Tag: Italian Open

Carlos Alcaraz strode into the semi-finals of the Italian Open on Wednesday after putting in a powerful display to down Jack Draper in straight sets, 6-4, 6-4.

Third seed Alcaraz will face one of reigning Rome champion Alexander Zverev and home hope Lorenzo Musetti, the day’s final pairing on centre court, in the last four at the Foro Italico.

His impressive win over Draper kept alive his chances of a third title of the season and also moved him up to number two in the world rankings behind Jannik Sinner.

The Spaniard also bagged a top-two seeding at the French Open which begins later this month, but in the meantime the four-time Grand Slam winner continues his bid for a first Rome crown.

Carlos Alcaraz had to be at his best to down fifth seed Draper, who put in another strong showing on clay in Italy after losing the Madrid Open final to Casper Ruud.

Draper was trying to become the first British man to reach the last four in the Italian capital since 2016, when Andy Murray was beaten by Novak Djokovic in the final.

But he lost control of the first set when after taking a two-game lead he was broken twice by Alcaraz who then took the lead in the match.

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And Alcaraz made sure of victory by saving two break points in a 10-minute game eight of the second set, before breaking Draper to love to go 5-4 ahead in the set and then serve out the match at the first time of asking.

Ruud’s attempt at a Madrid and Rome double has a Jannik Sinner-shaped obstacle in its way after the world number seven won his postponed match with Jaume Munar 6-3, 6-4.

Sixth seed Ruud was supposed to play on Tuesday but an afternoon downpour forced his match to be moved back a day, and he convincingly secured a quarter-final date with Sinner.

“It was a little bit tough, you’re waiting all day yesterday to try to play and you don’t get on… I’m proud of the way I handled it.” said Ruud, who has won more matches on clay than any other player on the men’s tour in the last five years.

“Tomorrow will be one of toughest matches of the year, probably. I got beaten pretty bad by Jannik last time in Turin (at the ATP Finals)… Let’s see, he’s been looking good since the first match.”

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Carlos Alcaraz reached the Italian Open quarter-finals on Tuesday after battling past Karen Khachanov 6-3, 3-6, 7-5 to continue his bid for a first Rome title.

Third seed Alcaraz had never lost a set in his previous four meetings with Russia’s Khachanov but was forced to fight on the Foro Italico centre court.

Alcaraz needs to get to the Rome semis not just for a chance at his third title of the season but also to secure a top-two seeding at the French Open which begins later this month.

The Spaniard took his 12th clay-court win of the year to set up a clash in the last eight with fifth seed Jack Draper, a winner over France’s Corentin Moutet.

“It was tiring. You know the match was really tough. I had to run. I had to run a lot,” said Alcaraz.

“I didn’t play well. I just fought and I’m just really happy about it.”

Alcaraz seemed set to cruise through when he rattled off six games in a row to win the first set and the first game of the second.

Khachanov’s fate looked sealed when his serve was broken in game five of the second set, but the big hitter had other ideas and immediately broke back before claiming the set.

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And the 28-year-old showed incredible spirit to win three games on the bounce to level the third set at 4-4, just as Alcaraz look certain to win.

But Carlos Alcaraz would not be denied and took an entertaining match at the second time of asking.

Later Jannik Sinner faces the first true test of his pre-Roland Garros form when he takes on Argentina’s Francisco Cerundolo.

On Monday the world number one dealt with lucky loser Jesper de Jong 6-4, 6-2, the second of two straightforward matches to begin his Rome comeback from a three-month doping ban.

The 23-year-old was knocked out in the last 16 by Cerundolo the last time he played here, in 2023.

Reigning Rome champion Alexander Zverev is also in action against Arthur Fils in a day dominated by the men’s tournament.

Sinner’s compatriot Jasmine Paolini stars in one of two women’s quarter-finals, the sixth seed taking on Diana Shnaider on centre court.

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Jannik Sinner made no mistake on his return to tennis on Saturday after a three-month doping ban, sweeping aside Mariano Navone in straight sets 6-3, 6-4 at the Italian Open in front of thrilled fans in Rome.

