Usain Bolt looks on after winning the men’s 200 meters final on Saturday in New York City. Photo: CFP

 
Jamaican sprint king Usain Bolt has work to do after clocking an ­unconvincing 20.29 seconds to win the 200 meters at the New York ­Diamond League meeting on ­Saturday.

Even with a headwind of 2.8 meters per second, Bolt said he was baffled by a performance that included "the worst curve ever in my entire career," although he said it was too soon to say the alarm bells are sounding for the World Championships in Beijing in August.

"Because I have been training so good, but then I come to competition and I am not executing right, that's all I am worried about," Bolt said.

"I was feeling good. Everything was going smooth when I ran yesterday, I was happy, my coach was happy, just don't know what happened today.

"I've just got to go back to the­ ­drawing board and figure it out."

Bolt said he realized early the race would not be fast, but the "why" ­remained a puzzle.

"It's not physical and my mental game is strong. And when I am ­feeling good I am always confident I will do well, so I got out of the blocks and I just did not go anywhere.

"It's just one of those days I guess," he concluded.

It was Bolt's first race in New York since 2008, when he broke the 100 meters world ­record for the first time on the same Icahn Stadium track on Randall's Island.

On Saturday, however, he found himself leaning for the win, sneaking a look to make sure he got the ­victory ahead of training partner Zharnel Hughes of Anguilla, who was second in 20.32 with Jamaican Julian Forte third in 20.46.

Bolt holds the 100 meters world record of 9.58 seconds and the 200 meters world record of 19.19, both set in 2009.

He won 100 meters, 200 meters and 4x100 meters ­relay gold at the 2008 and 2012 Olympic Games but last year was limited by foot and hamstring injuries.

While US sprint ­rival ­Justin Gatlin has been ­burning up the track, posting world ­leaders of 9.74 in the 100 ­meters and 19.68 in the 200 meters, Bolt said last week he's focused on making steady progress toward achieving his peak form at Beijing.

However, he clearly was expecting better and said he might run this month's Jamaican World ­Championship trials ­despite his byes into ­Beijing to ­sharpen up.

"I would really love to ­explain to you what ­happened, but I just didn't go," he said.

In other races, Tyson Gay won the men's 100 meters in 10.12 seconds in a brisk headwind of 1.7 meters per second.

Gay, his sights on a World Championships challenge ­after completing an ­abbreviated ­doping ban, admitted that ­after ­Keston ­Bledman of ­Trinidad and ­Tobago was charged with a false start for flinching in the blocks, he was tense at the gun.

"I was little nervous, the starter held us a little bit so I just tried to take some deep breaths," said Gay, who led Jamaican Nesta Carter (10.15) and South African Akani Simbine (10.18) across the line.