Author: Barkha Roy
In Rome, Novak Djokovic, the first seed and defending champion, took on the tough Grigor Dimitrov in a thrilling match, winning 6-3, 4-6 and 6-1 to advance to the next round. Meanwhile, Daniil Medvedev secured a place in the third round by beating Emil Ruusuvuori comfortably 6-4, 6-2. Stefanos Tsitsipas also performed well, securing a 6-3, 6-3 win over Nuno Borges. In another intense battle, Alexander Zverev, previously ranked second in the world, managed to overcome David Goffin with a hard-fought 5-7, 6-3, 6-4 victory, securing his place in the next round.
Novak Djokovic looked to be on course for a straightforward win in the third round, as he had a set and a break lead against Grigor Dimitrov 6-3 and 4-2. However, Dimitrov made a remarkable comeback, winning four games in a row to force a deciding set at the Foro Italico. Nevertheless, Djokovic showed his experience by raising his game and finally securing his 1050th tour-level victory, advancing to the fourth round.
In another match, Casper Ruud faced Alexander Bublik and emerged victorious with a score of 6-1, 4-6, 7-6(0), securing a place in the fourth round. Bublik, as always, used his wide range of blows to try to unsettle Ruud. In the decisive tie-break of the last set, despite initially falling behind with a mini-break, Bublik positioned himself close to the service line to return Ruud’s serve. However, at a crucial moment, Ruud kept his composure on the baseline, causing Bublik to make mistakes.
Jannik Sinner, the crowd favorite, fought his way to a hard-fought victory over loser Alexander Shevchenko, winning 6-3, 6-7(4), 6-2. In the next round, the eighth seed will face Francisco Cerundolo, who is ranked 24th in the tournament.
Meanwhile, Iga Swiatek, the current world number one, comfortably progressed to the last 16 of the Internazionali BNL d’Italia with a convincing 6-2, 6-0 win over Lesia Tsurenko in the third round on Sunday. Swiatek, who has already won the tournament twice, will now face 21st-ranked Donna Vekic in her next match.
In another match, Marketa Vondrousova extended her impressive run at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia by beating ninth seed Maria Sakkari 7-5, 6-3 to book a place in the fourth round. Vondrousova has been consistently beating higher-ranked opponents throughout the tournament, demonstrating her remarkable form.