
“The most beautiful tournament of my life”: exausted Darderi dedicates his Rome run to his family
"I had no fuel today." Luciano Darderi apologised to the crowd after a 6-1, 6-1 semi-final loss to Casper Ruud, at the end of a week that included his first top-three win, over Zverev.

Rome makes four: Ruud completes the big clay-court finals set with Darderi rout
Casper Ruud (No 13) crushed Luciano Darderi (No 18) 6-1, 6-1 in 66 minutes on Campo Centrale to reach his first Rome final and complete the clay-court Masters 1000 set — Monte-Carlo, Madrid, Rome and Roland-Garros. Sinner or Medvedev awaits on Sunday.

Writing his “own story” rather than “chasing records”: dominant Sinner pulls back from the legacy machinery in Rome
Jannik Sinner has broken Djokovic's Masters 1000 record. He doesn't want to talk about it. In front of his home crowd, the world No. 1 asks for the conversation to be about something else. Something trivial, or something greater? He hasn't let us know clearly enough yet.
THE LATEST
ATP & WTA : Match results and live scores from Rome
“A new reality I have to deal with”: Novak Djokovic’s quiet admission after Rome exit
“The worst court I’ve ever played on”: exhausted Alexander Zverev hits back at the Foro Italico after Rome upset
“They just put out a press statement”: inside Roland Garros’s prize money crisis and what could come next
Sinner deflects favourite tag and pays tribute to Alcaraz after Roland-Garros withdrawal
Nick Kyrgios, Francisco Cerundolo, Cameron Norrie and Ugo Humbert confirmed for UTS Rio 2026
The 16 greatest tennis matches in which cramps drew the drama
“It was almost like a curse”: Marta Kostyuk on finally letting go of the 15-year-old prodigy
ATP & WTA LATEST
HEADLINES & HEAT
“I’m going to be alright”: Sinner brushes off fatigue concerns after reaching Rome semi-finals
Jannik Sinner has broken Novak Djokovic’s all-time record for consecutive ATP Masters 1000 wins, beating Andrey Rublev 6-2, 6-4 in the quarter-finals at the Foro Italico on Thursday for his 32nd straight win at this level – but acknowledged in his press conference, in both English and Italian, that the run is starting to show … Continued
Gauff reaches back-to-back Rome finals with straight-sets win over Cirstea
Coco Gauff (No 4) reached a second straight Rome final with a 6-4, 6-3 win over Sorana Cirstea (No 26), ending a run of three consecutive three-set wins in the Italian capital. It is the American’s seventh WTA 1000 final at 22 – and her second of 2026 after Miami.
Sinner’s 32-match Masters 1000 winning streak: The full list of victories that surpassed Djokovic’s All-Time record
Jannik Sinner has broken Novak Djokovic’s all-time ATP Masters 1000 record with 32 straight wins. Here’s the complete list of matches, scores and opponents.
Andrey Rublev says he “completely lost” himself – and that the worst is now behind him, thanks to Marat Safin
The world No. 14 Andrey Rublev has given his most personal account yet of the period when he “completely lost” himself in 2025 – and credits Marat Safin with bringing him back.
Svitolina turns it around against Rybakina to reach first Rome semi-final since 2018, Swiatek next
Elina Svitolina (No 7) turned the Foro Italico quarter-final around against Elena Rybakina (No 2), winning 2-6, 6-4, 6-4. She now meets three-time Rome champion Iga Świątek for a place in the final.
Swiatek’s level surges before Roland-Garros as Pegula falls in straight sets
Iga Świątek (No 4) dismantled Jessica Pegula (No 7) 6-1, 6-2 in Rome without facing a single break point, reaching her first semi-final of 2026 and her fourth at the Foro Italico. The three-time Rome champion has dropped seven games in her last three matches — and Roland-Garros is two weeks away.
“The future of the season is foggy”: Lorenzo Musetti loses his top-10 status in the same Rome where he first claimed it
The future of the season is foggy.” Twelve days before Roland-Garros, Lorenzo Musetti has lost the points he gained at Rome 2025 – and, with them, his place in the top 10.
Rome: Gauff survives Andreeva marathon
Coco Gauff (No 3) reached a third straight Rome semi-final the hard way, beating Mirra Andreeva (No 6) 4-6, 6-2, 6-4 after surrendering a 5-1 lead in the decider and needing six match points to close it out. Three matches in Rome, three wins from a set down. Sorana Cirstea waits in the semis.
“The worst court I’ve ever played on”: exhausted Alexander Zverev hits back at the Foro Italico after Rome upset
Beaten by Darderi in Rome, Alexander Zverev blamed inconsistent bounces on “the worst court I’ve ever played on” — and said the early exit might be “a blessing” to recharge before Roland-Garros.
