Jayarebe ran out a most impressive winner of the bet365 Feilden Stakes at Newmarket for Brian Meehan and Sean Levey.

Only seen twice last season, he won on his debut on the July course and was then stepped markedly up in class for the Group One Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere at ParisLongchamp on Arc weekend.

Only seventh behind Richard Hannon’s Rosallion there, he took a major leap forward on this occasion.

Never far from the firing line, Levey kicked for home heading into the dip and having hit the front, he soon put daylight between himself and his rivals.

Aidan O’Brien’s Gasper De Lemos briefly looked a threat before fading, while Andre Fabre’s Narkez never looked like playing a part in the finish.

It was the Richard Hughes-trained Whip Cracker who chased home the 11-1 winner, another who was close to the pace throughout, but he was beaten three and a quarter lengths.

“In three runs, he’s won here at Newmarket twice, once on the July Course and now the Rowley Mile – he’s a lovely horse,” said Meehan.

“He’s seen that out really well and pedigree-wise you would imagine a mile and a quarter would be the limit of his stamina, but he looked very good there.

“I liked the way he did it today, especially the way he came up the hill. He was always impressive last year and he has been doing well throughout the spring.

“He’s a lovely horse and I think if he would have been over a mile in the Lagardere, he would have probably run a bit better, but the form is really good.

“He was only six lengths behind Rosallion and that was seven furlongs, whereas today was a mile and one and, as always, there is natural improvement over the winter with these two to three-year-olds. The bare form is pretty good for a Listed race.

“The owner is away and back next week, so I’ll go and meet him and see what we’re going to do. He’s possibly a French Derby type, but he’s also a horse that might benefit for a bit more of a subtle touch for a while.

“The mile and a quarter race at Ascot would be a race to consider and there is a whole summer ahead of us and there’s plenty of time.”

Karl Burke’s leading Qipco 1000 Guineas hope Fallen Angel was one of a host of classy three-year-olds in action on the Rowley Mile before racing at Newmarket on Wednesday.

The Moyglare Stud Stakes winner is amongst the market leaders for the first Classic of the season and Burke was very happy with what he saw.

“I was very happy with her and Danny (Tudhope) was delighted,” said Burke.

“We’ve got two and a half weeks (before the 1000 Guineas) and she has time for at least one more good piece of work at home. This was always the plan and she needed the gallop for fitness, whereas Night Raider, we brought him here for experience.

“After watching that and what we saw last year, I think she has a good chance of staying at least a mile and a quarter. She is in the Oaks but we don’t need to worry about that just yet and we will concentrate on the Guineas for now.

“She’s a very good Group One winner at two, with not too many miles on the clock – and she’s unlucky not to be unbeaten.

“She’s a filly who saves her best for when she is really asked and as you saw in the Moyglare last year, she looked beat and then was doing her best work crossing the line. I think that will be the same in the Guineas.”

Advertising the strength in depth at his yard, Burke also galloped a live 2000 Guineas contender in the unbeaten Night Raider, two from two on the all-weather to date.

The son of Dark Angel galloped with the 113-rated Flight Plan, coming through the exercise with ease.

“We’ve run a few in the Guineas, Lord Shanakill was the first one I think and Flight Plan ran in it with Holloway Boy last year, but we’re going there with two live chances this year, I think,” said Burke.

“The filly is obviously the stronger chance, whereas the colt is a very good horse, but inexperience could count against him. He’s a lovely horse going forward and physically and mentally he will improve through the year.

“He will have learned loads today and that was his first proper gallop on grass. It will be interesting to see how Flight Plan runs next week (at Sandown) – and if he runs well, it might boost our confidence a bit.

“It’s a fantastic position to be in and we’re very fortunate we have the horses we’ve got at the moment. We’ve got some crackers and all the balloons are full at the moment.”

Also in action was the Owen Burrows-trained Alyanaabi, last seen finishing second behind 2000 Guineas favourite City Of Troy in the Dewhurst. He finished upsides an older stablemate.

Burrows said: “Jim (Crowley) said he settled well, which was good because he can be a little keen at home.

“Mentally, it will do him the world of good and hopefully he can step forward from it in two and a half weeks.