World number one Jannik Sinner cruised past Argentina’s Navone in one hour and 39 minutes in front of over 10,000 supporters at the Foro Italico to set up a third-round clash with lucky loser Jesper de Jong.

The Italian had not played since winning the Australian Open in January due to the suspension he accepted from the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) the following month.

He twice tested positive for traces of banned substance clostebol in March last year, although WADA accepted that the 23-year-old had been accidentally contaminated by his physiotherapist.

And Sinner delighted a partisan and packed centre court in the Italian capital, shaking off the cobwebs as he eyes a run at Roland Garros later this month.

“I tried to give everything I have, you know, I think that’s the only thing I can do. That’s the only thing I can control right now.” said Jannik Sinner.

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“It’s an amazing feeling. It’s a special feeling. I never take things granted. And yeah, I’m just happy to be back.”

The three-time Grand Slam winner’s last clay court match was his epic semi-final defeat to rival Carlos Alcaraz at last year’s French Open, and while the crowd matched such a big occasion on Saturday, the tennis did not.

Alcaraz was a short walk away at the Stadio Olimpico to watch his footballer friend Patric play for Lazio while Sinner took on world number 99 Navone.

And the Spaniard, who faces Laslo Djere on Sunday night, would not have been surprised to hear that Sinner dealt with Navone in a perfunctory, unflashy manner to begin his comeback in style.

It was a good day for Italian fans who also watched Rome-born Matteo Berrettini beat Jacob Fearnley in straight sets, 6-4, 7-6 (7/0) in his first match at his home tournament in four years.

Former Wimbledon finalist Berrettini, who withdrew from the Madrid Open with the latest in a long line of abdominal injuries, will face Madrid champion Casper Ruud in the third round with the Norwegian beating Alexander Bublik 6-4, 4-6, 6-3.

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ROME: Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina fought from 4-1 down in the second set to overhaul Jelena Ostapenko on Friday to reach the final of the Italian Open.

The 6-2, 6-4 comeback from the Kazakh sent Elena Rybakina into her fourth major final of the season after the Australian Open, Indian Wells and Miami.

She will bid for the trophy on Saturday against Anhelina Kalinina of Ukraine, who reached the second WTA final of her career with a 7-5, 5-7, 6-2 defeat of Russia’s Veronika Kudermetova.

The winner then gave a shout-out to her country, invaded by Russia last year, as she moved into the title match at the Foro Italico.

“It’s absolutely important to try and win every match, (considering) what Ukraine is going through,” she said.

“I hope I can give a small light and maybe some positive emotions to my country.”

Elena Rybankina will need a quick turnaround after winning a rain-interrupted Italian Open semi-final in just under one and three quarter hours, aided by 33 unforced errors from 2017 Roland Garros champion Ostapenko.

The second-set fightback sealed victory for Elena Rybakina on her first match point as her opponent dumped a volley into the net.

“It was not easy at all with the starting and stopping,” the winner said. “I need to recover for the final.”

Everyone knows how good Anhelina is, we are also good friends – if you can say that (in tennis).

“It will be a tough match for sure. I think of course I’m more consistent, there are still a lot of things to improve.

“But I’m happy that physically I can maintain and stay in the tournament till the end.

Elena Rybakina was pleased with her second-set turnaround.

“I didn’t start that well, I was a bit low in energy. Lost my serve. So it was difficult.

“Then a few good shots from her, good serves – it changed very quickly.

“I just tried to focus on every point and got the break back and served really well after that.”

Earlier Kalinina pointedly refused to shake hands with her defeated Russian Kudermetova opponent and made no apologies for the snub.

“We didn’t shake hands because the girl is from Russia basically. It’s no secret why I didn’t shake, because this country actually attacked Ukraine,” she said.

“This is sport, but it’s also kind of a politician thing. It’s nothing personal. But in general, yes, it’s not acceptable.”

Kalinina will be the lowest ranked finalist at the Italian Open since 1986 and will rise to her equal career-high ranking of 28th.

It took her nearly three hours to go through in a match played 72 hours after she won another marathon in the quarter-finals.

“I don’t feel my legs, I’ve played so much tennis last couple of days – all three-setters,” the winner said.

