Today's sports news: What you need to know

Latest - Liverpool took a firm grip of their Champions League tie with Benfica as goals from Ibrahima Konate, Sadio Mane and Luis Diaz earned them a 3-1 victory in Lisbon in their quarter-final first leg game.

Konate opened the scoring with a close-range header from a corner and Mane extended Liverpool's lead from a Diaz assist 30 minutes into what was an one-sided first half, with Mohamed Salah, Diaz and Naby Keita all passing up great scoring chances.

Yet five minutes after the break, 22-year-old French defender Konate completely missed a cross and allowed in-form striker Darwin Nunez to score and put Benfica, roared on by a sold-out Estadio da Luz, back into the game.

The hosts gained in confidence and briefly took charge but former Porto winger Diaz, who never lost a match against their bitter rivals Benfica, scored on the counter-attack after a Keita through ball.

Kevin De Bruyne's 70th minute goal earned Manchester City a 1-0 win at home to Atletico Madrid.

Diego Simeone's Atletico had frustrated City throughout the first half with their deep lying defending and reliance on only the occasional counter to threaten the hosts.

The Premier League champions were unable to turn their total dominance of possession into clear chances until substitute Phil Foden produced the skill and vision to decide the game.

Foden drew three Atletico defenders towards him before splitting the Spanish defence with a perfectly weighted pass to De Bruyne who slotted past Jan Oblak with a side-foot finish.

-Reuters

Wimbledon yet to decide on Russians fate

The All England Lawn Tennis Club is holding talks with the British government on the participation of players from Russia and Belarus at this year's Wimbledon, saying it hopes to announce a decision in mid-May.

Russian and Belarusian players have been allowed to compete on the regular ATP and WTA Tours but not under the name or flag of their countries following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.

Russia was also banned from defending its Davis Cup and Billie Jean King Cup team titles.

British Sports Minister Nigel Huddleston had said last month that he would not be comfortable with a "Russian athlete flying the Russian flag" and winning Wimbledon in London.

He added that U.S. Open champion Daniil Medvedev may have to provide assurances that he does not support Russian president Vladimir Putin if he is to compete.

Wimbledon will be held from June 27-July 10.

-Reuters

Beauden Barrett feels fine

All Blacks flyhalf Beauden Barrett said he had "bounced back" well from his latest head knock and that he was ready to return to action for the Auckland Blues in Super Rugby.

Barrett, who only recently returned to action following a concussion suffered against Ireland in November, was forced off in the Blues' 32-25 victory over the Highlanders in Dunedin on March 26.

The 30-year-old was taken off in the 41st minute after a collision with Highlanders centre Fetuli Paea.

"I was very relieved to wake up on the Sunday morning after the game feeling clear in my head. I just had a very sore neck," Barrett told Stuff

"I'm confident in being back playing and psychologically it's great to get back out there. There was a little scare from that Highlanders game, but I've bounced back from it well.

"There is nothing to be concerned about from a head point of view."

Barrett, twice named world player of the year, said last month his recovery period in the aftermath of the injury suffered against Ireland was "extremely challenging".

The Blues take on the Chiefs this weekend.

-Reuters

Kane Williamson wants to captain Black Caps in England

Black Caps coach Gary Stead hopes to have captain Kane Williamson back for their three-test tour of England in June but says they will need to manage his workload to prevent recurrence of an elbow injury.

Williamson missed home series against Bangladesh and South Africa with a tendon injury in his left elbow that has been troubling him over the last 18 months.

While Kane has returned to action in the Indian Premier League, Stead said there was no need to rush his return to the 'Black Caps'.

"The catch-22 is, Kane comes back early, scores a hundred, and his elbow is gone again, and then we'd be in the same place," Stead said.

"Kane, like any of us, needs breaks at certain times. He's dying to play cricket for New Zealand again, I can absolutely assure you of that, but we can't burn him out in the future.

"We have to be smart around those things."

Williamson, who reached out to India great Sachin Tendulkar and Australia's Steve Smith for advice on recovering from elbow injuries, said in February he was so tired of dealing with the elbow there were times he wanted to "cut it off".

-Reuters

Matsuyama to serve up Japanese fare

Hideki Matsuyama will host the traditional Champions Dinner at Augusta National later today and has decided to serve up a meal with plenty of Japanese flair.

Matsuyama, who last year became the first Japanese man to win a major championship, decided on assorted sushi, sashimi and nigiri, as well as yakitori chicken skewers for appetizers.

The main dishes are miso-glazed black cod with dashi broth, and A5 Wagyu beef ribeye with mixed mushrooms and vegetables and Sansho daikon ponzu.

For dessert, Matsuyama picked Japanese strawberry shortcake, which the menu describes as a fluffy sponge cake with whipped cream and Amaou strawberries.

The Masters Champions Dinner tradition dates back to 1952 when Ben Hogan hosted the first one. Since then, some of the dining experiences have been more memorable than others.

After winning the 1988 Masters, Britain's Sandy Lyle served up Scottish specialty haggis while Fiji's 2000 champion Vijay Singh dished up one of the most popular meals with a Thai menu.

Britain's three-times champion Nick Faldo opted for shepherd's pie, Germany's Bernhard Langer went for schnitzel and Canada's Mike Weir selected caribou.

For the less adventurous, past champions can also order off the clubhouse menu at Augusta National.

-Reuters