“Originally, I didn’t think I needed to bring him up here, but we were quite keen to get him on some nice ground and there’s not a lot of that around at the moment.

“Physically, he has done well and we have a bit to find (with City Of Troy), so we will just have to see. I’m happy physically with how he has done, so we will see, time will tell.”

Charlie Hills’ Champagne Stakes winner Iberian was another in action.

“He’s got huge form and his work on fast ground is completely different to that on soft at home and he’s never really had the chance to show his full potential last year,” said Hills.

“Every time he ran, it was soft ground and at Goodwood in his second race, he probably should have won that race, just the track and inexperience and the ground was soft there as well.

“The Champagne was soft as well and he’s gone and beat two Group One winners in that.

“The way he is bred, he should certainly get the mile but you just have to be careful with who he works with in the morning, as he just destroys them in two or three strides, he has so much natural speed.

“He just cantered the first furlong and I just wanted Tom (Marquand) to get a nice rhythm into him, he could be pretty special.”

Shouldvebeenaring is in “the form of his life” ahead of his bid to land another decisive Newmarket blow in the Connaught Access Flooring Abernant Stakes.

Richard Hannon’s four-year-old has been a real money-spinner for his owners Middleham Park Racing and claimed Listed honours on the Rowley Mile last spring in the King Charles II Stakes.

The most consistent of performers, the son of Havana Grey finished the season plying his trade in Group One company, beaten a neck in Haydock’s Sprint Cup before finishing off with a placed effort in the Prix de la Foret.

Having blown away the cobwebs on the all-weather at Wolverhampton last month, connections are now predicting an improved display over his optimum conditions, which they hope will tee-up further top-table outings later in the campaign.

“Six furlongs on decent ground in group company is probably him playing at home,” said Middleham Park’s Tim Palin.

“He’s won on the Rowley Mile before and Richard reports him to be in the form of his life and this has been the target ever since the Lady Wulfruna. We deliberately got an early call into him so we could get him fit and fresh for Thursday’s mission and hopefully he will run another big race.

“We rolled a few big dice with him last year and he never quite got his head in front at Group One level. But on a couple of occasions he threatened to be a Group One winner and hopefully he can be at some point in the future.

“He has a habit of going really well in competitive big-field races and it does look really competitive. Sean Levey gets on well with him and Richard thinks he has improved since last season, so we go there very hopeful.”

Commanche Falls finished second in this 12 months ago before going on to strike three times later in the summer.

The form of his Ascot second to Annaf last autumn was franked on the international stage and although trainer Michael Dods is unsure whether the seven-year-old will be primed to perfection for this Group Three event, the Darlington handler is looking forward to getting another campaign up and running.

“He looks ready for a run and it has been very difficult to get him ready with the bad weather up north and you have got to start somewhere,” explained Dods.

“We just want to get him started and he’ll improve for the run and come on for it and there will be plenty more races later on in the season. He is ready for a run though, so hopefully he runs well.

“He sort of wakes up later in the season and he’s quite a lazy worker at home, so it’s hard to have him fully wound up and he takes a bit of getting ready. He has to go to the races, otherwise we’d never get him fit.”

Getting the better of Commanche Falls in last year’s race was Charlie Hills’ Garrus, who like in 2023, will be partnered by leading rider Ryan Moore.

“I rode him when he won this race last season and he went on to run some good races in defeat,” the jockey told Betfair.

“This is his grade, though he was placed in the Group One Prix Maurice de Gheest a couple of years ago, so he has a solid chance once again.”

Karl Burke is poised to saddle two in the race, with Spycatcher and Marshman both on the team sheet for the Middleham handler.

The former twice hit the frame at the highest level last term and will be attempting to pick up from where he left off, while Marshman failed to build on some top juvenile form in a 2023 curtailed by injury, but returned in rude health when just touched off in Doncaster’s Cammidge Trophy last month.

“Spycatcher wouldn’t want any firm in the description, otherwise he’ll be out, but both horses are in great form,” said Burke.

“Marshman ran a great race at Doncaster and will improve a lot fitness-wise for that run. He handled the heavy ground that day, but it wouldn’t be his preferred choice and good ground over six furlongs should be ideal.