“I’m barely walking but I’m happy to be able to go through.”

The Ukrainian dominated the third set after a back-and-forth battle in the earlier chapters on the clay.

Kalinina saved eight break points over two games in the first set before finally taking a 4-3 lead with a break to love.

Kudermetova stayed in touch, delivering two aces to trail 4-5, with Kalinina subsequently broken as she tried to serve out the set.

But the Ukrainian came good on a second chance, winning it 7-5 after 66 minutes thanks to 18 unforced errors from her opponent.

The second set began with a pair of love holds before Kudermetova handed over a break for 3-2 to Kalinina from a long forehand.

The Ukrainian, who lost her only previous WTA final two years ago in Budapest, was broken to love while serving for the match, with a recharged Kudermetova taking a 6-5 lead.

She quickly captured one more game after winning 16 straight points to throw the match into a deciding third set.

Kudermetova saved three break points but fell short on a fourth to lose serve in the opening game of the third set as she went down to defeat.

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ROME: Third seed Daniil Medvedev and 2022 finalist Stefanos Tsitsipas powered into the Italian Open semi-finals on Thursday with comfortable straight-set wins.

Daniil Medvedev continued his clay breakthrough as he reached the final four 6-2, 6-2 over Yannick Hanfmann.

Greek Tsitsipas, the 2022 finalist,  subdued Croat Borna Coric 6-3, 6-4 on a day when the French Open field was blown wide open by the withdrawal of Rafael Nadal.

The iconic 14-time champion, 36, cast a huge shadow over his future in the game, confessing that he did not know when he would be fit from a hip injury which has kept him off court since January.

Medvedev, the 2021 US Open champion, has made big improvements in his clay game here after freely admitting he’s never been comfortable on the dirt.

He has shattered that stereotype with his steady progress at the Foro Italico, reaching his seventh semi-final of the season. Medvedev dominated number 101 German qualifier Hanfmann after settling in following breaks of serve in the opening three games in their Italian Open quarter-final.

After going down a break in the second set, the 31-year-old Hanfmann complained to his coaching box that he had no legs left as he played on prior to losing serve for the fifth time in the match.

But he struck back briefly with a break of the seed to hold on for 2-4 before dropping serve again as Medvedev moved into winning position, closing it out on a second match point.

“All of the courts are pretty different here, it was not easy to adapt for both of us,” Medvedev said.

“But I managed to adapt better. I’m really happy about it. A win is a win. Not counting the serve, I played well, returned well, moved well.

“I’m looking forward to the next round.”

Prior to this edition, Daniil Medvedev had never won a match in Italian Open and had little confidence in his game on the clay. He is now into the final four after four victories and the loss of just one set.

“Against Hanfmann I wanted to put as many balls into the court as possible. He plays very aggressive. I played deep to try and make him miss — and maybe he was not playing his best match.

“He was struggling more than me. I’m glad I was able to neutralise his game.”

Medvedev also increased his lead in Tour match wins as he claimed his 37th of the season.

Stefanos Tsitsipas was meanwhile dominant against Coric after losing to the Croat in three of five matches, including here in 2018 and in last summer’s Cincinnati final.

Stefanos Tsitsipas secured the opening set with a break and took a 2-1 lead in the second. But two double-faults contributed as he dropped serve for 4-4 only to break straight back and serve out victory a game later.

“These night sessions are becoming very fun,” the fifth seed said.

“This is clay and things can escalate very quickly,” he said of his stutter near the end.

“I managed my shotmaking at the important moments and was able to retrieve (the momentum) at the end.

“I felt the energy point by point.”

Tsitsipas and Medvedev have played 12 times to date with the latter leading 7-4.

“He’s playing well and I’m also feeling good on court. I hope he brings out the best in me — good preparation and off we go,” said Tsitsipas.

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ROME: Seventh-ranked Holger Rune beat a frustrated Novak Djokovic 6-2, 4-6, 6-2 in a rain-interrupted quarter-final at the Italian Open, where women’s top seed Iga Swiatek retired injured on Wednesday.

