Alex De Minaur came back from one set down to beat last week’s Madrid Mutua Open finalist Felix Auger Aliasime 6-7 (2-7) 6-4 6-4 after a three-hour battle reaching the Round of 16 for the second time in six attempts at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia at the Foro Italico in Rome. 

De Minaur converted on four of his twelve break points. The Australian player scored the first win of his career over Auger Aliassime, who had claimed their previous two head-to-head matches in Cincinnati and in the Davis Cup Finals in 2022. 

Auger Aliassime broke serve at love in the first game and held serve at 15 to take a 2-0 lead. De Minaur converted his fourth break point in the sixth game to draw level to 3-3. Both players traded mini-breaks at the start of the tie-break. Auger Aliassime won three points to open up a 4-1 lead. De Minaur pulled back one of the two mini-breaks for 2-4. Auger Aliassime won the final three points to win the tie-break 7-2. 

De Minaur broke serve in the ninth game to win the second set 6-4. The Australian player converted his third break point in the third game of the decider, but he let a 3-1 lead slip, when Auger Aliassime broke back in the sixth game to draw level to 3-3. De Minaur broke for the second time in the ninth game and served out at 15 to close out the third set 6-4. 

De Minaur scored his second win against a top 20 opponent on clay in 13 attempts. 

“I think Felix is a very good player. He had a lot of confidence coming in. I am very happy how I stayed in the match how I stayed in the match at all stages. I was positive, no matter what came my way. I could have had a double break in the third set to maybe secure the match. I did not get it, ended up getting broken, and I managed to compose myself so I am very with that”, said De Minaur. 

De Minaur set up a Round of 16 match against sixth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas, who beat Cameron Norrie 6-2 7-6 (7-1) to improve his seasonal record on clay to 19-2. 

Alexandre Muller rallied from one set down to beat Andrey Rublev 3-6 6-3 6-2 after 1 hour and 49 minutes. Muller stopped Rublev’s seven-match winning streak. 

Rublev earned his first break of the match in the fourth game to take a 3-1 lead. Muller saved a break point at 2-5 down, but Rublev served out the first set at 15 in the ninth game. 

Muller converted his fourth break point in the eighth game to seal the second set 6-3 forcing the match to the decider. 

Muller broke twice in the third and fifth game to open up a 4-1 lead. Rublev saved two match points when he was serving to stay in the match, but Muller converted his third match point in the final game to score his first win against a top 10 player. Muller set up a Round of 16 match against Nicholas Jarry, who beat Stefano Napolitano 6-2 4-6 6-4. 

Muller becomes the first qualifier to beat a top 5 seed after losing the first set at an ATP Masters 1000 tournament since Jeremy Chardy beat Danil Medvedev in Paris Bercy in 2019. 

Earlier at this tournament Muller beat Marton Fucsovics 4-6 7-6 (7-2) 6-2 and Arthur Fils 7-5 6-3. 

“It’s amazing. I did not expect to win Andrey Rublev. I knew I had my chance, but it is special to win against a top 10 player. It was my first win against a top 10 player so I am very happy”, said Muller. 

Last week’s Madrid Mutua Open Andrey Rublev rallied from one set down to beat Marcos Giron 5-7 6-4 7-5 after a hard-fought match under the floodlights of the Foro Italico reaching the third round at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia in Rome. 

Giron converted his second break point in the ninth game of the first set to take a 5-4 lead. Rublev saved three set points before breaking serve at deuce in the 10^th game to draw level to 5-5. Giron broke for the second time in the 11^th game and served out at 30 to win the first set 7-5. 

Rublev broke serve in the second game and held serve at 30 to open up a 3-0 lead at the start of the second set. Giron broke back in the ninth game for 4-5, as Rublev was serving for the set. Rublev broke for the second time in the 10^th game to win the second set 6-4. 

Giron rallied from a break down in the third set and broke for the second time in the ninth game to take a 5-4 lead.  Rublev broke for the second time at love in the 10^th game to draw level to 5-5, when Rublev was serving for the match. Rublev broke serve on his third match point in the 12^th game to seal the third set 7-5. 

Rublev will face Alexandre Muller, who Arthur Fils 7-5 6-3. 

“I was super angry with myself that I left a lot of emotions out today, and was thinking that: ‘It’s over and I deserve to lose’. I was thinking it was over and I thinking again I had a lot of chances, and I could not make it because of my emotions. Somehow, I was able to start the game really well when my opponent served for the match and little by little I was able to recover, so I was able to recover”, said Rublev. 

Stefanos Tstitsipas also came back from one set down to beat Jan Lennard Struff 6-7 (1-7) 6-4 6-4. 

