Sinner's return: 'I am happy to be in Rome, I am not afraid'

"The most beautiful thing is to be back on the field, to see the fans and the people; then there is the pressure and you will have some doubts, it's normal. But I'm not afraid to go on the pitch, I'm just happy to be here. We have done our best in these months, we are fresh and ready to play": these are the words of world number one Jannik Sinner during the press conference at the Internazionali in Rome, where on Saturday he will make his debut on the centre court - after three months of disqualification - directly in the second round with the winner between Federico Cinà and Mariano Navone.

The draw put him in the path of Casper Ruud (fresh winner of the Madrid Masters 1000) in the quarters, or Matteo Berrettini (who would find the American Korda in his path). Then the possible semi-final with Taylor Fritz or Alex De Minaur, in the final he could face Sascha Zverev or Carlos Alcaraz who are on the other side of the draw.

But he, with his understatement, reiterates that 'the goal will be Paris, I am here to see what level I am at. I'm not here to beat anyone, but to try to pass the first round, then we'll see what happens'. Then he reassured: 'But physically I'm fine, mentally too, this will pay off with time'. The South Tyrolean dwelled on the dark Clostebol affair, which has kept him away from the circuit since 9 February: "I'm still the same. I feel freer for sure. But my person hasn't changed, off the court then it's important to have people around you: I've been living with the rhythms of my family and friends and I've been happy with that,' he added. And then again: 'A lot has happened off the court... although I don't feel like talking about it. But even not playing tennis I realised that I was an important person, with a lot of attention around me,' he said, denying rumours of a relationship with Russian model Lara Leito.

Also among the top eight seeds at the Internazionali is Lorenzo Musetti, officially in the top ten for the first time in his career. Like Sinner, he skips the first round to play in the second against the winner between Serbia's Medjedovic (number 72 in the ranking) and a qualifier. His possible quarter-final could be against Zverev. In the women's draw, however, Jasmine Paolini is seeking redemption on Roman soil: here, in singles, she has never gone beyond the first round (while in doubles, together with Sara Errani, she is the defending champion). As number 6 seed she will start from the second round where she could have an Italian derby with Giulia Pedone challenging Lulu Sun.