Author: Barkha Roy
No Brazilians took part in the second day of the Rome Masters, but the third day will see Thiago Monteiro in action against Adrian Mannarino in the first round.
Swiss star and former world number three Stan Wawrinka won an emphatic straight sets victory over Ilya Ivashka 6-2, 6-4 on Wednesday to advance to the second round of the Rome Masters. Meanwhile, Italy’s Fabio Fognini scored a major victory in the tournament, beating Andy Murray in three sets, 6-4, 4-6 and 6-4.
At the ATP Masters 1000 event in Rome, the 38-year-old, who is the oldest player in the draw, dominated the 78-minute match, securing a place in the second round for the 13th time. With powerful forehands and backhands, the Swiss hit 26 winners and successfully saved the only break point he faced, winning his 12th match on tour this season.
In a separate match, Fognini started the game with a strong intention to control the game and prevent Murray from using his strategic game from the baseline. He broke Murray’s serve on his sixth opportunity and won the set against last week’s ATP Challenger Tour 175 champion.
Despite Murray’s attempt to take control in the second set, Fognini didn’t allow him to take the match to the decider, regaining the serve and eventually winning the set. In the third set, Fognini’s dominant performance in his service games proved to be the key to his victory, as he lost just three points on serve. Murray lost a break immediately after missing a short forehand and was unable to recover. Fognini will now face Frenchman Arthur Fils, who beat fellow qualifier Juan Manuel Cerundolo 6-1, 1-6, 6-4. Meanwhile, Wawrinka will play Bulgaria’s Grigor Dimitrov.
Elsewhere, in the women’s singles event, former Roland Garros finalist Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova defeated Sara Errani in just an hour and two minutes with a 6-1, 6-1 win, setting up a first-ever meeting with current world number one and two-time champion Iga Swiatek in the second round. Meanwhile, Sloane Stephens, the 2017 US Open champion, defeated Nadia Podoroska 6-4, 6-1 in straight sets, lasting 1 hour and 22 minutes. Stephens is now preparing to face No. 14 seed Victoria Azarenka in the second round.