“He goes out in the hood every day at home, he’s always had that. As you could see at Doncaster, he travels very strongly and I think he needs to relax early to get home over the stiffer six furlongs at Newmarket. Cliff (Lee, jockey) was keen to put the hood on, so we’ll see what happens.”

World number one Nelly Korda insists she is taking nothing for granted as she bids to secure a remarkable fifth straight win and second major title in the Chevron Championship.

Korda took a seven-week break after winning her first title of the year, the LPGA Drive On Championship, in January, and returned to win three events in the space of three weeks, including beating Ireland’s Leona Maguire in the final of the T-Mobile Match Play.

The 25-year-old is the first woman to win on four consecutive starts since Lorena Ochoa in 2008 and is also the first to enter a major on such a streak since Annika Sorenstam.

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“In 2021 I went on a run, and then in 2022 and 2023 golf really humbled me,” admitted Korda, who won four times in 2021, including her sole major title to date in the Women’s PGA Championship.

“There are ups and downs. Every athlete goes through the rollercoaster, and that is what makes the sport so great. You mature and grow so much and learn more about yourself.

“You never take these weeks for granted. You always try to appreciate and become very grateful for them.

“It makes just all the hard work so worth it. But I think I’ve learned so much about myself even through the losses.”

Korda has had one week since her last victory to recharge the batteries ahead of the first women’s major of the season at Carlton Woods in Texas, where she finished a shot outside the play-off won by Lilia Vu last year.

“Last week I was so tired,” Korda added. “I don’t think I’ve ever been that tired. I would wake up and I was ready to go back to bed but I couldn’t. It’s almost to the point where you just can’t sleep, you’re just overly tired.

“I made sure to prioritise any rest. My parents are on top of me to not overdo it.

“I always want to practice more, do more to be better. So made sure to prioritize my rest and making sure to go to sleep early and sleeping a lot, too. That’s the number one thing for recovery. Overall this week I feel really good.”

Korda and Vu have been drawn together for the first two rounds alongside Australia’s Minjee Lee, while English amateur Lottie Woad, winner of the Augusta National Women’s Amateur earlier this month, is in a group with Madelene Sagstrom and Gabriela Ruffels.

Star mare Golden Ace returns to the scene of her finest hour attempting to remain unbeaten over hurdles in Cheltenham’s Changing Young Lives At Jamie’s Farm Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle.

Jeremy Scott’s six-year-old hinted at her potential when second to Dysart Enos in a Grade Two Aintree bumper at the end of last season and since switching to hurdles has been flawless, giving her handler a maiden success at the Cheltenham Festival last month.

The form of that triumph was franked by the bloodless success of Gordon Elliott’s Brighterdaysahead at Aintree, with Golden Ace missing her own intended engagement on Merseyside due to a bruised foot.

However, she has recovered sufficiently for a step up in trip on her return to the Cotswolds and this Listed event looks the perfect spot for Golden Ace to finish the season on a real high.

Scott said: “I was very cross we weren’t able to run at Aintree but she seems absolutely fine now and we’ll go to Cheltenham and take our chance.

“On ratings she looks the best but who knows what the others have got up their sleeves.

“Gordon’s horse looked very impressive and that was up to two and a half miles and now we are as well. We will see how well, or not, we see the trip out. She won over two-miles-three and a bit at Taunton (earlier in the season), so I have every confidence she will get it, no problems at all.

“She’s a lovely mare and has been outstanding. We’re looking forward to another run, which will be good for experience and then we can hopefully put her away for next year.”

Dysart Enos may be missing from the line-up but Fergal O’Brien is still represented by Lilting Verse, while Henry Daly’s talented Wyenot, Dan Skelton’s Lightening Mahler and Ben Clarke’s consistent Ooh Betty are others arriving with good form to their name.

Meanwhile, it is Nicky Henderson who has won this race the last two years and with his Seven Barrows string back in form after a short spell in the doldrums, the Henry Ponsonby Racing team can look forward to Aston Martini’s outing in the Cotswolds with more optimism.

Aston Martini was last seen finishing fourth in graded action at Sandown and Liz Rutter, racing manager for the syndicate, said: “I think the ground at Sandown turned out to be far more testing than a lot of people were expecting, so she did well to finish fourth there.

