ROME -- Rafael Nadal is right back where he wants to be.

After losing in the semifinals of three straight clay-court tournaments, Nadal dominated for stretches against his longtime rival, Novak Djokovic, in a 6-0, 4-6, 6-1 win Sunday for a record-extending ninth Italian Open title.

It marked the first time in an Open era-record 54 meetings, and in their 142nd set against each other, that Nadal won a set against Djokovic without conceding a game -- otherwise known as a bagel.

The timing for Nadal's return to form could not have been more opportune, as he will seek a record-extending 12th title at the French Open starting next weekend.

"Winning a title is important, but for me the most important thing is feel myself competitive, feel myself healthy," Nadal said. "Then with the feeling that I am improving. I know if I'm able to reach my level you can win, you can lose, but normally I'm going to have my chances, especially on this surface."

Top-ranked Djokovic, meanwhile, appeared exhausted after spending more than 5½ hours on court against Juan Martin del Potro and Diego Schwartzman the previous two days.

Djokovic was also coming off the Madrid Open title last week.

"I don't want to talk about fatigue or things like that," Djokovic said. "Rafa was simply too strong today."

In the women's final earlier, Karolina Pliskova captured the biggest clay-court trophy of her career by beating Johanna Konta 6-3, 6-4.

The Foro Italico crowd continually tried to encourage Djokovic with chants of "Vai Nole!" (Go Nole!), but the top-ranked Serb struggled with his overhead and drop shots.

Midway through the second set, Nadal chased down a lob with an over-the-shoulder shot and Djokovic's ensuing overhead landed in the net to conclude a long point.

Djokovic again netted an overhead in the next game and then kicked the ball in frustration when he missed a drop shot attempt late in the second.

But Djokovic hung around in the second and converted his first set point when a looping forehand from Nadal sailed wide for his first break of the match. As he walked to his chair after winning the second set, Djokovic waved his arms to get the crowd behind him.

However, Djokovic didn't have much left in the tank.

When Nadal pushed Djokovic deep into the corner in the opening game of the third set and Djokovic's desperation lob sailed long to hand Nadal a break, Djokovic smashed his racket to the clay three times in frustration and received a warning from the chair umpire.

Djokovic won only 29 percent of the points on his second serve and committed 39 unforced errors to Nadal's 17. Also, Nadal won 23 of the 31 rallies with nine or more shots.

Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane has said Gareth Bale's attitude "day-to-day" meant he did not get on the pitch in what could have been his final match with the club during the 2-0 defeat to Real Betis.

Los Blancos finished the campaign in disappointing fashion, but Bale was not called upon, despite being named a substitute, and he walked straight down the tunnel at full-time.

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Although Bale's agent, Jonathan Barnett, told ESPN FC this past week that his client was determined to see out a contract which runs until 2022, Zidane said the Wales international's daily work at training meant he did not deserve a chance to play.

"It is true, I did not [give Bale a chance to say goodbye]," Zidane said. "If I had another substitute to make, I would not have done anything different.

"But I have to look at the day-to-day, and make decisions. And when there is something I do not like, or does not fit for me, I must do what I think best. It might be difficult for the player.

"We cannot forget all he has done here, but I must live in the present, think of the future. We will see [if Bale continues]. I don't know what will happen, truthfully."

Goalkeeper Keylor Navas did get a chance to bid farewell to the Bernabeu before he likely leaves this summer, saluting all four corners of the stadium after making a string of saves to keep the score down.

"I don't know what will happen," Zidane said when asked if Navas would now leave. "I am repeating myself, sorry, but I don't know.

"Keylor played well today, the fans were happy, that's all. Next year, we will see when we come back here."

Madrid finish the season with 68 points -- their lowest total since 2001-02 -- and further behind champions Barcelona than any time in La Liga history. Their 18 defeats in all competitions was their highest total since the 1995-96 campaign.

"We must accept when things go badly," the Frenchman said. "I am responsible for this.

"We had 11 games, we won five, lost four, and in the end that is what it is. At a club like Madrid motivation is difficult when there is nothing to play for. This is not the first bad year in the history of this club.

"And after the bad, comes the good. But we must not forget this season, we must have it very present to prepare the next one."

NEW ORLEANS -- The Pelicans have hired Nets assistant general manager Trajan Langdon to serve as GM under new executive vice president of basketball operations David Griffin, according to multiple reports.

The news was first reported by the Athletic.