Unbelievable: Darderi saves four match points and bagels Zverev to knock out the world No. 3 in Rome
Luciano Darderi has produced the upset of the clay swing. The 24-year-old Italian, ranked No. 20 in the world, beat Alexander Zverev 1-6, 7-6(10), 6-0 in the round of 16 of the Internazionali BNL d’Italia on Tuesday, saving four match points in the second-set tie-break – three of them on Zverev’s own serve – to … Continued
THE LATEST FROM
2026 ROLAND-GARROS
May 15, 1994: The day Pete Sampras won Rome title, his best ever result on clay
Every day, Tennis Majors takes you back in time to relive a tennis event which happened on this specific day. On May 15th, 1994, Pete Sampras achieved his best ever result on clay.
Keys pushes the boycott idea back to the centre of the conversation
Grand Slam winner Madison Keys told AFP that the boycott option remained alive among “many players”, ten days prior to Roland-Garros.
Lorenzo Musetti withdraws from Roland-Garros after rectus femoris injury confirmed in Rome
Medical tests on Lorenzo Musetti’s left leg have confirmed a rectus femoris injury.
Roland-Garros 2026 wild cards: Wawrinka, Monfils and a 17-year-old wave coming up with Efremova and Kouame
Stan Wawrinka and Gaël Monfils get main-draw wild cards. Four 17-year-olds join them. Clara Burel returns from injury. The full Roland-Garros 2026 wild-card lists, in detail.
Arthur Fils says scans are clear after Rome retirement, “back to work for Paris”
Arthur Fils has said the scans taken after his Rome retirement are clear, and he is already back in training for Roland-Garros.
Rune withdraws from Hamburg and Roland-Garros as Dane refuses to come back at “less than 110%”
Holger Rune is not coming back yet. The 22-year-old Dane, seven months out from Achilles surgery, does not want to feel “almost ready” but “110%” when he returns.
“There is no one more selfish than a tennis player”: former Roland-Garros head shrugs off the Grand Slam boycott threat
Former Roland-Garros tournament director Guy Forget shrugged off the players’ Grand Slam boycott threat in an interview with French website Tennis Actu, dismissing the idea as “bizarre” and questioning the notion that the top players are pushing for higher prize money out of any genuine collective spirit. Forget, who ran the tournament from 2016 to … Continued
Who will win Roland-Garros 2026? Men’s predictions and contenders
The clay season is reaching its climax with 2026 Roland-Garros (May 24–June 7). Monte-Carlo and Madrid are done, Rome is underway, and Roland-Garros is less than two weeks away. With Carlos Alcaraz sidelined by injury, the men’s draw could be more open than it has been in years, but Jannik Sinner’s 2026 form makes him … Continued
“We haven’t spoken about boycotting”: Alexander Zverev cools the rhetoric, but sharpens the numbers
Asked in Rome about the prospect of a Grand Slam boycott, Alexander Zverev – one of the signatories of the top players’ letter – pushed back on the framing. The argument, he said, is about the revenue share, not the protest.
Boycott a Slam? “Tough to say, but somewhere we need to start”: Sinner and Djokovic say the word but the threat lacks substance at this stage
On Thursday in Rome, Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic each addressed the prospect of a Grand Slam boycott over prize money.
THE COURT REPORT
EXCLUSIVES & LONG READS
“In a way it freed me up”: Sorana Cirstea on the late-career breakthrough she didn’t expect
Sorana Cirstea announced this would be her last year on tour. It is shaping up as one of her best. The 36-year-old explains, with unusual clarity, why deciding to leave unlocked the tennis.
“More like a clay-court player”: Swiatek is rediscovering the version of her game that won three Roland-Garros titles
Iga Swiatek is into the Rome semi-finals, hasn’t faced a break point in two days, and on Wednesday told reporters she is back to “playing more like a clay-court player.” Roig is delivering.
Can a brave decision stop Tsitsipas’ freefall?
Now ranked outside the top 70, the Greek is struggling for confidence and while his father remains in his coaching camp, things are unlikely to change
Sleep, adrenaline and the long march to Roland-Garros: Inside Jannik Sinner’s fatigue management
Jannik Sinner has spent the Madrid Open quietly admitting he is tired. With Rome and Roland-Garros looming, the world number one is navigating a familiar dilemma, and a familiar illusion.
“It means I’m back”: How Fils turned a Miami diagnosis into a Barcelona title
The 21-year-old Frenchman spent a semi-final defeat identifying the precise cost of his greatest strength. What he did with that knowledge was something else entirely.
How Jannik Sinner turned a gruelling winter training block into the most dominant spring in tennis
Indian Wells. Miami. Monte Carlo. The world No. 1 didn’t just return from a sluggish start to the season – he came back and demolished the competition. Here is how he did it. Once upon a time in California…
No one wanted this match more than they did – why Alcaraz and Sinner needed the Monte-Carlo final
Sunday’s Monte-Carlo Masters final brings the first Alcaraz–Sinner clash of the year, on clay, with the world number one ranking at stake. Everyone was waiting for it — the players most of all, for whom facing each other is the only way to know where they truly stand.
