Sinner and the other Italians in the race: the point on the Internazionali d'Italia

Taking the court today at 3pm, on the Foro Italico centre court, Jannik Sinner against Alexei Popyrin, world number 60. The direct clashes say two to one for the Italian: the match he lost in Madrid in 2021, those he won in Doha last February and at the Us Open last year.

Meanwhile, Lorenzo Musetti and Luciano Darderi went ahead yesterday. Lorenzo won a very tough match against Francisco Cerundolo, in two tight sets, the first brought home at tiebreak 9-7, the second 6-4. It was a match with many errors, but illuminated by the Italian's usual flashes of talent: the long backhand with which he closed the first partial, tight passes that only someone with his sensitivity knows how to make. Cerundolo on his part has more than a few regrets, especially for the first partial in which he even had a set point. Musetti, moreover, was not in good physical condition; Casper Ruud awaits him in the round of 16 on Tuesday.

Darderi won a comeback against Tommy Paul in a match that seemed compromised: he was trailing 3-6, 1-3, but with tenacity and the support of the crowd he strung together a sequence of games and snatched the second set 6-3. In the third set, the American, dazed by his opponent's reaction, was no longer able to reverse the trend of the match and ended up making a lot of mistakes, surrendering 6-2. For Luciano there is now Zverev.

Too bad for Arnaldi who succumbed to Rafa Jodar in a challenge that began with the shock of a 6-1 loss in half an hour. Towards the end of that set, however, the Italian showed signs of recovery then evident in the second, in which he showed confidence and regained depth in his strokes: it ended 6-4 for him, who continued to grind out the game in a match that was by then balanced. The 19-year-old Spaniard, however, one point at a time restored supremacy and closed the accounts 6-3. It was no coincidence, after all, that he had surprised everyone in Madrid (where he had been defeated in the quarters by Sinner, but dragged him to the tiebreak).

Elisabetta Cocciaretto's defeat marked the Azzurri's exit from singles. The Marche player could do nothing against the power of Poland's Iga Swiatek: the severe score says it all, 6-1, 6-0. However, the good performance of the Italian, who reached the third round in Rome for the first time, remains. Disappointment, instead, for Jasmine Paolini, who triumphed at the Foro Italico last year. She wasted three match points at 6-5 in the second set against Belgian Elise Mertens, who then won in the third. Having been in a results crisis for some time, the Tuscan champion slipped to thirteenth position and seems to be in a psychologically difficult moment, no longer enjoying herself on court. She remains competing in the women's doubles with Sara Errani: today it is derby with Gaia Maduzzi and Vittoria Paganetti.