Kansas City Royals star Salvador Perez has signed a record four-year contract extension, the MLB franchise announced.

Perez's new deal with the Royals is reportedly worth a franchise-record $82million, surpassing Alex Gordon's $72m contract in 2014.

The contract extension for the six-time All-Star catcher and World Series champion – one of the league's premier players in his position and a franchise favourite – will begin in the 2022 season.

It comes after Perez was named the American League (AL) Comeback Player of the Year in 2020, having missed the entire 2019 campaign due to Tommy John surgery.

Perez hit .333 with 11 homers and 32 RBIs over 37 games last season.

"I feel so happy and excited that I'm going to stay here for a long time, for four or five more years, and hopefully I can end my career here," said the 30-year-old, who has called Kansas City home since debuting for the Royals in 2011.

"I love the people here, I love the fans. I'm excited. I can't wait for the season to start and to see what happens."

Perez guided the Royals to their second World Series crown in 2015 and first in 30 years, winning the MVP as a result after Kansas City beat the New York Mets 4-1.

The Venezuelan hit .364 with two doubles and two RBIs in five games in the 2015 World Series.

Perez – a five-time Gold Glove Award winner and three-time Silver Slugger – has 138 career home runs as a catcher – third in the league among active players, only trailing Yadier Molina (158) and Matt Wieters (140).

He ranks seventh in Royals history in homers (152), ninth in extra-base hits (351), 10th in RBIs (535) and total bases (1,657) and tied for 10th in slugging percentage (.449).

"I don't ever want to retire from baseball," Perez said. "Never. I don't even think about that.

"I'm going to play, I told Dayton [Moore] the other day, until God comes down and tells me, 'Salvy, go home'. I love baseball. I believe in myself, and this isn't going to be the last one."

Blake Griffin showed he can still dunk in the NBA after capping his Brooklyn Nets debut with his first slam since 2019.

Not since December 2019 had Griffin dunked in the league – the six-time All-Star enduring a 25-game drought amid knee problems.

But Griffin ended the wait in his bow for the Nets in Sunday's 113-106 win over the Washington Wizards, scoring his first points on a dunk at the start of the fourth quarter.

"I knew once it happened, I know it would be a thing," Griffin said of his dunk, having finished with two points and two rebounds in 15 minutes as he works his way back to full fitness.

"It felt good to get that out of the way and move on."

Griffin joined James Harden, Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving on the star-studded Nets after agreeing a contract buyout with the Detroit Pistons earlier in March.

The 32-year-old had last played on February 12 while he was still a member of the Pistons organisation.

Griffin played in 20 games for Detroit this season and averaged 12.3 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.9 assists.

Charlotte Hornets star and NBA Rookie of the Year favourite LaMelo Ball will spend an indefinite spell on the sidelines after fracturing his right wrist.

Ball is reportedly set to miss the remainder of his first season in the league following an MRI scan on Sunday, which revealed a fractured bone.

The 19-year-old rookie sensation will be further evaluated after hurting his wrist in Saturday's 125-98 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers.

Ball has taken the NBA by storm since being drafted by the Hornets with the third pick last year.

He has been averaging 15.9 points, 5.9 rebounds, 6.1 assists and 1.59 steals (seventh in the NBA) per game this season.

Among rookie leaders, Ball ranks first in assists and steals, second in scoring and is tied for second in rebounds.

Ball is the only player over the last 60 years to lead all rookies in total points, rebounds, assists and steals at the All-Star Break.

Last month, Ball joined Stephen Curry (2010) and Jason Kidd (1995) as the only rookies with seven-plus threes and 10-plus assists in a game and is the youngest to do so.

Ball also became the youngest player in NBA history to record a triple-double in January.

Canadian teenager Leylah Fernandez celebrated her maiden WTA Tour title after winning the Monterrey Open in straight sets.

Fernandez broke through with a comfortable 6-1 6-4 victory over qualifier Viktorija Golubic on Sunday.

Featuring in her second WTA final after losing last year's Mexican Open in Acapulco, the 18-year-old Fernandez ensured she got her hands on the trophy this time.

Fernandez did not drop a set throughout the WTA International tournament, easing past her Swiss opponent in one-and-a-half hours.

Matt Jones eased to victory at The Honda Classic by five strokes for his first PGA Tour title in seven years.

Not since the 2014 Houston Open had Jones won on the PGA Tour, but the unheralded Australian golfer ended his agonising drought on Sunday.

Jones carded a final-round 68 to reach 12 under overall and tie the largest margin of victory at The Honda Classic in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.

The 40-year-old mixed five birdies with three bogeys as he claimed his second Tour title after taming PGA National, while booking a spot at next month's Masters.

"I've had some tough times between that and now," a tearful Jones said after finishing ahead of Brandon Hagy. "It's pretty emotional… seven years.