Fonseca’s clay education: Talent, patience and the long road to the top
Teen prospect Joao Fonseca dazzles on debut in Monte-Carlo, but as he measures himself against Alcaraz and Sinner, the Brazilian knows that patience, humility and hard work – not hype – will shape his rise.
A decade on, Jelena Ostapenko is still a lot the same — and yet a whole lot different
Ten years on from her breakthrough in Doha, Jelena Ostapenko remains one of the most popular players on the tour. While the strengths of her game remain the same, the Latvian talks about why she is different from the teenager who won the French Open in 2017
Pliskova comeback is on but “Definitely Not” playing into her 40s
The former world No 1 is through to the third round of the WTA Qatar Open after two wins in the main draw
ALCARAZ x SINNER
Features on The NEW TWO reshaping tennis
“When they come at me, no problem. When they come at my family – that bothers me”: Jannik Sinner on the price of being Italy’s biggest sports star
In a sport built on tennis parents who became inseparable from the story, Jannik Sinner is asking for the opposite. In Rome, he drew the line at his family.
“It’s Sinner who feels the difference, not me”: Zverev says Alcaraz’s absence changes nothing for the rest of the field before the French Open
“Jannik is really, really the heavy favourite. Carlos on clay, when he’s healthy, is equal or above him.” Zverev sets the order after his Rome third round win.
Sinner deflects favourite tag and pays tribute to Alcaraz after Roland-Garros withdrawal
Jannik Sinner brushed aside questions about his Roland-Garros favouritism and paid a heartfelt tribute to an injured Carlos Alcaraz on Friday.
Alcaraz withdraws from Rome and Roland-Garros after his latest wrist exams
The reigning Roland Garros champion will forfeit 3,000 ranking points as rival Jannik Sinner stands to benefit most from his absence.
Incredible dominance of Alcaraz and Sinner may not be the best thing for tennis, or them
The top two are almost 8,000 points ahead of No 3 Alexander Zverev and are mopping up every tile, but is it becoming too boring?
How Jannik Sinner turned a gruelling winter training block into the most dominant spring in tennis
Indian Wells. Miami. Monte Carlo. The world No. 1 didn’t just return from a sluggish start to the season – he came back and demolished the competition. Here is how he did it. Once upon a time in California…
Sinner seizes the throne: world No. 1 after defeating Alcaraz in Monte-Carlo final
A 7-6, 6-3 victory over the reigning champion ends Alcaraz’s 22-week reign at the top of the rankings, hands Sinner his 67th week at No. 1 —–and delivers his first title on clay at the highest level.
Alcaraz defends his Monte-Carlo crown and clay master reputation – with the world No. 1 ranking on the line too
Alcaraz arrives on clay having lost just once in two years on the surface. Sinner arrives having spent exactly as many weeks at world No. 1 as his opponent: 66. Only one of them leaves with the right to add a 67th.
No one wanted this match more than they did – why Alcaraz and Sinner needed the Monte-Carlo final
Sunday’s Monte-Carlo Masters final brings the first Alcaraz–Sinner clash of the year, on clay, with the world number one ranking at stake. Everyone was waiting for it — the players most of all, for whom facing each other is the only way to know where they truly stand.
Jannik Sinner’s record: 37 consecutive Sets Won in ATP Masters 1000 – 2025-2026, the full list
From Paris to Monte-Carlo, Jannik Sinner was untouchable at the sport’s biggest stages — winning 17 consecutive Masters 1000 matches in straight sets before Tomáš Macháč finally took a set from him in the fourth round at Monte-Carlo.
THE BIG THREE
Federer, Nadal, Djokovic, forever in the tennis news
“A new reality I have to deal with”: Novak Djokovic’s quiet admission after Rome exit
Beaten in three sets by Dino Prizmic in his Rome opener, Novak Djokovic spoke with unusual directness about the physical reality he is now playing inside – and the choices that come with it.
Rafael Nadal already labels Carlos Alcaraz as a “legend”
Rafael Nadal dismissed the “prospect” label for world number one Carlos Alcaraz and questioned how many major opportunities remain for Novak Djokovic.
“Legendary and historic: Djokovic salutes Alcaraz and Nadal in emotional final speech
Following a grueling Australian Open final against Carlos Alcaraz, the 10-time champion showed immense grace in defeat, reflecting on his two-decade journey in Melbourne and a surprising run to the championship match.