Serbian star Djokovic, who will drop to second in the world on Monday behind Carlos Alcaraz, admitted that he was outplayed in heavy, wet conditions after a week of rain in normally sunny Rome.

“This is probably the coldest, wettest tournament I’ve ever played here in Rome,” the 22-time Grand Slam winner said.

“I don’t recall so many days in a row (of) raining. In these conditions, it’s very difficult to get the ball past him.

“He’s a very talented, dynamic player – he was too good for me for most of the match,” Novak Djokovic added of Rune.

With her French Open title defence looming this month, Iga Swiatek retired in the third set of her quarter-final against Kazakhstan’s Elena Rybakina.

Poland’s Swiatek had roared through the first set but after receiving treatment she called a halt with a right leg injury to hand Wimbledon champion Rybakina a 2-6, 7-6 (7/3), 2-2 win and a semi-final spot.

Victory in drizzle and evening chill came in just under two and a half hours as Iga Swiatek’s 14-match Italian Open win streak was ended.

Rybakina ended with 32 winners and 26 unforced errors, in a match Swiatek led by a set and 4-2.

“It’s never good to win like this,” Rybakina said. “I hope it’s nothing serious for Iga.

“I’m glad to win, every match I play on clay gives me more confidence,” she added. “I didn’t start well but in the second set I found my rhythm.”

Rybakina will now take on former Roland Garros champion Jelena Ostapenko, who defeated Spain’s Paula Badosa 6-2, 4-6, 6-3.

Denmark’s Rune will line up against Casper Ruud in the semi-finals after the Norwegian fourth seed defeated Francisco Cerundolo 7-6 (7/5), 6-4.

Argentina’s Cerundolo committed nearly 50 unforced errors and could not prevent 2022 Roland Garros finalist Ruud from reaching a third consecutive Rome semi.

“I’m back in Rome and feeling great,” Ruud said. “I’ve had success in Italy.

“Maybe it’s something in the food, there are a lot of reasons to be motivated here.

“It’s great to be back in the semi-finals, I hope it will be a fun one.”

Six-time champion Novak Djokovic was carrying an unspecified injury into the match as he lost for a second time to the rising 20-year-old Dane, who bested him to win the Masters 1000 at Paris Bercy last November.

The latest contest between the pair was marred by spats with the chair umpire by both players — Novak Djokovic on a time warning and Rune over a second-set line call.

Play was halted for just over an hour by rain. Shortly after the match began, Djokovic requested extra towels to pad his lower back on the bench during most changeovers.

He has also suffered with a right elbow problem in recent weeks which caused him to miss the Madrid event and put his pre-Roland Garros preparation behind schedule.

He was treated by the trainer and tournament doctor after the third game of the second set and given a painkiller before playing on.

The exit of Djokovic — combined with that of Alcaraz this week – left the men’s field wide open at the Foro Italico.

Between them, Djokovic and Rafael Nadal have won 16 of the last 18 editions here; the last time one of the pair did not figure in a Rome final was 2004.

Rune is only the sixth player to defeat Djokovic in the Italian Open.

“This is really a big win for me,” Rune said. “Every match against Novak is a huge challenge. He’s one of the greatest to ever play the game. “I was proud of myself and enjoyed every minute out there.”

“I have to stay humble, I still have a lot to achieve. I’m a huge fighter on court, I leave everything out there. I had to fight hard and play my best tennis,” he added. “I’m a big fan of Novak; he’s a huge inspiration. He puts huge pressure on you — I had to stay brave.”

Djokovic was playing his 17th consecutive Rome quarter-final, falling to 13-4.

Tomas Berdych was the last player to beat him in the last eight in Rome back in 2013. His Rome record dropped to 67-11 as his bid for a seventh title ended after two hours, 18 minutes with 35 unforced errors in only his fourth loss of the season.

ROME: Novak Djokovic eased into the Italian Open quarter-finals on Tuesday after breezing past Cameron Norrie 6-3, 6-4, although there was tension with the Briton after the top seed was hit by a smash.

The Serb has reached the last eight in each of his previous 16 appearances in the Italian Open and he did again on Tuesday, getting past Norrie on centre court to set up a clash with Holger Rune.

