All you need to know about the Internazionali BNL d’Italia in Rome including draws, dates and why Emma Raducanu and Andy Murray aren’t featuring…
Who is in action in Rome on Sunday?
Sunday features a bumper crop of tennis stars in action live on Sky Sports, with the likes of Novak Djokovic, Aryna Sabalenka, Anna Kalinskaya, Grigor Dimitrov, Ben Shelton, Danielle Collins and Sofia Kenin all featuring.
Djokovic said he was “fine” after accidentally getting knocked on the head by a water bottle while signing autographs after his opening win on Friday.
But Djokovic wasn’t taking any further chances when he showed up at the Foro Italico for practice on Saturday, putting on a cycling helmet when he met with fans again.
The world No 1 faces world No 32 Alejandro Tabilo of Chile. The 26-year-old is 15-9 for the season, including a maiden ATP title in Auckland earlier this year.
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Djokovic was struck on the head by a bottle whilst he was signing autographs
You can keep track here of all the latest scores here, with Alexander Zverev and Taylor Fritz also playing on Sunday.
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Aryna Sabalenka was given a stern test against Katie Volynets in her opening match
Why are British pair Murray and Raducanu not playing?
British pair Andy Murray and Emma Raducanu are not taking part in the Italian capital this year.
Murray has been practising on clay as he continues his recovery from an ankle injury and will return at next week’s ATP Challenger Tour in Bordeaux before playing at the Geneva Open, indicating he is planning on playing in the French Open later this month.
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Andy Murray celebrated his 29th birthday in 2016 by beating Novak Djokovic in the Rome Masters final with possibly his greatest match point ever…
The 36-year-old, who is expected to retire at some point this season, has been sidelined since late March after damaging ankle ligaments in a third-round match against Tomas Machac at the Miami Open.
Raducanu’s current plans are to compete in Strasbourg, but she is also entered into qualifying for the French Open unless she receives a wild card into the main draw.
Elsewhere, in the men’s draw, home favourite Jannik Sinner (hip), Carlos Alcaraz (forearm) are also absent due to injury, while defending women’s champion Elina Rybakina has withdrawn with illness.
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Colin Fleming and Anne Keothavong debate whether Emma Raducanu should play French Open qualifying after her disappointing opening-round loss at the Madrid Open
What is the Italian Open?
Daniil Medvedev defeated Holger Rune to win the Italian Open last year
The third clay-court ATP Masters 1000 event of the season will see the world’s best players compete at the tournament, held at the iconic Foro Italico in Rome.
World No 1 Novak Djokovic returns to action in preparation for the French Open, with ‘King of Clay’ Rafael Nadal hopes to continue building up to Roland Garros at the tournament where he is a 14-time champion.
As with the Madrid Open, the 32 seeds at the Italian Open get a first-round bye, so enter the tournament in the second round.
Play will start at 10am UK time every day until Thursday, May 16 when it begins at midday. There will be evening sessions starting at 6pm each day until finals weekend, when play starts at midday on both days.
The finals will be held on the weekend of May 18.
Who are the defending Italian Open champions?
Elena Rybakina will be defending the women’s singles title at Foro Italico
Medvedev won the 2023 singles title, his first clay-court trophy, with a 7-5 7-5 victory against Holger Rune.
Rybakina won the second WTA 1000 title of her career last year, defeating Anhelina Kalinina in the final 6-4 1-0 ret. Kalinina retired in the final with a left thigh injury.
What’s coming up on Sky Sports Tennis?
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Find out all the ways to watch tennis on Sky Sports, including the US Open, ATP and WTA tours
In the run-up to the second Grand Slam of 2024 – the French Open at Roland Garros from May 26 – you can watch all of the biggest tennis stars in action live on Sky Sports as they compete across the clay-court season.
- Geneva Open (ATP 250) – May 20-26
- Lyon Open (ATP 250) – May 20-26
- Internationaux de Strasbourg (WTA 500 with Emma Raducanu in action) – May 20-26
- Morocco Open (WTA 250) – May 20-26
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