“We are all delighted to see Nicky’s horses back on track and she’s in good form at home. But this is a hot race – the competition is very high – but there are not a lot of opportunities for these mares in novice company, so I think it is worth having a crack at.

“She’s not run at Cheltenham before but there is no reason why she won’t handle it and I think the ground will be lovely; it will be nice, beautiful ground. She’s a very good mover and she’s a very long-striding mare and I think she quite enjoys decent ground.

“She’s a lovely mare who we hope will keep improving, but this could be a tough ask.”

There is also Grade Two action on the card in the British EBF Mares’ Novices’ Limited Handicap Chase Final, where Mel Rowley’s Malaita looks to win on the card for the second year in a row.

A winner over hurdles at Prestbury Park’s April meeting 12 months ago, the eight-year-old has been a respectable performer since switching to fences this term and will be suited by drying conditions, having opened her account over the larger obstacles at Ludlow last month.

“She won at this meeting last year over hurdles and now needs to repeat the performance over the bigger obstacles,” said Rowley.

“She ran at Cheltenham earlier in the season and was running an absolute blinder before overjumping at the third last and she fell. It was just one of those where she was just jumping so enthusiastically, she forgot to put the landing gear out.

“We’ve put that to the back of our minds and since then she has gone out and won and is in really good form.

“She looks great and the ground won’t be a problem, as she would prefer a sounder surface anyway. We would be hopeful that would play to her strengths, rather than her weaknesses.”

LeBron James has warned the Los Angeles Lakers must play "mistake-free basketball" if they are to overcome the Denver Nuggets.

The Lakers defeated the New Orleans Pelicans 110-106 on Tuesday, meaning they progress to the first round of the playoffs.

A series against the reigning NBA champions awaits, starting on Saturday.

And James, who finished with 23 points, nine rebounds and nine assists, knows the Lakers will have to deliver a near-perfect performance.

"It's the defending champion," James said.

"They know what it takes. They know how to win. They've been extremely dominant on their home floor over the last few years.

"They've got an MVP on their team. They've got a closer on their team. They've got high-level players, high-IQ players, and they've got a hell of a coach.

"So, we have to play mistake-free basketball. Make it tough on them. They're going to try to make it tough on us, obviously.

"But if we can play as great of a game as we can play, and they're going to play as great of a game as they play, it's going come down to one or two possessions. We'll see who executes then."

It was put to Lakers coach Darvin Ham that there had been reports the Lakers might throw their game against the Pelicans in order to go up against either the Sacramento Kings or the Golden State Warriors in the other play-in game.

The Kings ultimately won, and will now face the Pelicans, with the prize a matchup against the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Western Conference's No.1 seed.

"There was a report of what?" an incredulous Ham said. "Insane asylum sources say?"

The Lakers reached the Conference Finals last year, and Anthony Davis is confident Los Angeles are coming into their best form at the opportune moment.

"I think we're clicking at the right time," Davis said.

"Guys are playing well. Guys are very confident. Guys are feeling good. And we're going to need it, especially against Denver."

Former Wales captain Ken Owens has announced his retirement from the game after failing to recover from a back problem.

The 37-year-old hooker, who played five Tests for the British and Irish Lions, has been sidelined for almost a year because of the injury, last playing for the Scarlets in April 2023.

Owens won two Grand Slams and two further Six Nations titles during his 91 caps for Wales, whom he led during last year’s Six Nations.

“Reluctantly, I am announcing my retirement from rugby. Not playing has been challenging, but the time is right to follow medical advice and hang up my boots,” he said.

“Had I written the script there would have been one more game for Wales, for the Scarlets and ultimately Carmarthen Athletic. A chance to sign off and thank everyone involved.

“It was not to be. It might not be the dream ending, but my career has been more than I could have dreamt of.

“Whilst part of me wishes I could have done more, I am well aware that if you had told me as a kid I would be fortunate enough to experience what I have, to have worked with and played with the people I have and taken the pleasure I have from this amazing game, I wouldn’t have believed you.”

D'Aaron Fox said the Sacramento Kings knew exactly was on the line when they went up against the Golden State Warriors.

The Kings came out on top 118-94 on Tuesday, progressing to a meeting with the New Orleans Pelicans on Friday as Sacramento aim to make the playoffs.