Langdon, 43, is a former Duke and NBA player who also played professionally in Europe. He has served as the Nets' assistant GM since 2016 and has helped rebuild Brooklyn into a squad that qualified for the Eastern Conference playoffs as a sixth seed this season after finishing last in the East two seasons earlier.

Langdon interviewed with New Orleans for the top basketball operations job that went to Griffin in mid-April.

When Griffin was formally introduced by the Pelicans, he said he'd received a commitment from owner Gayle Benson to build up the management structure of the club. He has begun doing so by bringing in Langdon, and before that, hiring former Suns executive Aaron Nelson away from Phoenix to oversee injury prevention, rehabilitation, performance and recovery programs.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

With a plan to partner him with new coach John Beilein, the Cleveland Cavaliers are hiring J.B. Bickerstaff as associate head coach, league sources told ESPN.

The Cavaliers will make Bickerstaff one of the NBA's top paid assistant coaches, league sources said.

Cleveland is working with Beilein -- a highly successfully 40-year college coach -- to ease his transition to the pro game and targeted Bickerstaff as a key to that education.

Bickerstaff, the Memphis Grizzlies head coach for the past year-plus, had discussed top assistant roles with Boston, Philadelphia, Los Angeles and Sacramento, but met with Beilein and general manager Koby Altman at the NBA's draft combine in Chicago and began to gravitate toward the Cavaliers recruitment, sources said.

Bickerstaff had interviewed for the Cavaliers head coaching job with Altman before the hiring of Beilein. Bickerstaff's father, Bernie, a longtime NBA coach and executive, works as a consultant for the Cavaliers.

Bickerstaff, 40, had been interim coach with the Houston Rockets (2015-16), leading them to the playoffs, and landed the Grizzlies job after spending most of 2017-18 as the interim after David Fizdale's firing. His career record is 85-131.

Cleveland hired Beilein, 66, on Friday after he coached for 12 seasons at the University of Michigan.

Houston Astros star outfielder George Springer left Sunday's game against the Boston Red Sox in the fifth inning with stiffness in his lower back.

Springer was replaced in right field by Tony Kemp at the start of the bottom of the fifth inning.

Springer appeared to grimace and grab at his back after swings on multiple occasions. He struck out three times against Red Sox starter Chris Sale.

He leads the American League with 17 home runs and 42 RBIs and began the day hitting .318.

The elite orienteer discusses her route into the sport and its crossover with running

Cat Taylor started orienteering at the age of seven and made her GB debut in 2012, going on to achieve results including bronze at the European Championships and a win at a World Cup round.

After seven years of living and training in Sweden, the South Yorkshire Orienteers athlete now lives in Sheffield and combines training with work as a translator. In the spring and summer she is often on the road for camps and competitions and is currently on a training camp in Norway.

Ahead of August’s World Orienteering Championships in Norway and as part of World Orienteering Week, Taylor shares some insight into her sport and its crossover with running.

Athletics Weekly: What was your route into orienteering? Were you a runner, or an orienteer, first?

Cat Taylor: I’ve been orienteering since I was tiny, I was definitely an orienteer first! I did cross country at school, along with lots of other sports, and I was okay but never great. Of course I do a lot of running now but it’s all as training for orienteering. I run a few fell races and have done a couple of 10km on the roads (my best is 35:32) but it’s never been a main focus. I do enjoy racing any kind of running where I can fit it in but I always have quite a packed programme.

AW: What do you love most about orienteering?

CT: I first got hooked when I started running off the paths, just straight through the forest. It’s a great feeling of freedom. I also like that the physical and technical challenge is really different from place to place. A track is the same anywhere but for example a forest near Stockholm is a lot different to one near Madrid and to be consistently good at orienteering you have to be very adaptable.

AW: How do you prepare for major championships? Do you have an ‘average’ training week?

CT: At home I try to do a good mix of running training – a bit of everything on all surfaces – and consistent technique training. It means quite a bit of variety but I do have a consistent week plan. The toughest thing with this sport is that specific preparation for a championship means travelling to terrain and race in similar conditions to those you’ll face on the big day. You’re not allowed to run or even visit the area you will race in before you actually start but can get a good idea of the kind of challenge by training in the forests nearby. So this year I’m spending altogether about five weeks on World Championships training camps (near Oslo, Norway). All the travel can sometimes disrupt training but it’s a necessary compromise.

AW: Can you talk about the crossover between the two sports and the necessary skillsets?