Novak Djokovic: “This win almost equals winning a Grand Slam”
Following a historic five-set victory over Jannik Sinner at the Australian Open, Novak Djokovic reflects on defying the “experts” who tried to retire him, his strategic recovery for the final, and why this semifinal stands as his finest performance in years. This is most of the quotes Novak delivered at the flash quotes spot in Melbourne after 2:00 am.
Once blessed with computer-like recall, memories fading for Roger Federer, Rafa Nadal and others
Now that the intensity and need is no longer there, it seems the likes of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal are letting go much of their past.
Federer in Melbourne: What the Legend Really Thinks About Alcaraz, Serena, and the ‘Lies’ of Tour Life (in 9 key quotes)
Roger Federer spoke at the Australian Open on Thursday ahead of Saturday’s Opening Ceremony and exhibition match. Here are the 9 key takeaways from his press conference.
Djokovic severs ties with PTPA in major blow to player union
Novak Djokovic has severed ties with the PTPA, the breakaway union he co-founded in 2020, citing deep-seated concerns over transparency and governance.
Federer to Take Rod Laver arena for maiden Australian Open opening ceremony
Roger Federer returns to Melbourne for AO opening night exhibition alongside Andre Agassi and Lleyton Hewitt. He hasn’t played in Melbourne since 2020.
Nadal on his rivalry with the Big Three: ‘You end up appreciating your rivals’
Rafael Nadal reflected in an interview on his competitive yet respectful rivalry with Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic, stating that he has grown to appreciate his rivals and is proud of the shared history.
Roger Federer elected to International Tennis Hall of fame’s class of 2026
Swiss legend Roger Federer will join tennis immortals at August ceremony.
Novak Djokovic becomes oldest ATP Tour champion with Athens victory
Novak Djokovic secured his 101st career title on Saturday, defeating Lorenzo Musetti 4-6, 6-3, 7-5 in a physically demanding 2-hour, 58-minute final at the Vanda Pharmaceuticals Hellenic Championship in Athens.
Djokovic not ready to retire yet
“Longevity is one of my biggest motivations,” Djokovic said in Riyadh, downplaying any impression that he might retire soon.
On this day
IN TENNIS HISTORY
May 15, 1994: The day Pete Sampras won Rome title, his best ever result on clay
Every day, Tennis Majors takes you back in time to relive a tennis event which happened on this specific day. On May 15th, 1994, Pete Sampras achieved his best ever result on clay.
May 14, 2008: The day world No 1 Justine Henin suddenly quit professional tennis
Every day, Tennis Majors takes you back in time to relive a tennis event which happened on this specific day. On May 14, 2008, Justine Henin, then the world No 1, shocked the tennis world with the sudden announcement that she was to retire
May 13, 1973: The day Bobby Riggs “massacred” Margaret Court in a Battle of the Sexes prequel
Every day, Tennis Majors takes you back in time to relive a tennis event which happened on this specific day. On May 13th, 1973, 55-year-old Bobby Riggs thrashed Margaret Court, then the world No 2, in a match known as the “Mother’s Day Massacre”. It was an event that would lead to the famous “Battle of the Sexes” a few months later
May 12, 1979: The day Tracy Austin ended Chris Evert’s 125-match clay-court winning streak
On this day in 1979, a pig-tailed 16-year-old named Tracy Austin shocked the most dominant clay-courter in tennis history, ending Chris Evert’s 125-match winning streak on clay in Rome
May 11th, 1987: The day tennis came back to the Olympics
Every day, Tennis Majors takes you back in time to relive a tennis event which happened on this specific day. On May 11th, 1987, the IOC voted to reintroduce tennis at the 1988 Olympics.
May 10, 1996: The day 15-year-old Martina Hingis defeated world No 1 Steffi Graf
Every day, Tennis Majors looks back at the biggest moments in tennis history. On May 10, 1996, 15 year-old Martina Hingis shocked the tennis world by handing long-time world No 1 Steffi Graf her first loss of the year in Rome
May 9 2000: The day Jim Courier announced his retirement from professional tennis
Every day, Tennis Majors takes you back in time to relive a tennis event which happened on this specific day. On May 9, 2000, Jim Courier retired from professional tennis after a career which included four Grand Slam titles and two Davis Cup titles
May 8, 2005: The day Rafael Nadal beat Coria in five-hour thriller for first Rome title
Every day, Tennis Majors looks back to the biggest moments in tennis history. On May 8, 2005, Rafael Nadal won his first title in Rome after a five hour-fight against Guillermo Coria
Already played
ATP, Internazionali BNL d’Italia 2026 Men’s Singles (draw), Semi-final, Clay
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See drawThis week rankings
ATP Tour
Singles
Jannik Sinner
Carlos Alcaraz
Alexander Zverev
Novak Djokovic
Felix Auger-Aliassime
WTA Tour
Singles
Aryna Sabalenka
Elena Rybakina
Iga Swiatek
Coco Gauff