Struff earned an early break after a 5-minute first game in the opening set. Tsitsipas smashed his racket against an advertsment board. Tsitsipas broke back in the eighth game to draw level to 4-4 forcing the first set to the tie-break. Struff earned three mini-breaks to race out to a 5-1 lead. Tsitsipas pulled one of three breaks back for 1-5. Struff earned a fourth mini-break to seal the tie-break 7-1. 

Tsitsipas broke serve in the third game of the second set to take a 2-1 lead. Struff broke straight back in the fourth game to draw level to 2-2. Tsitsipas broke again in the fifth game and held serve at love to take a 4-2 lead. Struff saved three break points in the seventh game for 3-4. Tsitsipas served out the second set at 15.

Tsitsipas took an early break in the first game of the third set, but Struff pulled it back in the second game in a hard-fought battle. Struff saved four break points in the third game to hold serve after five deuces. Tsitsipas broke serve in the fifth game at 30 to take a 3-2 lead. Struff earned three break points, but Tsitsipas held serve for 4-2. The Greek player served out the win on his first match point. 

Tsitsipas set up a match against Cameron Norrie, who beat Jaume Munar 6-3 1-6 6-3. 

Last year’s Rome Masters 1000 finalist Holger Rune beat Luca Nardi 6-4 6-4 after 1 hour and 42 minutes in the final match of the day. Rune saved all break points he faced during the match. 

Rune converted his third break point in the third game to take a 2-1 lead. He served out the first set with a hold at love in the 10^thgame. 

Rune saved six break points in the fourth game to hold serve at deuce before breaking serve at 15 to take a 3-2 lead. Rune held on his next service games and served out on his second match point in the 10^th game. Rune will take Sebastian Baez in the next round. The Dane leads 2-1 in his previous head-to-match against his Argentine opponent. At last year’s indoor hard court tournament in Basel Rune beat Baez 7-6 (7-2) 6-1. 

Danil Medvedev started his title defence at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia in Rome with a 7-5 6-4 win over Jack Draper after 1 hour and 47 minutes. Medvedev earned his 100^th win at Masters 1000 level. 

Medvedev earned his first break in the third game of the first set to take a 2-1 lead. Draper broke straight back to draw level to 2-2. Medvedev broke for the seventh time to take a 4-3 lead. Draper broke back in the 10^th game to draw level to 5-5, when Medvedev was serving for the set. Medvedev broke for the third time in the 11^th game. The Russian player closed out the first set 7-5 in his service game after saving a break point in the 12^th game. 

Medvedev dropped just two points on his first serve and broke twice in the third and fifth games to race out to a 5-1 lead. Draper pulled one of the two breaks back, when Medvedev was serving for the match at 5-2, but he closed out on his first match point. 

“It was not easy. I feel like the conditions are completely different from last year and also from Monte-Carlo and Madrid. It’s really slow and heavy, so I feel like honestly it’s tough to make a winner and that’s what I saw in all the other matches. You need to work the opponent left-right-left-right and you get tired and your opponent gets tired. I knew that before the match so I am happy that I managed to stronger”, said Medvedev. 

Medvedev won his first title on clay in Rome last year and is aiming to defend a title for the first time in his career. The six-time Masters 1000 champion set up a third round match against Hamad Medjedovic, who beat Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 7-6 (7-4) 6-4. 

Alex De Minaur beat Roberto Carballes Baena 6-3 6-2 to improve his win-loss record to 24-9 this season. De Minaur will take on last week’s Madrid Mutua Open Felix Auger Aliassime or Botic Van de Zandschulp. De Minaur broke serve in the first game to open up a 2-0 lead. Carballes Baena broke back in the fourth game to draw level to 2-2. De Minaur won the final three games with two breaks of serve to close out the first set 6-3. 

Nicolas Jarry beat Matteo Arnaldi 6-2 7-6 (8-6). Arnaldi saved a break point in the first game. Jarry broke serve in the third game to take a 2-1 lead after a double fault from Arnaldi. Jarry earned a double break in the fifth game and held serve at love to race out to a 5-1 lead. The Chilean player served out the first set 6-2 after rallying from 30-40 down. Arnaldi saved three break points in the first game of the second set. Both players went on serve until the eighth game. When Arnaldi earned a break point. The Italian player broke serve, as Jarru hit his volley into the net. Jarry broke straight back in the ninth game and held serve at deuce after saving three set points in the 10^th game. Arnaldi went up a 6-2 in the tie-break, but Jarry saved four set points to draw level to 6-6. Jarry won the tie-break 8-6 on his first match point. 

Jarry set up a third round match against Stefano Napolitano, who came back from one set down to beat Shang Juncheng 6-7 (3-7) 6-1 6-0. Tommy Paul beat Aslan Karatsev 6-4 6-2 to set up a third round match against Dominik Koepfer, who beat Frances Tiafoe 6-4 6-2.