of mistakes off the fairway that cost me a few. Maybe a couple of shots where I got a little bit quick through the process and it cost me a shot.
"Missed both greens on my second shots at 1 and 13, two moments where if I could go back I could have given myself a better chance.
"So I'm going to have to eliminate those little mistakes on Sunday and hopefully start strong. If I can shoot under par in the first five holes that will be stealing a couple of strokes on the rest of the field.
"So start that strong and play the rest of the course that way I have, I'll give myself a chance.
"Hopefully I'm not too far away. I know I did make a comeback at the U.S. Open, but I feel like three shots in the U.S. Open are not that much, right? Bogeys can happen and I showed that it can be made up.
"Now on this golf course, if I'm that far away, I'm going to possibly need a little bit more wind than we had.
"If not, I'm going to need a really good round of golf, if [the weather] is like it has been I will need something close to record-breaking stuff.
"I need something around 63, 64 to be able to give myself a chance because I'm guessing somebody else in front of me will come out to shoot possibly three, four, or five under and get far away."
Rahm was happier with his 68 once he saw many others had struggled to score low, citing how difficult the pin positions had been.
He added: "Really good round. Played good golf.
"I had some really good highlights - because of the weather conditions it's easy to think it could have been a little bit better, but the pin locations were no joke.
"I don't know if on TV you could appreciate it, but those are some of hardest pin locations collectively I've ever seen.
"On a golf course that's not easiest it can get tricky. The scores show it, two under is a much better round than I thought it was for a while."
Lewis Hamilton thinks Mercedes will need to play "the long game" if they are to have any chance of beating Max Verstappen and Red Bull at the British Grand Prix.
The first-ever Formula One sprint race took place on Saturday, with Verstappen passing Hamilton – who had qualified fastest in a new Friday session - on the first lap and going on to win.
That means Verstappen is awarded pole position and three championship points with Hamilton and third-placed Valtteri Bottas having to settle for two and one respectively.
Hamilton is grateful to have the chance to bounce back in the main race on Sunday but is under no illusions over the size of the task facing him on home soil as Verstappen seeks a fourth consecutive F1 victory.
"Sunday is going to be tough," Hamilton, who is seeking a record eighth win at Silverstone, told reporters after the 17-lap sprint.
"He [Verstappen] had a lot of pace in him and I don't think he was particularly having to push too hard, and we were flat-out.
"If I can try somehow to keep up with them through the stints, maybe we can apply pressure through strategy – but we're not going to be overtaking them on the track: they're just too fast.
"So, we play the long game hopefully."
In the sprint race it was a slow start that cost Hamilton, who now trails Verstappen by 33 points.
The seven-time world champion added: "I gave it everything, it's just not good when you lose from P1. We'll try to turn the negative into a positive.
"Every point counts, but I'm grateful to have finished. We will fight again, but they're just so strong, in the race he was pulling away. There was nothing I could do to hold onto him.
"We really have to try and be in front somehow. I wish we could re-do the start again, but luckily we have it again on Sunday."
Verstappen believes Mercedes are competitive rivals for the race and the Dutchman will be outnumbered given Sergio Perez, who spun off and later retired in the sprint, will start at the back of the grid.
"What we learned on Saturday is that it's very close again," said the championship leader.
"It's a bit different. It seems like we are quick through corners, they are quick on the straight this weekend.
"The pace was alright but I still expect with a pit-stop coming into play – or two pit stops, who knows – it’s again going to be a good fight."
Hamilton was positive about the trial changes made to the format this weekend, but thinks everything, including qualifying, should be packed in to Saturday and Sunday if a sprint becomes a permanent feature.
Speaking to Sky Sports, he added: "We should do more like that [the sprint], maybe a different version of it, in future because this makes the weekend more enjoyable I think.
"They did a great job and I think the fans enjoyed it, from what we saw on the parade laps.
"I think this weekend's been awesome in terms of Friday, it was such a fun day to have qualifying - way more enjoyable [than practice would have been].
"It's always nice doing more races that’s for sure, but it is almost like they should almost do the sprint race on the Sunday and then the race because there could be a lot of sitting around for people on Sunday.
"It's been great to try something new - we should just do a long Saturday and long Sunday. P1, P2, qualifying on Saturday and then a sprint race and a race on Sunday. Pack it all in!
"That means we have one whole day less, 23 days actually less of driving these cars around the track and obviously that would be better in terms of going more green."
George Russell finished the sprint in ninth but has been handed a three-place grid penalty for an incident with Carlos Sainz.
He therefore drops to 12th, with Esteban Ocon, Sainz and Pierre Gasly the beneficiaries.
Marcus Smith played himself into contention to start the first Test against South Africa after a debut for the British and Irish Lions that delighted Warren Gatland.
Coach Gatland also expressed satisfaction at seeing Alun Wyn Jones back in action during Saturday's 49-3 win over the Stormers, three weeks after the captain dislocated his shoulder against Japan.
There will be "robust debate" over the coming days, Gatland predicted, as he and his coaching team consider their options for the July 24 series opener against the Springboks.
"With Marcus Smith, the longer the game went on, the better he looked and more comfortable out there," Gatland said.
Smith was a late addition to the tourists' squad, summoned from England duty after winning his first caps for Eddie Jones' side, but the Harlequins fly-half brought youthful zest to the Lions in Cape Town.