"I just worked hard, working out with my coach back in Australia and it's paid off.

"It was probably the calmest I've been at a golf tournament for four straight days. You can't get a tougher golf course to win on than this one, in these conditions.

"To be able to do that is something that I can build on for the rest of the year hopefully."

Hagy's runner-up finish capped a memorable week for the 30-year-old California native, who closed out the tournament with a four-under-par 66.

The American entered the field on Wednesday as second-to-last alternate when Kramer Hickok withdrew and then shot a career-low 62 on Friday.

Hagy secured his first top-two finish and second career top-10 performance in his 81st start on Tour.

Chase Seiffert (64), Brendan Steele (65), Denny McCarthy (67), Russell Henley (68) and C.T. Pan were tied for third, six shots adrift of Jones.

Defending champion Im Sung-jae posted a 70 in the final round to finish seven strokes off the pace.

Joel Embiid's injury last week appeared to clear a path for LeBron James to collect his fifth NBA MVP award.

Philadelphia 76ers big man Embiid - averaging 29.9 points and 11.5 rebounds, as well as 1.4 blocks and 1.2 steals - had already missed seven games this season before he went down with a knee injury against the Washington Wizards.

But Los Angeles Lakers superstar James did not see his clear run at the league's top individual honour last long.

James, who has 25.9 points, 7.9 assists and 7.9 rebounds per game, has carried the Lakers in Anthony Davis' absence but faces his own spell on the sidelines after an ankle sprain on Saturday.

That setback, in a defeat to the Atlanta Hawks, means this year's two leading MVP contenders face an uphill task to remain in contention as they sit out a key stretch of the regular season.

Nikola Jokic, the Denver Nuggets center, appears the man most likely to profit and has quickly been installed as the bookmakers' favourite.

But with several twists already in the race to succeed back-to-back winner Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jokic's standing is not yet safe.

With the help of Stats Perform data, we run through four potential winners ahead of Sunday's action - including Denver's 'Joker'.
 

NIKOLA JOKIC

The case against Jokic earlier in the season was his displays had not been able to lift the Nuggets into serious contention in the West. With 13 wins in their past 18 games to improve to 25-16, that is no longer the case.

While team-mate Jamal Murray has not been able to consistently perform at the standard he set in the 2019-20 playoffs - averaging 26.5 points in the 'bubble' but 21.1 this season - Jokic has taken his game to another level.

The Serbian's stat line for the year - 27.0 points, 8.6 assists, 11.2 rebounds and 1.6 steals - has never previously been achieved in league history, nor has any player in the past attempted at least 30 field goals across a season while shooting 56.6 per cent from the field, 41.6 per cent from three and 86.6 per cent of free throws.

This is an unprecedented campaign.

DAMIAN LILLARD

Tied with Denver at 25-16 in the West are the Portland Trail Blazers. Considering CJ McCollum has only played 16 games and Jusuf Nurkic 12, that is a quite remarkable achievement, led, of course, by Lillard.

Understandably, Lillard's usage rate is at a career-high 33 per cent, but he is making the most of those extra touches. Only Bradley Beal (32.5) has outperformed his 30.6 points per game - another career benchmark - and the Blazers star leads the league with 1,225 total points. Of those, 136 have come in 'clutch' situations, again putting Lillard at the top of the standings.

Taking a break from Portland's playoff push, Lillard even preserved enough energy to score 32 points in the All-Star Game, just ahead of Team LeBron team-mate and rival Stephen Curry (28). An MVP triumph would certainly see Portland's finest emerge from the shadow of the Golden State Warriors great.

GIANNIS ANTETOKOUNMPO

Antetokounmpo beat James Harden to this award in 2018-19 and then LA's James last season, so a case of voter fatigue was always set to make him an unlikely winner for a third straight year, regardless of performances.

But with Embiid and James both hit by injuries, the 'Greek Freak' surely has to come into consideration. Once again, his numbers are seriously impressive.

The only man to outscore Lillard at the All-Star Game, putting up 35, Antetokounmpo is slightly down on last year's points (29.0 versus 29.5) and rebounds per game (11.7 versus 13.6) but has improved in all of the other key metrics with 6.4 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.3 blocks.

The Milwaukee Bucks forward should be in the picture to retain both his MVP and Defensive Player of the Year titles.

JAMES HARDEN

Surely voters will not reward Harden in the year he forced his way out of the Houston Rockets? On performances alone, though, he deserves to be in the conversation.

The 2017-18 winner is not contributing the same number of points for the Brooklyn Nets as he was in Houston, but then his usage is down to 28.7 per cent for the year (28.1 in Brooklyn), by far the lowest it has been since the statistic was first tracked in 2014-15.