Sacramento, who were led by Keegan Murray's 32 points, lost to the Warriors in the first round of the playoffs last year.

And Fox and his teammates knew exactly how important gaining a measure of revenge was this time around.

"We knew what was on the line," said Fox, who scored 24 points for the Kings.

"This was just another obstacle in our way. We have to get over this hump.

"Obviously, losing to this team last year and obviously facing this team now, it's like, of course we have to face this team."

The Warriors, meanwhile, have now missed out on the playoffs for the third time in the past five seasons.

"I was a sophomore in high school watching them win championships [four titles between 2015 and 2022]," Fox said.

"We've been watching this team for a long time. If it is the end, it is what it is. I'm glad we're able to beat this team at this moment, but they definitely had a hell of a run."

Stephen Curry managed 22 points for the Warriors, but he admitted Golden State were second-best.

He said: "For the most part, they just took it to us the whole game. There's really no way around it."

Exeter boss Rob Baxter insists the Gallagher Premiership should aim to match Leinster’s ambition by developing their own ‘Fortnum and Mason’ recruitment policy.

The Irish province have pulled off a major coup by signing New Zealand’s brilliant centre Jordie Barrett while in the prime of his career as he has agreed a short-term deal for next season.

Baxter believes the 27-year-old’s sabbatical is valuable for European rugby and wants the English top flight to also become an appealing destination for overseas stars.

“It makes you a bit jealous that you’re not working in Leinster’s recruitment department!” Baxter said.

“I know (former Saracens, Sale and Worcester director of rugby) Steve Diamond once said it depends what shop you go shopping in: is it Waitrose or is it Aldi?”

Referencing an upmarket London department store, Baxter continued: “It might be Fortnum and Mason depending on how you want to look at it!

“If Irish rugby, Leinster and the United Rugby Championship can get their house in order to allow them to invest in players, their programme and their coaches like they do, you have to say fair play.

“My response would be, ‘let’s not try to say it’s not fair and limit Leinster, let’s look to ways we can get to that level of competition with them’.

“You can look around and say, ‘let’s stop everyone else doing it because we can’t do it’. Or you go, ‘what are they doing to develop that level of interest and finance and why can’t we do it?’.

“I don’t think it’s bad for these competitions to have world-class players. What we want to find out is ways that we can do it as well.

“You have to work to make the competition look attractive and the way the game is played look attractive.

“To get that deal in place to sign a player you have to get a lot of financial bits and pieces right – and that runs right from the top of the game to the bottom in the country.

“There’s a lot we have to do to get to that level, but why shouldn’t we be aiming for it? That’s what we should be trying to do.”

The Premiership has defied its critics by supplying two teams to the Investec Champions Cup semi-finals in Northampton and Harlequins, with Leinster and Toulouse completing the line-up.

Baxter believes that has been managed even though the league has temporarily been reduced to a “developing competition” due to the financial implications of the pandemic and lack of funds in the English game.

“Two sides in the semi-finals is obviously fantastic. We want to expose the Premiership to as many new viewers as we can, for obvious reasons. Whether we make it a regular occurrence, that’s the challenge,” the director of rugby said.

“The Premiership is expected to be a developing competition again. We’ve had to do a lot of things around Covid and the financial situation in the country.

“We’ve had to make some adjustments but we will hope as a competition that we will regrow ourselves over the coming period as well.”

Ronnie O’Sullivan eases into the Crucible on the hunt for a modern record eighth world title and it is abundantly apparent that if the Rocket is in the mood, then very few of his rivals will be able to live with him.

But while O’Sullivan continues to soak up all the pre-tournament column inches, the PA news agency sizes up the best of the rest who are left with the daunting task of putting the brakes on the best player the game has seen.

Luca Brecel

Barring a run to the final of the non-ranking Shanghai Masters, Brecel has done anything but build on his stunning title success last year, and must rank as one of the least fancied returning champions in history. But the Belgian was equally unfancied 12 months ago when he waded into the Crucible insisting he had not laid a hand on the practice table, so it feels wrong to write him off entirely just yet.