CT: Once you’ve learned the basic navigation techniques you need to orienteer, it’s mainly about managing the balance between running quickly but still concentrating on navigation. The higher your aerobic threshold, the faster you can run without being in the “red zone” (where you need to concentrate hard on the running, meaning you can’t make decisions as well and risk getting lost!). My physical training works towards being as good an all-round runner as possible; you have to be strong up hills, down hills, in rough terrain, through marshes, over rocks and on flatter, fast surfaces.

The biggest difference for me is the feeling on the start line. Even in cross country you know exactly where the course will go, where it’s going to hurt, you can have a pretty exact plan for how to run each bit. In orienteering you can have very little idea of where you’ll be going until the clock starts, you pick up the map and run off. You’re also often alone all the way and have to be very good at pushing yourself and keeping positive, because it’s almost impossible to run completely without technical mistakes.

AW: What are your key 2019 targets in both running and orienteering?

CT: I’ve actually had a pretty rubbish time this last winter. I’ve been injured and doing a lot of alternative training but I’m still aiming to be back in top shape by August to fight for the very highest positions in the World Orienteering Championships (near Oslo, Norway). I’ve frustratingly had to reign in running plans while I recover but am gradually getting back into action. Because all the most important competitions this summer are in soft terrain I’ll not prioritise racing on the road or running much track at all, but I’ll hopefully have time for some local fell races in the coming months.

AW: What are you most proud of having achieved in your elite career so far?

CT: I’ve had a few good international results so far, including a win at a World Cup round and a bronze medal at the European Championships. I’m happy any time I feel like I’ve got the most from myself on an important day, it means that the project I’ve been working on for months or even more has been successful and it’s that feeling that makes all the pain and expense worthwhile!

A World Championships qualifying mark and a world record are among the stand-out performances at the Loughborough International

Younger sprinters were among those to impress in what seemed to be near perfect running conditions at the Loughborough International Athletics competition, as the European U20 and U23 Championships qualifying standards drew interest.

However, it was more experienced athletes who stole the show. Sophie McKinna was pleased to get the Doha World Championships qualifying shot put standard with 18.04m. Although not as far as her 18.23m in the Norfolk Championships the previous week, she was happy to make her point on her first throw.

A world record was broken on the track as Paralympic champion Sophie Hahn improved the T38 100m mark to 12.43 (1.3m/sec).

“I’m so surprised and I can’t believe that just happened,” she said. “I didn’t expect that time going into the race.

“This is only my third 100m race of the season and it shows that I’m in such great form.”

?Loughborough International Athletics

Paralympic champion @SophieHahnT38 smashes the competition as she claims first place in the Women's Para-Elite 100m#LIA2019 #Battleofthenations #WhereHistoryBegins pic.twitter.com/caf43jSz8R

— Loughborough Sport (@LboroSport) May 19, 2019

The women’s 3000m saw Jess Judd track Amelia Quirk before sprinting clear to win in 9:02.86 and confirm that her track ambitions lie over either 1500 or 5000m.

Amy Hunt took the 100m in a personal best of 11.31 and the 17-year-old sees the European U20 Championships as a serious possibility. It was a similar story for Jeremiah Azu in the men’s race as his recent 18th birthday passed during the week and her was rewarded with a 10.27 personal best.

Hunt added a 200m win in 23.17.

Also among the under-20s, Ethan Brown fancies a Europeans slot after his 46.88 400m win, while Josh Zeller’s 13.62 under-20 110m hurdles victory confirmed his top-ranked status and similar ambitions.

Among the more seasoned competitors, Meghan Beesley took the women’s 400m hurdles in 56.72, while Seb Rodger won the men’s race in 50.06, in his first outing of the season.

Shannon Hylton was another to come good, but had to battle a wind in her 23.42 200m, after an 11.59 guest 100m victory. These came after her Doha Diamond League 200m disqualification.

Phillipa Lowe said she wants a 400m individual berth in the World Championships after victory in Loughborough in 52.91.

In the field, Scott Lincoln continued his four-year No.1 ranking with a 19.23m shot victory, while Ben Hawkes won a close hammer with 70.52 from Craig Murch.

Harry Hughes impressed with 80.32m in the javelin, the first time a British athlete has thrown over 80 metres in seven years. That PB moves him to 11th on the UK all-time list.

Lucy Hadaway jumped 6.34m to win the women’s long jump, with Holly Mills leaping 6.29m to finish second and secure a European U20 Championships standard.

Charlotte Payne threw a hammer PB of 61.83m to move to third on the British all-time junior list and also achieve a European U20 qualifier.