And Harden, still scoring an impressive 25.4 points since joining the Nets, is more than making up for this slight decline elsewhere.

So far the most prominent member of the team's 'big three', with Kevin Durant too often injured and Kyrie Irving absent for a spell, Harden leads the league in 2020-21 for assists (11.2) and is second for triple-doubles (11), making him an unpopular but worthy candidate.

Daria Kasatkina claimed the fourth title of her career after Margarita Gasparyan retired in the second set of the St Petersburg Ladies Trophy final with a back injury.

Kasatkina, who becomes the first player to win two WTA tournaments in 2021 having claimed the Phillip Island Trophy last month, was leading 6-3 2-1 when Gasparyan pulled out.

Gasparyan initially took a medical timeout after losing her first two service games of the match to trail 4-1 before eventually retiring after dropping her serve early in the second set.

Kasatkina's triumph meant she became the first player to win both WTA 500 events on Russian soil, previously claiming the 2018 Moscow title at this level.

The former top-10 player has endured a dip in recent seasons but will be back in the top 50 on Monday, while wildcard Gasparyan's maiden WTA 500 final means she returns to the top 100.

Kasatkina dropped the opening set in her quarter-final and semi-final matches but then swept through the next two sets emphatically on each occasion.

"I'm proud of how I was able to manage the pressure," Kasatkina said, quoted on the WTA website. "I felt differently during this tournament and I'm really proud of that."

Justin Harding shot a final-round 66 to win the Magical Kenya Open and get even with runner-up Kurt Kitayama.

The South African, who was tied second in this event two years ago, missed out to Kitayama at the 2019 Mauritius Open when the duo went head-to-head in the final pairing.

But it was Harding's turn to take the bragging rights as he signed a blemish-free scorecard to finish 21 under, two strokes ahead of playing partner Kitayama in Nairobi.

"Kurt's an unbelievable competitor," said Harding. "I got him back for Mauritius.

"It was hard work. I was happy with the way I played.

"I'm glad I shot one better than a couple of years ago, I was bummed about that, but I'm just happy with the way I managed my game."

Sunday proved a low-scoring day, with Connor Syme climbing into third after a closing 64, while Spain's Sebastian Garcia Rodriguez carded a 63 to round out the top four.

Richie Mo'unga starred with 28 points as the Crusaders dominated the Blues 43-27 to remain unbeaten after four matches of Super Rugby Aotearoa.

The New Zealand fly-half scored a try and added 23 points with the boot as the dominant visitors made it 13 consecutive wins over the Blues dating back to 2014 at a packed-out Eden Park.

Jack Goodhue, Codie Taylor and Sevu Reece all dotted down for the Crusaders, with the Blues scoring four tries themselves in a match packed with All Black internationals – Kurt Eklund, Blake Gibson and Hoskins Sotutu all registering for the hosts.

It was Mo'unga's accuracy off the tee that proved the difference, though.

The number 10 nailed all four conversions and added five penalties as the Crusaders went nine points clear.

"It's great to win here at Eden Park," Crusaders captain Scott Barrett said. "The Blues played some great rugby and tested us up front, it was a real battle there.

"It was almost like a Test match and we had to turn pressure into points."

France coach Fabien Galthie accused Wales' players of making sure Paul Willemse was sent off in Saturday's dramatic Six Nations encounter and urged the authorities not to impose a heavy sanction on the second-rower.

Wales were denied a famous Grand Slam by a last-gasp Brice Dulin try as Les Bleus kept their own championship hopes alive with a breathless 32-30 triumph in Paris.

That was despite France having to play out the final 12 minutes with 14 men after referee Luke Pearce judged Willemse made contact with the eyes of Wyn Jones.

Galthie, speaking through a translator at the post-match news conference, said: "If you watch the Wales players, it feels like they specialise in making sure opponents get red cards.

"Their body language is quite clear, I hope the referees are going to take that into consideration. I don't think he deserves a sanction.

"If you watch the video there is clearly no contact, or if there is it's clearly very limited. It's absolutely not voluntary. I believe we need to share this, I don't see why he should be sanctioned."

Oppositive number Wayne Pivac was keen not to be drawn into a back-and-forth over the incident.

"I don't really have any comment to that," said Pivac. "The match officials are running the game and they have plenty of replays.

"As you saw, it went on for some time. They went through their process and that's what the officials are there to do."

While it was heartbreak in the French capital for Wales, the hosts still have a rearranged fixture against Scotland to play.

To deny Wales the trophy, Galthie's men have to secure a bonus-point win over Scotland and triumph by at least 21 points.

Gael Fickou hopes the best is still to come for France in this year's tournament.

"The pinnacle? I hope it will be next week," the versatile centre said. "Scotland have a great team who are playing very well. We know it will be a complicated match.

