Wednesday features quarterfinal play in both men’s and women’s singles, as well as a fourth round match carried over from Tuesday due to rain, between Casper Ruud and Jaume Munar.
The quarterfinals on Wednesday are four extremely high-profile contests, all between top 10 players. And all four matchups contain some intriguing history.
In a rematch from just two weeks ago in Madrid, Mirra Andreeva looks to avenge a straight-set loss to Coco Gauff. In a rematch from the Indian Wells semifinals, Carlos Alcaraz looks to avenge the three-set upset he suffered at the hands of Jack Draper. In a rematch from last year’s Australian Open championship match, Qinwen Zheng looks to earn her first victory in her seventh try against Aryna Sabalenka. And in a rematch from last summer’s Olympics, Alexander Zverev faces the man who prevented him from medaling in Paris, Lorenzo Musetti.
Throughout the tournament, this preview will analyze the day’s two most prominent matches, while highlighting the other notable matches on the schedule. Wednesday’s play begins at 1:00pm local time.
Coco Gauff (4) vs. Mirra Andreeva (7) – 1:00pm on Campo Centrale
These players faced off in the same round of the last WTA 1000 event, with Gauff prevailing 7-5, 6-1, in a match that saw Coco dominate the second half. After getting broken while serving for the first set, Andreeva crumbled, and only claimed one further game in the match. That brought the American’s record to 3-0 against the Russian, which also includes two victories back in 2023.
Gauff has now won eight of her last nine matches, with the only loss coming in the final of Madrid to Sabalenka. Andreeva has won six of her last seven, though she went through quite a battle in her last round, coming back from a set down to defeat Clara Tauson. By contrast, Coco lost only three games in the last round against Emma Raducanu.
Mirra got off to a strong start this season, winning her first two WTA 1000 titles in Dubai and Indian Wells. Her serve has become one of the WTA’s most imposing weapons. But she has cooled off a bit within the past two months, and until she finds a way to overcome Coco, she remains the underdog in this matchup.
Jack Draper (5) vs. Carlos Alcaraz (3) – Not Before 3:00pm on Campo Centrale
Draper’s three-set victory over Alcaraz at Indian Wells was a breakout moment in the career for the 23-year-old Brit, who went on to defeat Holger Rune in the final to claim his first Masters 1000 title. But the most surprising part of that match was what Carlitos shared thereafter. The Spaniard spoke about how nervous he felt that day playing against Jack, and how he was more focused on Jack’s play than his own.
And that speaks to just how fully-formed Draper’s aggressive game has become within the past year. He’s 22-5 on the year, and is coming off a run to the final two weeks ago in Madrid, despite his lack of experience on clay. He’s dropped one set through three matches in Rome, though he’s also yet to face a player ranked higher than 46th in the world.
Alcaraz missed Madrid due to multiple leg injuries, and played a grueling three-setter against Karen Khachanov on Tuesday, after which he described how tired his body felt on court. But on this surface, even a somewhat tired and somewhat injured Carlitos should be favored against Jack. He’s been in great form across the past month on clay, with a title in Monte Carlo, and a run to the final in Barcelona. And prior to Indian Wells, he had claimed three of four meetings against Draper.
Other Notable Matches on Wednesday:
Aryna Sabalenka (1) vs. Qinwen Zheng (8) – Sabalenka has claimed 12 of their previous 13 sets, though all six prior meetings have taken place on hard courts. But clay should favor Aryna even more strongly, as she’s the far more successful player on this surface.
Lorenzo Musetti (8) vs. Alexander Zverev (2) – In the quarterfinals of the Paris Olympics, Musetti defeated Zverev 7-5, 7-5, ending the German’s hopes of repeating as an Olympic medalist. Their other previous encounter, three years ago in Madrid, ended prematurely, with the Italian retiring due to injury.
Wednesday’s full Order of Play is here.