His kicking was reliable too, Smith nailing the extras for each of the Lions' seven tries.
As for whether the 22-year-old should start against South Africa, Gatland said: "Those are conversations we haven't had. I thought he looked good out there, some lovely touches. He kicked for goal well and I thought he defended well.
"For a guy who's only had one training session I thought it was pretty good. He'll be part of the discussions, no doubt about that.
"A lot of people put their hand up tonight and there were some pleasing performances on Wednesday too."
Wednesday's game saw the Lions beaten 17-13 by a strong South Africa A team, and Gatland made wholesale changes for the Stormers clash, allowing him to have a good look at all his options.
The return of Jones, who arrived in South Africa only on Thursday, means he assumes the tour captaincy again. That responsibility was initially transferred to Conor Murray when it appeared Jones had no chance of being involved.
Murray was more than happy to hand over the leadership duty, Gatland said, with one caveat.
"Conor, he's the first to admit he was more than comfortable for Alun Wyn to come back," Gatland said. "He wasn't prepared to give up his bedroom suite though, because I think he got the captain's bedroom suite."
Jones had almost half an hour as a second-half replacement against the Stormers, and Gatland said Test rugby's most-capped player would benefit from getting back to action.
"I thought he put a few shots on and defended well, had a couple of touches," Gatland said in his post-game news conference.
"The big thing for him was to get through that period and then to see how he was afterwards.
"We'll have that discussion about whether there's a role for him, either as a starter or a bench player or not involved next week.
"If he is not involved, we'll look at who potentially leads the team."
Spectators soaked up the sunshine on another glorious day at Royal St George's as The Open Championship's third round left us poised for a thrilling finale.
On the course it looks set to be a final-day shoot-out between three major champions, with Louis Oosthuizen, Collin Morikawa and Jordan Spieth setting the pace.
Meanwhile, there was plenty happening on the other side of the ropes as fans lapped up the entertainment on offer.
Our man on the ground brings you all the latest after being out and about on the Kent links on Saturday...
CELEBRITY SPOTTING
Big sporting events tend to attract stars from all manner of show business backgrounds, and it seems stand-up comedians are not immune to the allure of a golf major.
As this reporter was roaming alongside the 18th fairway he heard a familiar voice asking where the official Open shop was.
"It's the big building over there with 'the shop' written on it," I said.
"You're very helpful, thank you," replied British comedian Michael McIntyre.
PLAN OF ACTION
As a spectator at a golf event, you have a multitude of options: pick a spot and make it your own for the day; follow a particular group; or maybe just wander around and see what you see.
One cluster of fans who had only just arrived were gathered around a course map, each apparently with very different ideas about what to do.
In such situations, it takes a leader to sort things out and, luckily for this group, the best man for the job stepped forward.
"Why don't you argue about this from somewhere you can actually see the golf?" he said, ushering the group away from the entrance.
WESTWOOD GRAFTING
Away from the gaze of the cameras and long after his round of 70 had come to a close with a birdie at the 18th, Lee Westwood was putting in the hard yards on the practice range.
The Englishman was one of a handful of players grafting away in the evening sun as, even at the age of 48, he showed every day presents an opportunity to learn and improve.
That's the commitment it takes to succeed!
Louis Oosthuizen and Collin Morikawa are relishing a final-day battle at The Open Championship as both men seek to double their major tally.
It is 2010 Champion Golfer of the Year Oosthuizen who holds a narrow advantage, leading by one at 12 under going into the Sunday's round at Royal St George's.
The South African has two runner-up finishes at majors this year, while Morikawa is looking to add to the US PGA Championship title he won in 2020.
Oosthuizen was four shots clear of his rival around the turn but Morikawa finished strongly, with the duo being chased down by the likes of 2017 Claret Jug winner Jordan Spieth (nine under) and pre-tournament favourite Jon Rahm (seven under).
Oosthuizen, whose 69 was one stroke worse than Morikawa's score, was left to rue some missed opportunities but was content to still be at the summit.
"I was minus 13 at a stage," he said. "Probably a good back nine I could have gone to 14 or 15. There was a few very tough pins out there that you can't really go for at all.
"I did have a lot of opportunities to go two or three better, but that's what this golf course can do to you.
"I'm happy with the lead and need to play some good golf tomorrow."
Asked if the prospect of a second Open triumph might keep him awake ahead of the final round, Oosthuizen said visualising success can only be a good thing.
"You need to believe that you can lift the trophy," he explained. "If you think about it beforehand that you might win this championship, I think that's great, and you have to believe you can do it.
"I don't really change my routine whether I've got a two-shot lead or I'm trailing by eight. You know, the only thing that differs is the tee time.
"I would say just try and keep yourself busy and don't let your mind wander too much."
Meanwhile, Morikawa will draw on his experience from TPC Harding Park, where he won his maiden major by two strokes from Dustin Johnson and Paul Casey in August last year.
"I think the biggest thing I can draw from the PGA is just knowing I can get it done," he said.
"But I think confidence just comes from hitting good shots, quality shots, seeing putts go in.
"There is a lot to draw from, especially this week. I don't have much experience on links golf and pretty much all the highlights in my head are from this week.
"Hopefully we can just use that momentum from the first three days and just bring it into the last 18. It's going to be a grueling 18, but I look forward to it.
"It's position you want to be in. As an athlete, golfer, you want to be in this position. I love it, so I really look forward to it."
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