2019 US Open champion Bianca Andreescu faces 2021 champion Emma Raducanu for the first time on Tuesday in Rome. Andreescu has only played five matches this season, while Raducanu has a losing record on the year, so both players are looking to regain confidence less than two weeks ahead of the next Major.
Also on Tuesday, newly-minted Madrid Open champion Ons Jabeur returns to action just three days after securing the biggest title of her career. On that same day in Madrid, Novak Djokovic lost a three hour and thirty-five minute thriller to eventual champion Carlos Alcaraz. Djokovic plays his opening match in Rome against Aslan Karatsev, in a rematch of a three hour and twenty-five minute loss from last year in Belgrade.
Throughout the tournament, this preview will analyze the day’s two most prominent matches, while highlighting the other notable matches on the schedule. Tuesday’s play begins at 11:00am local time.
Novak Djokovic (1) vs. Aslan Karatsev – Third on Center Court
A few months prior to Karatsev’s victory over Djokovic on clay in Belgrade, he went down to Novak in straight sets during the semifinals of the Australian Open. That was Aslan’s huge breakout tournament, as he became a semifinalist in his first career main draw appearance in a Major, and did so as a qualifier. This year in Belgrade, a rusty Novak gritted his way back into form, coming from a set down to win three straight matches in only his third tournament of the year. He looked much more like the Djokovic of old last week in Madrid, where the red-hot Alcaraz needed nearly four hours to overcome the 20-time Slam champ. Just two weeks before beginning the defense of his second French Open title, Novak will be highly-motivated to earn more match wins. And against a player who is only 9-10 on the year, Djokovic should be able to do just that.
Emma Raducanu (10) vs. Bianca Andreescu (DA SR) – Fourth on Grand Stand Arena
Since her US Open title nearly three years ago, Andreescu has battled multiple injuries and health struggles. She played her first event of the season just a few weeks ago in Stuttgart, as Bianca has returned to tour on a surface where she had only competed in four tour-level matches before this season. Raducanu had actually never played a WTA Match on clay ahead of Stuttgart. And while she’s just 8-10 since her US Open triumph, she’s won four of her last six matches, all on clay. However, those wins came against players ranked no higher than 49th in the world. Despite Bianca’s lack of experience on clay, and her lack of match play overall, I still like her chances to grind her way to victory, as she still possesses much more experience than Emma.
Other Notable Matches on Tuesday:
Hubert Hurkacz (11) vs. David Goffin – After going 1-4 on clay last season, Hurkacz is 6-2 this year thanks to quarterfinal runs in both Monte Carlo and Madrid. Goffin won a clay court title last month in Marrakech, and came through qualifying last week in Madrid, winning four matches in total, before falling to Rafael Nadal 11-9 in a third-set tiebreak. This is their first career meeting.
Felix Auger-Aliassime (8) vs. Alejandro Davidovich Fokina – Felix is only 6-5 on clay this season, while Alejandro is 14-6, and was the runner-up in Monte Carlo. At this year’s Australian Open, the Canadian defeated the Spaniard in an over four-hour four-setter, with each set decided by a tiebreak.
Ons Jabeur (9) vs. Sorana Cirstea – What will Jabeur have left after the biggest title run of her career? Cirstea reached the quarters of Istanbul on clay last month. Sorana is 2-0 against Ons, though they haven’t played since 2014.
Jannik Sinner (10) vs. Pedro Martinez – Sinner is the highest-ranking Italian in either singles draw. Martinez is a 25-year-old from Spain who won a clay court title three months ago in Santiago. This is another first-time matchup.
Tuesday’s full Order of Play is here.
