Today's sports news: What you need to know

Latest - New Zealand ski racer Alice Robinson will belatedly start her second world championships tonight.

Robinson was due to compete in the alpine combined on the opening day of competition, but that has been postponed a week due to heavy snow in Italy's Dolomites.

The 19-year-old will instead start with the women's Super G, which is now the first event of the world champs.

Robinson finished 32nd and 33rd in her last two world cups in the discipline.

She will race in her preferred event, the giant slalom, next week.

Bayern Munich cruise into Club World Cup final

European champions Bayern Munich have cruised into the Club World Cup final in Qatar where they will face Tigres after two goals from Robert Lewandowski gave them a clinical 2-0 win over Al Ahly.

Bayern will meet the Mexican side in the showpiece match on Thursday (Friday morning NZ time) in a bid to win their second title in the competition after Egyptians Al Ahly, the African Champions League winners, take on Palmeiras of Brazil in the third-place playoff.

The German team's manager Hansi Flick was delighted with the outcome and pointed out that they were on the front foot throughout the contest.

"We were clearly the better side and although we lost some momentum in the second half, we ran out well-deserved winners," Bayern manager Hansi Flick said.

Meanwhile, Leeds United have beaten Crystal Palace 2-0 to climb into the top half of the Premier League table.

It was Leeds' first home win of the season and sees them leapfrog Arsenal into 10th, while Crystal Palace remain 13th in the standings.

- Reuters/RNZ

New coach for Taranaki

Neil Barnes has been appointed coach of the Taranaki Bulls for the next two seasons, replacing Willie Rickards, who finished his three-year contract at the end of 2020.

Barnes is currently an assistant coach at the Chiefs, but has a long history in Taranaki.

He was an assistant coach for the province from 2003 to 2007 and in 2009 and won seven club titles with New Plymouth Old Boys between 1993 and 1998 and again in 2002.

"I am a Taranaki person at heart, born and bred, love my province and the people in it deep down," Barnes said.

"It shouldn't be a surprise to anyone who knows me, that I am genuinely excited about returning home and taking on the head coach role."

Hamilton ends uncertainty over F1 future

Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton will chase a record eighth title with Mercedes this season after signing a new deal, ending any uncertainty about his immediate future.

The 36-year-old Briton had been out of contract since the end of last year but the negotiations had turned into something of a saga, with questions raised about why it was taking so long.

Mercedes said the new agreement, which referred only to 2021, included a joint commitment for greater diversity and inclusion.

Hamilton, the sport's only Black driver and its most successful racer, has used his platform and profile increasingly to push for equal opportunities and speak out against racial injustice.

"I am excited to be heading into my ninth season with my Mercedes team mates," he said.

- Reuters

England set India challenging target

A cautious England spared India the ignominy of a follow-on but set them a daunting 420-run victory target in the opening test in Chennai.

England, who had posted a mammoth 578 in the first innings, bowled India out for 337 but opted against enforcing the follow-on at MA Chidambaram Stadium.

The tourists walked out to bat instead and were bowled out for 178 an hour before stumps, baffling many by their refusal to declare which would have given them more time to bowl out India.

The hosts finished the penultimate day on 39-1, still 381 behind the target, with Shubhman Gill batting on 15 and Cheteshwar Pujara on 12.

"Obviously, we're ahead in the game," England bowling coach Jon Lewis told a video conference.

"We played some really good cricket in this game. We're confident that we can create enough chances to win the game tomorrow."

- Reuters

Pakistan complete series sweep

Seamer Hasan Ali took a career-best 10 wickets in the match as Pakistan blitzed South Africa with the new ball to complete a 95-run victory in the second and final test in Rawalpindi and claim the series 2-0.

Chasing a target of 370 for victory, which would have been a test record in Pakistan, South Africa were well placed at 241 for three just after lunch on the fifth day following a century from Aiden Markram (108).

But when the home side took the new ball, Hasan (5-60) and Shaheen Afridi (4-51) decimated the South African middle order with expert swing bowling to dismiss the visitors for 274.

Hasan took career-best figures of 10-114 in the match as South Africa lost their last seven wickets for the addition of only 33 runs.

It was yet another dismal batting collapse, something that has been a feature of their cricket home and away for the last few years, but on this occasion it was brought about by some high-class seam bowling.

- Reuters

Djokovic continues 'love affair' with Rod Laver Arena

Novak Djokovic got back to doing what he does best on Monday when he steamrollered Frenchman Jeremy Chardy 6-3 6-1 6-2 on Rod Laver Arena in the opening round of the Australian Open.

Having come through two weeks of quarantine in Adelaide, and a brief but damaging spat with his hosts about the strict isolation conditions placed on competitors in Melbourne, the world number one let his tennis do the talking as he eased to a 297th Grand Slam victory.

Djokovic has won eight of his 17 major titles on Melbourne Park's main showcourt and, even with a smaller crowd than usual, the Serbian looked very much at home on the distinctive blue surface.

"There's an ongoing love affair with me and this court," he said to cheers from the fans.

"I've been lucky to have so much success on this court and hopefully it will continue for many years. It makes my heart full to see so many people in the stadium. This is the most people I've seen on a tennis court in 12 months. Thank you."

- Reuters