World University Games qualification also drew interest as women’s 100m hurdles winner Jessica Hunter ran 13.54, just shy of the 13.40 qualifying standard.

For the under-23s, Shemar Boldizsar’s 20.81 200m in a guest race bettered that of Sam Miller’s 21.03 in the match event and was just 0.01 from the European U23 Championships standard.

British number one Johanna Konta's wait for a first WTA clay-court title continues after she lost to Karolina Pliskova in the Italian Open final.

Czech world number seven Pliskova won 6-3 6-4 in one hour 25 minutes in Rome for her second title of the season.

Konta, 28, beat two top-10 players to reach the final and earned a seeding at the French Open starting on 26 May.

"I'm super pleased with how I've been progressing this year and improving in every match," said Konta.

"This is my second biggest final after Miami. This is a big moment for me. I'm very pleased to be making that progress."

Konta was the first British woman to reach the Italian Open final since Virginia Wade in 1971, while Pliskova is the first Czech woman to win it since 1978.

Konta did not recover from being broken in her opening service game, and again at 3-3 in the second.

Pliskova required three match points to secure victory and claim her first title since the Brisbane International in January.

'What a week for Konta' - analysis

BBC tennis correspondent Russell Fuller

Pliskova was the sharper player and allowed Konta a look at just one break point.

The serve remains the foundation of Pliskova's game, but she has developed into a very accomplished clay-court player, and will be the second seed at the French Open.

Konta could not reproduce the stunning form she found earlier in the tournament, but what a week - a season-changing week.

She will no longer be at the mercy of the draw come the French Open, and almost certainly Wimbledon too. As a seed, she cannot player anyone else in the world's top 32 until at least the third round.

Konta's tour results before April were unspectacular, but she now sits 13th in the annual rankings race. And she has also won six Fed Cup matches for her country, which aren't taken into consideration.

BBC Sport has launched #ChangeTheGame this summer to showcase female athletes in a way they never have been before. Through more live women's sport available to watch across the BBC this summer, complemented by our journalism, we are aiming to turn up the volume on women's sport and alter perceptions. Find out more here.

Rafael Nadal claimed his first title of the year by defeating world number one Novak Djokovic 6-0 4-6 6-1 in the Italian Open final in Rome.

The Spaniard raced through the opener in 39 minutes, the first 6-0 between the great rivals in 141 previous sets.

Djokovic battled back, but in the Rome sunshine Nadal sealed his ninth Italian Open title in two hours, 25 minutes.

It was his 81st tournament win and it takes him 34-33 ahead of Djokovic in Masters 1,000 Series titles.

Victory is a boost before the French Open for Nadal, who was beaten by Djokovic in the Australian Open final in January, and had lost at the semi-final stage in his past four tournaments.

Since 2005, Nadal has won at least one of the nine Masters 1,000 events in a season every year except 2015.

Djokovic had saved two match points in his quarter-final win over Juan Martin del Potro that finished at 1.05am local time on Saturday and then had another three-set encounter later that evening against Diego Schwartzman which lasted two hours, 31 minutes.

The 54th meeting between the world's top two players saw the Serb, perhaps sufferings the effects of those two gruelling matches, initially overwhelmed by Nadal, who was ruthless with his trademark forehand.

To tumultuous acclaim from the capacity crowd, Djokovic forged his first break point opportunity of the match in the fourth game of the second set, but a magnificent, whirling forehand into the corner from Nadal soon eradicated it.

However, the 31-year-old showed his famous powers of resolve, firing some fierce returns as he took the next chance to break, which sealed the set in 59 minutes.

Nadal broke in the opening game of the decider, prompting Djokovic to demolish his racquet in frustration and with the Serb continuing to falter with drop shot attempts, Nadal surged to a 58th clay-court title.

It reduced his career deficit against Djokovic to 28-26, improving his record on clay against him to 17-7.

Analysis

BBC tennis correspondent Russell Fuller

A ninth title in Rome; a record 34th Masters title; but most significantly a first clay court title of the year for Nadal a week before the start of Roland Garros.

In fact, a first title anywhere since last August. He was irresistible in the first set, in a week in which he has won four sets 6-0 and only dropped serve twice.

But both should go to Paris in excellent heart.

A tiring Djokovic struck a useful psychological blow by dragging Nadal into a decider.

And this after winning the title in Madrid last weekend, and enduring a more gruelling week in Rome which included night shifts on both Friday and Saturday.