Judd Trump

Flashback to 2019 when Trump’s maiden world crown bore all the hallmarks of a decade of dominance ahead. No fewer than 14 ranking titles have followed – including five this year alone – but with the exception of the 2023 Masters, the coveted majors have remained elusive. Trump undoubtedly has the talent to become a multiple world champion, but whether he has the temperament to see it through again remains a significant question mark.

Mark Selby

Four-time winner Selby trudges to the Crucible on the back of another inconsistent campaign that left him seriously considering retirement after his loss to Gary Wilson in the first round of this month’s Tour Championship. All of which will count for nothing, of course, when the Crucible kicks back in and the 40-year-old, who has repeatedly showed the tenacity to grind his way through the rounds, will once again be well and truly in the running.

Mark Allen

Seemingly in danger of becoming known as one of the game’s great under-achievers, Allen radically altered his style a couple of seasons ago and the ranking titles began rolling in – five in the last two years, plus a Champion of Champions gong. While it undoubtedly makes him better-equipped to break his Crucible duck, the fact remains that his Crucible record – with just two semi-finals in 17 appearances – leaves a lot to be desired.

Gary Wilson

Wilson’s run to the 2019 semi-finals as a qualifier looked to have been a flash in the pan until the last two seasons, in which the Tyneside man has picked up three ranking crowns and established a reputation as one of the toughest match-players in the business. With a steady temperament that makes him well-suited to the long game, Wilson could emerge once again as a major threat.

Barry Hawkins will return to the Crucible this year convinced he has proved a point to those who questioned whether he still had the hunger to pursue a second appearance in a World Snooker Championship final.

Hawkins’ relatively serene progress within the game’s elite – peaking with his 2013 final loss to Ronnie O’Sullivan – was rudely interrupted last year when he dropped out of the top 16 and failed to qualify for Sheffield the first time in 17 years.

But while the 44-year-old admits he too started to doubt his ability to return, a stellar current season, capped by his ending a seven-year wait for a fourth ranking title at the European Masters in August, will send him back to Sheffield in good heart.

“I know sometimes I come across like I’m not hungry enough, but it must be in there somewhere or I wouldn’t have been around as long as I have,” Hawkins told the PA news agency. “You need that hunger or you’re not going to succeed.

“I was devastated to miss out last year and for my run to come to an end. I don’t think I’ve ever felt so low about snooker.

“Inevitably, when you’ve played in ranking finals and massive arenas, your ranking starts to drop and you can’t help but start wondering if you’re on the slippery slope to retirement.

“It’s hard to keep that sustainability and that mindset, but I got my nose back in the top 16 and I set my goal to be seeded for the Crucible. I’ve bounced back this season and after winning the title in Germany I feel like my game is in good shape.”

Hawkins evolved into one of the Crucible’s most consistent performances in the wake of his run to the 2013 final, embarking on a run that would see him reach four semi-finals and one quarter over the next five years, including an epic 13-12 second-round win over O’Sullivan in 2016.

But his seemingly effortless progress belied a story of gritty resilience for the mild-mannered Hawkins, who failed to reach Sheffield for nine straight years before booking his place at the 10th attempt in 2006 – only to lose 10-1 to Ken Doherty.

“My immediate reaction was, thank God it’s over,” recalled Hawkins. “I was only young and I was completely demoralised, but at the same time I remember coming off and thinking, ‘I want to get back in there’.

“I couldn’t have imagined that I was going to go and play there so many times, have some unbelievable runs and beat some of the greatest players. It seems like a distant memory now but I suppose it did toughen me up for what was ahead.”

One of only a handful of current players to have proved he has the stamina for the 17-day Crucible slog, Hawkins, who is also a two-time Masters finalist, has renewed hope that could crown his career with a coveted ‘triple crown’ title.

“As the years go by the belief slowly dwindles that you are going to win one of the big ones,” he added.

“But you’ve just got to keep punching and live in hope, because you never know when it could happen. It could come completely out of the blue.

“One thing’s for sure, if I finish my career and I haven’t managed it, it won’t be through lack of trying.”

Ronnie O’Sullivan may claim not to care about records but the magnitude of his quest to eclipse Stephen Hendry and claim a record-breaking eighth world snooker title in the modern era cannot be understated.

O’Sullivan heads to the Crucible as reluctantly as ever, yet he is arguably never in a stronger position to go one better than his great rival and further enhance his surely unarguable status as the greatest snooker player of all time.