It will be a rematch of last year’s Paris Masters final, when the young Dane won his first Masters 1000 title by beating Novak Djokovic in a thrilling match.

“Even though he’s really young, I know his game quite well. He’s been on the tour now for last few years playing some great tennis, particularly in the last I would say six to eight months,” said Djokovic.

“He’s in very good form and I look forward to a challenge. I think it’s going to be a very physical match.”

Djokovic is gunning for a seventh title on clay in Rome and his chances have been made a little bit easier by the shock elimination of Carlos Alcaraz on Monday.

Alcaraz, who won two consecutive tournaments at Barcelona and Madrid, will take world number one spot from Djokovic on May 22 but it is the 22-time Grand Slam champion who could go into Roland Garros with yet another title under his belt.

Novak Djokovic won the first three games against Norrie and closed out the first set with little fuss, without needing to be at his best.

The 35-year-old then took the second set to 2-1 with a break, but in the next game Norrie broke back while angering Djokovic with a smash which hit him on the back of his left leg.

Norrie had the whole court to put the ball away as Djokovic had given up on the point and was walking back to the service line.

Norrie raised his hand to apologise but at the changeover after the Briton moved to 3-2 Djokovic gave him another long beady-eyed stare as he passed him.

And after Djokovic sealed victory with his second match point he gave Norrie a cursory handshake at the net, while avoiding eye contact and exchanging no words with his dispatched opponent.

Novak Djokovic later explained that he had been irritated by Norrie’s on-court behaviour since the start of the match, doing “things that we players know in the locker room it’s not fair play”.

“He’s very nice guy off the court, so I don’t understand this kind of attitude on the court, to be honest. But it is what it is. He brought the fire, and I responded to that,” said Djokovic.

“I’m not going to allow someone behaving like this just bending my head. I’m going to respond to that.

“That’s all it is. What happens on the court, we leave it on the court, and we move on.”

Fifth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas beat Lorenzo Sonego 6-3, 7-6 (7/3) in a third-round match of Italian Open which was suspended on Monday due to the rain, and will take on another Italian in Lorenzo Musetti in the last 16 on Tuesday night.

Iga Swiatek will bid to continue her blistering start to the Italian Open when she faces Donna Vekic.

World number one Swiatek has won 13 straight matches in Rome and her bid for a third title in as many years has been boosted by seeds two to six all being eliminated.

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ROME: World number one Carlos Alcaraz suffered a shock third-round defeat in the Italian Open at the hands of unheralded Hungarian Fabian Marozsan, losing 6-3, 7-6 (7/4) on Monday.

The 20-year-old Spaniard had come into the tournament on the back of wins in Barcelona and Madrid but was outplayed by Marozsan, who is ranked 135th in the world.

Marozsan, 23, won the final six points of the second-set tiebreaker to hand the US Open champion Carlos Alcaraz a wake-up call with the French Open starting in less than a fortnight.

Marozsan, who next plays Borna Coric for a place in the Italian Open quarter-finals, had not won a match on the ATP Tour prior to the tournament — indeed this is the first time he has qualified for the main draw at a tournament on the Tour.

“Everything was perfect today, I was doing my job,” the winner said. “I cannot imagine this win, even if it was my dream last night.

“I thought I might win a few games or a set.

“I tried to hit back every ball, I was trying to do my best.”

Marozsan produced 24 winners in a victory which took an hour and three quarters.

“I had hoped I could do something special,” he said. “Now I’ve just beaten the best in the sport so I’m very happy.”

Carlos Alcaraz now stands 30-3 on the season as he prepares to head to Roland Garros as top seed for the first time at a Grand Slam.

In other results at the ATP-WTA tournament, sixth seed Andrey Rublev defeated Spain’s Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 7-6 (10/8), 6-3.

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ROME: Novak Djokovic fought his way into the third round of the Italian Open on Friday, beating Tomas Etcheverry 7-5 (7/6), 6-2 in a surprisingly tight encounter.

A six-time winner in Rome, the world number one was made to work by the 61st-ranked Argentine, prevailing in one hour, 51 minutes to set up a third-round clash with Grigor Dimitrov who beat Stan Wawrinka.