"But we will do it step by step. Already, we must try to win it. And then we'll see what happens. We know it will be difficult, but we believe in it."

For Pivac, coming so close to a Grand Slam but falling short left the New Zealander feeling "numb".

"[It's] just desperately frustrating. The players got so close. We have to be proud of them," Pivac added.

"It's quite a numb feeling. The boys had put in such a fantastic effort, the game went pretty much to plan in the first half.

"We were urging them on, but to go from a potential Grand Slam to waiting another six days is frustrating."

Tobias Harris was inspired to prove the Philadelphia 76ers can compete without Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons after leading his team to a 129-105 victory over the Sacramento Kings.

Embiid missed a fourth straight game with a bruised left knee, while Simmons was a late omission after experiencing knee soreness on Saturday morning.

With fellow starter Seth Curry (ankle) also missing, the 76ers were heavily depleted but managed to chalk up the win with Harris in supreme form – falling just shy of a triple double with 29 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists.

Shake Milton tallied 28 points and Danny Green chipped in with 18 as the 76ers rallied in the absence of their key men.

For Harris, it was about making a point about the strength in depth of the roster.

"Are we willing to fall into the distraction of, 'hey, we don't have two of our top dogs?', or are we willing to embrace it?" Harris said.

"I take that stuff personal when people believe we can't win without those guys, because I know how much talent we have as a group and I know how well we play together as a team as a whole.

"We have a culture and a system here that works. When we trust it and do what is asked of us, we're a hell of a team."

Philadelphia's stats sheet was impressive. In the first quarter alone, they went 16-of-26 shooting and made six of their eight three-pointers to race into a 42-21 lead.

Late in the third they led by as much as 26 points and by the end of the game were 48 of 86 on shooting, making 11 of 23 from downtown.

Coach Doc Rivers said of Harris: "He really set the tone tonight with his attitude and then obviously his play. His total play was phenomenal.

"With all those guys out, what we did was execute well."

The 76ers are top of the Eastern Conference and now have a 29-13 record. They have a short road trip on Sunday to face the New York Knicks, seventh in the division, at Madison Square Garden.

Giannis Antetokounmpo said he is happy the streaking Milwaukee Bucks are flying under the radar this season following their win over the San Antonio Spurs.

The Bucks extended their winning streak to six games after topping the Spurs 120-113 behind superstar Antetokounmpo's 26 points and joint career-high 15 assists on Saturday.

Milwaukee – Eastern Conference semi-finalists last season having fallen just short of the NBA Finals in 2018-19 – have won 11 of their last 12 games to be third in the standings this term.

Unlike the two previous seasons, the Bucks (27-14) have not dominated headlines, instead taking a backseat to the Eastern Conference-leading Philadelphia 76ers (29-13) and star-studded Brooklyn Nets (28-14) but that is the way Antetokounmpo likes it.

"We don't play for people to talk about us," two-time reigning MVP Antetokounmpo said after the game.

"I kind of like it. I just want to be left alone. I never liked bright lights. I never liked people talking about us. It just adds pressure to me and my teammates to come in and do what we do.

"I kind of like to be under the radar and we just come in, enjoy one another, enjoy playing basketball and we're just getting the job done.

"There's gonna be times they're gonna talk about us, there's gonna be times they're not gonna talk about us, but personally, as I said, I just like being under the radar."

Not since 1971 have the Bucks won the championship as Antetokounmpo added: "We're just gonna keep doing what we're doing. We just keep enjoying each other and keep playing to win games and playing the right way."

German star Alexander Zverev was too strong for top seed Stefanos Tsitsipas in the Mexican Open final, claiming the title in straight sets after a stunning turnaround.

In a battle of the top two seeds, Zverev reigned supreme 6-4 7-6 (7-3) for his 14th ATP crown in Saturday's Acapulco decider.

Last year's US Open finalist Zverev was runner-up at the ATP 500 tournament in 2019, beaten by Australian Nick Kyrgios in straight sets.

But Zverev went one step further this year, taking down two-time Australian Open semi-finalist Tsitsipas after two hours, 17 minutes.

Zverev, who was rocked during his semi-final win over countryman Dominik Koepfer on Friday – a 5.7 magnitude earthquake registered as broadcast cameras shook, did not drop a set throughout his title-winning run.

Greek star Tsitsipas made an impressive start, racing out to a 3-0 lead after breaking Zverev in the second game.

Zverev, though, hit back as he put the set back on serve in the seventh game before consolidating.

Another break saw Tsitsipas come unstuck – Zverev reeling off six consecutive games to claim the opening set in red-hot fashion.

Zverev and Tsitsipas went toe-to-toe in the second set, the pair exchanging breaks late as a tie-break eventually saw the former complete a dominant display.