Author: Barkha Roy
Andrey Rublev, ranked as the sixth best player in the world, emerged victorious against Alex Molcan in the second round of the Rome Masters with a score of 6-3 and 6-4. Despite facing two rain delays, Rublev managed to secure victory. On the other hand, China’s Wang Xiyu also had a successful appearance at the Internazional BNL d’Italia, as she reached her first round of 16 in a WTA 1000 tournament. Wang defeated Taylor Townsend 6-2, 0-6, 7-5 in a challenging third round match.
Andrey Rublev used his powerful groundstrokes effectively on the wet clay court, breaking his opponent’s serve once in each set to secure victory over Alex Molcan in the 80-minute match. Rublev will now face the winner of the match between Guido Pella and 27th seed Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the third round of the Rome Masters.
In addition, Borna Coric achieved a significant milestone by winning his 200th tournament-level victory on Saturday in a very tight match against Brazilian Thiago Monteiro. Despite losing the first set, the Croat managed to turn the match around and win a thrilling second-round match that lasted three hours and 34 minutes. Coric saved a match point in the tie-break of the second set and won the closely-fought decider 4-6, 7-6 and 7-6. He has now qualified for the third round of the Rome Masters for the first time and will face Roberto Carballes Baena in his next match. The Spaniard progressed to the next round by beating 20th seed Daniel Evans 7-6(5), 5-7, 6-4.
In the women’s singles event, Wang Xiyu recovered from a deficit in the last set and even saved a match point to beat her opponent Taylor Townsend, advancing to the next round of the Internazional BNL d’Italia. She will now face her countrywoman Zheng Qinwen, who beat Anna Bondar in straight sets 7-6(2) and 6-4 to reach her first round of the WTA 1000 on clay. Wang’s next match will be crucial, as it could guarantee him a place in the biggest quarter-final of his career.
On the other hand, Sofia Kenin was unable to maintain her momentum after an impressive straight sets win over Aryna Sabalenka, losing to Anhelina Kalinina 6-4, 6-2. Despite being a former world number 4, Kenin couldn’t match Kalinina’s game and had to abandon the tournament.
In the third round of the Rome Masters, Camila Osorio reached an important milestone by beating fifth seed Caroline Garcia 6-4, 6-4. This impressive win puts Osorio in a strong position to progress further in the tournament, with a place in the quarter-finals now within his grasp. Osorio’s next opponent is Brazilian 12th seed Beatriz Haddad Maia, who booked her place in the next round by beating 17th seed Magda Linette 7-5, 6-4 in their first meeting. Although Haddad Maia had a significant lead in both sets, she had to withstand a determined reaction from Australian Open semi-finalist Linette to secure victory.