It is a mark of his true greatness that O’Sullivan finds himself in such a position at the age of 48, and having adopted an almost lackadaisical public approach to his sport, picking and choosing his events and constantly deriding his own performances and occasionally those of his peers.

While other players sweat and toil and chisel their way deep into the Crucible’s 17 days, O’Sullivan will waft in and out with an agenda led by the prospect of lucrative exhibitions and ambassadorial deals with the likes of Saudi Arabia, further underscoring his status as simply a player apart.

There are a handful who have proved themselves more than capable of sinking O’Sullivan – not least his fellow ‘Class of 92’ star Mark Williams, who routed him 10-5 in the Tour Championship final last month and is exhibiting some of his best form in years.

Mark Selby, despite another torrid season which resulted in him recently threatening retirement, still summoned a rare 6-0 whitewash of O’Sullivan in February, while emergent Chinese star Zhang Anda beat him in back-to-back tournaments earlier in this campaign.

Yet it remains abundantly clear that having withdrawn from no fewer than seven ranking titles this season for various medical and mental health reasons, the biggest threat to O’Sullivan clinching that prestigious eighth title remains O’Sullivan himself.

Snooker is still waiting for a true rival to stand up and be counted. Judd Trump continues to sweep all before him in lesser ranking events but his displays in the so-called majors have left much to be desired, the expected surge after his 2019 world title win having hardly materialised.

Luca Brecel, the reigning champion and a man after O’Sullivan’s heart after swaggering into the Crucible last year to win the thing despite insisting he had not so much as potted a ball in practice, has endured a dismal season by any top-16 player’s standards.

Selby is another to have performed sluggishly but his grit and determination invariably makes him come good at at the Crucible, and he is clearly the name to be reckoned with – qualifiers notwithstanding – in a much weaker top half of the draw.

Mark Allen is another whose undoubted talent has seldom been glimpsed in a series of Crucible calamities, while older stagers like Ali Carter and Gary Wilson have the guts but perhaps not that final special something required to go all the way.

Two players who were shaping up into the best prospects to at least share the spotlight with O’Sullivan and haul the sport into a new global era, Zhao Xintong and Yan Bingtao, remain banned for a variety of offences relating to betting on snooker.

It is 90 years since the great Joe Davis won his own eighth title, beating the only other player willing to stump up the five guineas entry fee, Tom Newman, 25-22 in the final played over five days at Kettering’s Central Hall.

In those intervening years the game has changed unfathomably, to the point where Saudi princes are dangling the lure of seven-figure prize money for players who pot a golden ball at the end of a maximum break.

But one constant remains: the dominance of a single individual. Not since the great pioneer Davis, who would go on to win 15 straight titles before retiring undefeated in 1946, has the sport seen a player so far apart from the rest of the field.

The latest episode of the Ronnie O’Sullivan show starts this weekend – whether O’Sullivan, or the sport’s officials, or the rivals he leaves so consistently short-changed and occasionally enraged – like to see it that way or not.

LeBron James starred as the Los Angeles Lakers defeated the New Orleans Pelicans to reach the NBA play-offs.

The 39-year-old scored 23 points in the Lakers’ 110-106 victory and also contributed nine rebounds, nine assists and three steals.

The Lakers go into the play-offs as the seventh seed and will face defending champions the Denver Nuggets in the first round.

Speaking to reporters, James said: “It was a good all-round team win. This was a long road trip, you almost forget we were in Memphis before these two games.

“Tonight was definitely a play-off game so get your mind right, get your body right, try to get as much recovery as we can before we have to go out there on Saturday.

“It’s a sprint now, we already went through the marathon. Tonight we showcased what we’re able to do both offensively and defensively. We’ve got a good group going right now, a good rotation, good plan and guys are coming in ready to go.”

James, who will compete in the play-offs for the 17th time in 21 seasons, feels his team have their work cut out against the Nuggets.

“It’s the defending champion, they know what it takes, they know how to win, they’ve been extremely dominant at home over the last few years,” he said.

“They’ve got high-level players, high IQ players, they’ve got a hell of a coach. We have to play mistake-free basketball and make it tough on them.”