Sinner Begins Rome Conquest With Solid Victory Over Ofner

Jannik Sinner
Jannik Sinner (photo: Tullio Puglia/FITP)

ROME/WASHINGTON, May 9, 2026 (by Michael Dickens)

As World No. 1 Jannik Sinner brought his 23-match winning streak to Rome, after becoming the first man in series history to win five consecutive ATP Masters 1000 tournaments, the 24-year-old Italian began his campaign Saturday evening to complete the set of titles at all nine ATP Masters 1000 events at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia.

If successful, a week from Sunday, the top-seeded Sinner would become the first Italian men’s champion at Foro Italico in 50 years. Not since Adriano Panatta in 1976 has an Italian raised the champion’s trophy in the Eternal City. Sinner has won all four of this season’s ATP Masters 1000 crowns – at Indian Wells, Miami, Monte-Carlo and Madrid. He would love nothing more than to win Rome for the first time in his career.

On Campo Centrale, the South Tyrolean took on 82nd-ranked Austrian Sebastian Ofner — and won, 6-3, 6-4, in one hour and 41 minutes, much to the delight of Sinner’s home supporters.

Sinner tied Roger Federer for the third-longest ATP Masters 1000 winning streak (29) since the series began in 1990. Meanwhile, Ofner was denied the first Top 10 win of his career and is 0-13 lifetime against Top-10 competition.

The Italian No. 1 won 80 percent (24 of 30) of his first-serve points, hit 19 winners and made 16 unforced errors. He faced no break points on his serve and converted two of seven break points – once in each set – en route to wrapping up his 31st triumph of the season in 33 outings. By comparison, Ofner, a winner twice on the ATP Challenger Tour circuit, at St. Brieuc and Thionville, France, hit 16 winners but committed 25 unforced errors.

“It is an amazing feel to be back,” Sinner said during his on-court interview with ATP Media. “The first match, the most important thing is not to lose. The level will eventually come day by day. I am very happy to be here. Since day one, this has been a very special tournament for me. Every year when you come here, you reflect about the year a little bit, being Italian and in a year a lot of things can change. I am happy to be here.”

Next, Sinner will face either No. 26 seed Jakub Mensik of Czechia or No. 60 Alexei Popyrin of Australia, who played later Saturday evening.

Top-10 battles highlight second-round action

As the upper half of the draw played its second-round matches Saturday, World No. 5 seed Felix Auger-Aliassime of Canada and No. 6 seed Ben Shelton of the United States were among the Top-10 players in action across Foro Italico, with the Canadian No. 1 facing 44th-ranked Argentine Mariano Navone, who sought the biggest win of career after winning their only previous meeting last year in Munich. Meanwhile, Shelton attempted to equal his best result in the Eternal City as he took on 117th-ranked Georgian qualifier Nikoloz Basilashvili.

As it happened, both Auger-Aliassime and Shelton were ripe for upsets – and each lost their respective matches.

First, the 25-year-old Auger-Aliassime, who was 12-1 in his opening rounds since start of August last year – his lone loss was to Nuno Borges via retirement at the Australian Open – was denied a fourth Rome third-round appearance after being upset by Navone, 7-6 (4), 7-6 (5), in two hours and 53 minutes on BNP Paribas Arena. By the end, Auger-Aliassime was visibly suffering with cramping in his left leg. 

Navone, who was 0-5 versus Top-10 opponents before facing Auger-Aliassime, secured the biggest win of his career to become the first Argentine player to earn a Top-5 victory since Francisco Cerundolo defeated No. 2 Alexander Zverev in the fourth round at Madrid last year. Navone is through to his first ATP Masters 1000 third round after hitting 20 winners and converting three of 11 break points. He benefited from 52 unforced errors by Auger-Aliassime. Navone outpointed his opponent 105-96.

“What can I say? It was a very good atmosphere, the crowd so good. … It was a really tough match, a physical match, also,” Navone said during his on-court interview with ATP Media. “It’s the first match I’ve won against a Top-10 [player]. So, for me, it’s a very special day. I want to say thank you to my family and my friends, who have supported me. I’m really happy.”

Later, the 34-year-old Basilashvili advanced to his first ATP Masters 1000 third round since 2022 at Indian Wells – and second time on clay after Rome in 2019 – with his 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-3 victory over the World No. 6 Shelton. It was just the ninth Top-10 victory in 33 tries for Basilashvili – and second on clay after defeating No. 5 Alexander Zverev seven years ago in the 2019 Hamburg semifinals.

Against Shelton, Basilashvili hit 27 winners and benefited from 39 unforced errors by the 23-year-old American. The Georgian outpointed Shelton 100-97.

“I was extremely tight from the beginning of the match. For me, it means a lot to have these kinds of matches, especially against a Top-10 player,” Basilashvili said during his on-court interview with ATP Media. “I’m super happy, excited and looking forward to the next round.”