Novak Djokovic, a 22-time Grand Slam title winner, has not been knocked out of an ATP Tour event at the first attempt since the Monte Carlo Masters last year.

Still nursing an injury to his right elbow he had to battle his way past Etcheverry, winning the first set via a tie-break before finally ensuring passage into the next round.

“I’ve said before that this surface requires more time for me than maybe for other players to get myself to a good level, move well and hit the ball well. Rome has always been a tournament that I need for Roland Garros,” said Djokovic who was plagued by 21 unforced errors in the opener.

Djokovic appeared unwell at 5-5 in the first set and took a tablet in the changeover.

“You act like you’re 100 per cent,” Djokovic said.

“Most of the times I guess you’re not, but you want to show your opponent that you’re out there trying to fight for every ball. I guess that’s what happened, it’s kind of cat-and-mouse always on clay.”

Novak Djokovic, 35, has made 12 finals in Rome and said Thursday that he was feeling good ahead of the tournament despite missing last week’s Madrid Masters.

Wearing an elbow brace he made a slow start, dropping his serve in the first game and struggling to deal with the Argentine’s powerful shots.

The first set hinged on a scrappy game six, in which Djokovic broke to level the scores following a battle at deuce.

From there, the set went with the serve until Djokovic won the final four points in the tie-break to take the lead.

Novak Djokovic then kicked up a level, breaking serve in the first and seventh games of the second set to give the match a more straightforward look than Etcheverry’s performance deserved.

World number seven Holger Rune marked his Rome debut with a 6-3, 6-3 win against Arthur Fils of France.

“He made it tough. He’s young, younger than me. It feels kind of crazy because I think this is the second time in my life I’m playing someone that’s younger,” said 20-year-old Rune.

World number one Iga Swiatek started her bid to win a third straight Italian Open WTA title by demolishing Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-0, 6-0.

Losing finalist in Madrid last weekend, Swiatek looked in great form in the tournament she won last year before going on to blitz the French Open even though she is shaking off a rib injury suffered at Indian Wells.

“I still may feel some discomfort, but it is really, really low. Even when I withdrew from Miami, the pain was low. It was just the risk of getting it worse that stopped me,” Swiatek told reporters.

The Pole’s path to another Rome title opened up on Thursday when world number two and third-ranked Jessica Pegula were knocked out.

Swiatek faces Lesia Tsurenko in the Italian Open last 32 after extending her winning streak in the Italian capital to 12 matches.

Last year’s losing finalist, fourth seed Ons Jabeur fell 6-1, 6-4 to Paula Badosa.

The 28-year-old Jabeur has had calf problems in recent weeks, an injury which caused her to retire in the semi-finals at Stuttgart and not defend her Madrid title.

Badosa will face world number 27 Marta Kostyuk in the third round.

Earlier, Jannik Sinner cruised into the men’s last 32 with a straight-sets win over Thanasi Kokkinakis, 6-1, 6-4.

World number eight Sinner took one hour, 18 minutes to deal with the Australian qualifier and will play Russian Alexander Shevchenko, who beat Argentine Sebastian Baez 6-3, 6-4.

Rome has not seen an Italian tournament winner since Adriano Panatta in 1976.

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ROME: World number one Novak Djokovic outclassed Stefanos Tsitsipas to win the Italian Open 2022 – his first title of the year – here on Sunday.

Djokovic, who recently completed his 1000th ATP tour-level victories in a semi-final victory against Casper Ruud, carried on his exceptional form to overcome the Greek Tsitsipas 6-0, 7-6(5) in the final.

Despite being 4-1 down against Tsitsipas in the second set, Djokovic marked an exceptional comeback as he won five of the next seven sets to take it to a tiebreak before winning the decider and sealing his sixth Italian Open title.

The 34-years-old enjoyed a perfect week as he recently became just the fifth player in the Open Era to complete 1000 tour-level wins after Jimmy Connors, Roger Federer, Ivan Lendl, and Rafa Nadal.

In the women’s category of the Italian Open, Iga Swiatek outclassed Ons Jabeur 6-2, 6-2 to win her fifth consecutive title.

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