Today's sports news: What you need to know

Latest - Young New Zealand driver Liam Lawson has made a succesful transition from single-seaters to saloons on the first day of pre-season testing for the German Touring Car Championship.

Lawson, who was driving a Ferrari, was fourth fastest at Hockenheim, less than point three of a second behind the leading Mercedes team.

Red Bull backed Lawson will split his time between F2 and the DTM this year

The 19 year old is in second place overall after the first round of F2 in Bahrain.

The German Touring Car Championship starts in July.

Moody joins Crusaders century club

Crusaders and All Blacks prop Joe Moody, will become the 19th Crusader to play 100 games for the franchise when he takes the field against the Hurricanes in Wellington on Sunday afternoon.

Moody, 32, first played for the side in 2013.

Moody will auction his match jersey to raise funds for the Prostate Cancer Foundation.

The Crusaders sit at the top of the Super Rugby Aotearoa standings but are coming off their first loss of the season against the Highlanders.

Woods was speeding

Tiger Woods was driving close to double the 45mph speed limit when he crashed in February, according to Los Angeles County's sheriff.

The 15-time major champion, 45, had to be "extricated from the wreck" of his car by firefighters and paramedics.

Woods' car left the road at about 84-87mph and flipped several times during the accident in California.

Woods was released from hospital earlier this month after sustaining a number of serious injuries.

The sheriff's department says Woods may have hit the accelerator instead of the brake.

-BBC

French Open delayed

The French Open is set to be postponed by a week, starting on May 30 instead of May 23, according to French media reports.

The French Open is set to be postponed by a week, starting on May 30 instead of May 23, according to French media reports.

The 2020 tournament was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, eventually getting underway in late September.

The event usually begins on the fourth Sunday in May, ending in early June.

The French Tennis Federation is hoping for pandemic restrictions to be relaxed by the end of May, enabling it to have more spectators at the tournament, sports daily L'Equipe has reported.

-Reuters

Pakistan clinch series

Pakistan has beaten South Africa by 28 runs in the third and final one-day cricket international in Pretoria to clinch the series 2-1.

Opener Fakhar Zaman smashed his second century in as many matches, following up his scintillating 193 on Monday with 101 as Pakistan posted 320 for seven in their 50 overs having been sent into bat.

South Africa, missing five key players on their way to the Indian Premier League in Quinton de Kock, David Miller, Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje and Lungi Ngidi, were bowled out for 292 in the final over.

Fakhar's 101 from 104 balls laid the platform for a sizeable Pakistan total.

But it was given a significant late boost by captain Babar Azam (94 from 82 balls) and Hasan Ali (32 not out from 11) who smashed 55 from the final 16 balls of the innings to propel Pakistan well past 300.

The teams now play a four-match Twenty20 International series starting in Johannesburg this weekend.

-Reuters

Swimmers continue to impress

Two swimmers have gone under Paralympic qualifying times at the National Championships on the North Shore.

Cameron Leslie in the men's 200 freestyle and Jesse Reynolds in the men's 100 backstroke produced performances to back up their previous qualifying efforts.

In the feature race of the evening Lewis Clareburt pipped Zac Reid in the final of the men's 800 freestyle.

Gabriella Benn won the women's 400m freestyle in a New Zealand record time.

Nike dumps Watson

Sportwear giant Nike has suspended its endorsement contract with Deshaun Watson amid the sexual assault and inappropriate conduct allegations levied against the Houston Texans quarterback.

Nike is the official outfitter of the NFL. Watson signed with the sports apparel giant prior to the 2017 NFL Draft.

Multiple media outlets also reported Beats by Dre ended its relationship with Watson.

Watson also has endorsement deals with Rolex, Texas-based grocery store chain H-E-B and Reliant Energy.

NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said Tuesday that the league is continuing its investigation into Watson.

-Reuters

Crucible to allow crowds

Sheffield's Crucible Theatre will welcome back fans for the world snooker championship this month, starting with 33% capacity in the first round and no restrictions on capacity for the final in May.

The tournament is a part of the British government's Events Research Programme where pilot events are being held to assess whether large events can be held in closed settings without social distancing amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The venue is set to operate at 33% capacity for the first round with social distancing in place before capacity is increased to 50% for the second round, 75% for the quarter-finals and semi-finals and 100% for the final.

All spectators who wish to attend the April 17-May 3 event must undertake a COVID-19 test before the event as well as five days after. However, minors will not be allowed to attend the event.

Last year's tournament was postponed from April-May to July-August due to the pandemic and only a limited crowd was allowed to watch the final as Ronnie O'Sullivan claimed a sixth world title.

-Reuters

De Bruyne extends City deal

Manchester City midfielder Kevin de Bruyne has signed a new contract with the English Premier League leaders that runs until 2025.

The 29-year-old Belgium international had more than two years remaining on his previous deal.

De Bruyne has won two Premier League titles, the FA Cup and the League Cup four times since joining City from Wolfsburg in the summer of 2015.

He says that with the two-year contract extension now signed, his "focus now is on ensuring" they end the season strongly.

De Bruyne has played 255 games in all competitions for City, scoring 65 goals and assisting 105.

-BBC