On Supertennis Arena later Saturday evening, two former Next Gen ATP Finals champions met for the first time, as No. 27 seed Joao Fonseca of Brazil battled against Serbia’s Hamad Medjedovic with the winner to face Navone. Medjedovic won 11 of the final 12 points of the match and pulled out a 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (1) victory in two hours and 24 minutes. He hit 39 winners to overcome 49 unforced errors en route to his second Top-30 victory of the season. It’s the second time in three years that Medjedovic has reached the third round in Rome.

Around the Foro Italico

• World No. 9 and seventh seed Daniil Medvedev of Russia, one of two former champions left in the filled (along with World No. 3 and second seed Alexander Zverev) was originally scheduled to open play on Campo Centrale before his opponent, No. 41 Tomas Machac of Czechia, withdrew due to illness. It meant that World No. 14 and 12th seed Andrey Rublev of Russia opened play on the main court against No. 70 Miomir Kecmanovic of Serbia. 

Rublev reached his first ATP Masters 1000 third round of the season with his 6-4, 6-4 victory in an hour and 14 minutes. Rublev dropped just three first-serve points and converted three of six break-point chances against Kecmanovic, who came in seeking his third Top-20 win on clay.

Next, Rublev will face No. 21 seed Alejandro Davidovich Fokina of Spain, who eased past 104th-ranked Chilean qualifier Cristian Garin, 7-6 (2), 6-4, in one hour and 54 minutes. It was the 50th career ATP Masters 1000 victory for the 23rd-ranked Davidovich Fokina.

Meanwhile, Medvedev will face 139th-ranked Spanish qualifier Pablo Llamas Ruiz, who battled past No. 28 seed Corentin Moutet of France, 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (4), in three hours and two minutes – longest match of the tournament. Llamas Ruiz, who overcame 37 unforced errors by hitting 35 winners and converted five of 12 break points, secured match point by lifting a brilliant backhand lob over Moutet that landed just inside the baseline. He outpointed his opponent 105-101.

• No. 69 Thiago Agustin Tirante of Argentina advanced to the third round at Rome for the first time and gained revenge for his third-round loss to No. 17 seed Cameron Norrie of Great Britain last month in Madrid with his 6-3, 7-5 victory in one hour and 26 minutes on Pietrangeli on Saturday. 

Tirante, a semifinalist on clay in Houston last month and quarterfinalist earlier this year in Rio de Janeiro, secured match point with his sixth ace. He dropped only six points on his first serve, saved both break points he faced and outpointed Norrie 65-49. 

Next, Tirante will face No. 10 seed Flavio Cobolli of Italy, who defeated No. 51 Terence Atmane of France, 7-6 (1), 6-3, in one hour and 46 minutes on BNP Paribas Arena. Cobolli, who turned 24 on Wednesday, advanced to the third round in Rome for the first time with his 18th victory 0f the season against Atmane. He hit 25 winners and saved both break points he faced. Cobolli is 23-8 on clay since the start of the 2025 season, including 9-3 this year.

• In other Italian action, on Saturday evening, qualifier Andrea Pellegrino sought the biggest win of his career against World No. 17 Arthur Fils, as the 21-year-old Frenchman looked to extend his 11-3 record at ATP Masters 1000 level this year, highlighted by semifinal finishes in Miami and Madrid. However, after Pellegrino jumped out to 4-0 in the opening set, Fils retired with what appeared to be a lower back injury. Fils suffered a stress fracture during last year’s French Open, which forced him to miss much of the rest of the 2025 season. He made a successful return to the ATP Tour in February and recently won a 500-series title at Barcelona.

Also, No. 80 Mattia Bellucci pulled off a nice, surprising 5-7, 6-2, 6-3 win over No. 24 seed Tomas Martin Etcheverry of Argentina, who came in leading the ATP Tour in clay wins in 2026 (15), during the afternoon session.

• No. 20 seed Frances Tiafoe of the United States rallied to beat No. 62 Ignacio Buse of Peru, 6-7 (5), 6-3, 6-2, in two hours and 43 minutes on Pietrangeli behind 28 winners. The 22nd-ranked American outpointed Buse 106-88. Next, Tiafoe will face Pellegrino.

• Lucky loser Martin Landaluce of Spain, ranked No. 94, advanced to the third round against Bellucci with 6-4, 6-4 victory over No. 47 Marin Cilic of Croatia in two hours and seven minutes on Pietrangeli after saving all six break points he faced. 

• No. 30 seed Brandon Nakashima of the United States advanced to the third round against Basilashvili with a 6-4, 6-0 victory over No. 98 Roberto Bautista Agut of Spain, in one hour and 22 minutes on Court 1. It was Bautista Agut’s final appearance in Rome, in which he went 9-9 lifetime.

Saturday’s Italian Open results

Sunday’s Italian Open order of play

By the numbers

Novak Djokovic owns the longest ATP Masters 1000 winning streak. His 31-match winning streak began in the second round at Indian Wells in 2011 and ended in the Cincinnati final the same year.

“Quotable …”

“For me, [playing Rome] is always tough for me. … But I love playing here. I was thinking about my journey. I was a little bit nervous. To play on this court, I wanted to be myself and today I did it.”

– No. 10 seed Flavio Cobolli of Italy, during his on-court interview, following his victory over Terence Atmane of France.

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