Another two-week combined ATP/WTA event is already underway in Rome, with Saturday featuring the completion of the second round in men’s singles, and the beginning of the third round in women’s singles.
After serving a three-month ban for his failed drug tests from a year ago, World No.1 Jannik Sinner returns to the court on Saturday, at his home country’s biggest event. He faces Mariano Navone, who was a two-time ATP finalist last season on clay. Also on Saturday, recent Madrid champion Casper Ruud makes his 2025 Rome debut, against Alexander Bublik.
In WTA third round action, three-time and defending champion Iga Swiatek plays big-hitting Danielle Collins. Plus, Italian No.1 Jasmine Paolini takes on Ons Jabeur.
Throughout the tournament, this preview will analyze the day’s two most prominent matches, while highlighting the other notable matches on the schedule. Saturday’s play begins at 11:00am local time.
Danielle Collins (29) vs. Iga Swiatek (2) – Not Before 1:00pm on Campo Centrale
Swiatek is still trying to rediscover her usual clay court form ahead of Roland Garros, and she is running out of time. Iga is yet to reach a WTA final since last year’s French Open, after a 6-1, 6-1 thumping last week in the Madrid semifinals at the hands of Coco Gauff. But she was sharp in her opening round here in Rome, where she reopened her own bakery with a 6-1, 6-0 victory over Italy’s Elisabetta Cocciaretto. Swiatek is now 21-2 in Rome, and has won this title three out of the last four years.
Collins is just 8-5 in 2025, as she continues to be selective in how many events she plays. This is her first tournament since Charleston over a month ago, where she lost a three-set quarterfinal to Jessica Pegula while attempting to defend that title. Danielle advanced to the semifinals of this event a year ago, though she came into this event in much stronger form at that time.
Swiatek has pretty much dominated this rivalry, claiming seven of their eight meetings. The only outlier was a Collins victory in the semifinals of the 2022 Australian Open. Their only clay court matchup was also their most recent one, and it also become quite contentious. In the quarterfinals of last summer’s Paris Olympics, Danielle pegged Iga in the ribs with the ball, with Iga later describing how she could not breathe for a moment. Collins would eventually retire down 4-1 in the third, and proceeded to scold Swiatek at the net, accusing her of being insincere regarding Collins’ injury.
While these two obviously don’t like each other, Iga is a considerable favorite over Danielle given their history, and especially on this surface. Collins’ aggression and strong backhand make her a threat on any day, but she’s currently short on match toughness.
Jannik Sinner (1) vs. Mariano Navone – Not Before 7:00pm on Center Court
This is Sinner’s first match since the Australian Open, which became the third Major title of his career. He missed this tournament a year ago due to a hip injury, and is 9-5 lifetime on these grounds, with his best result to date a quarterfinal appearance back in 2022. Since the start of Wimbledon two years ago, Jannik has gone 112-11 overall (as per Tennis Abstract), but only 13 of those matches took place on clay. Sinner now looks to translate his hard court dominance to other surfaces, with plans to play in both Rome and Hamburg ahead of the French Open.
Navone reached finals last year in both Rio and Bucharest, as well as a Challenger final in Buenos Aires, all on this surface. But he’s been unable to follow-up on that success this season, with a tour-level record of just 11-13 overall, and just 8-7 on clay. Mariano is vying to win back-to-back matches for the first time in three months, after defeating another Italian, wild card Federico Cina, on Thursday.
In their first career meeting, Sinner is a strong favorite. But what will be most interesting to see on Saturday night will be Jannik’s form after over three months of inactivity. Returning from a doping suspension, and returning in front of a raucous Italian crowd, will certainly cause some nerves within the World No.1.
Other Notable Matches on Saturday:
Alexander Bublik vs. Casper Ruud (6) – Ruud is coming off the biggest title of his career less than a week ago in Madrid, and he is a three-time semifinalist in Rome. He is 6-1 against Bublik, which includes a three-set victory at this same event two years ago.
Jasmine Paolini (6) vs. Ons Jabeur (27) – Paolini is 17-8 on the year, and has advanced to the semifinals in two of her last three tournaments. Jabeur is just 12-9, and arrived in Rome having lost five of her last six matches. They have split four prior encounters.
Francisco Cerundolo (17) vs. Nicolas Jarry – Cerundolo has already accumulated 16 wins this season on clay, and was a semifinalist last week in Madrid. Jarry was a surprise finalist here a year ago, but he’s barely been winning matches ever since, and is only 5-9 this year at tour level.
Elise Mertens (25) vs. Jessica Pegula (3) – Pegula is a modest 5-3 lifetime in Rome, following a straight-set win on Thursday over fellow American Ashlyn Krueger. Mertens survived a three-setter in the last round, and she is 3-1 against Pegula, having claimed their only clay court meeting 6-1, 6-3.
Saturday’s full Order of Play is here.
