Saturday features the completion of the second round in men’s singles, and the beginning of the third round in women’s singles.
Surprisingly, this tournament is the only Masters 1000 title missing from Jannik Sinner’s collection. Within the last three years, the Italian has won all eight other Masters events, and has now taken a record five consecutive Masters titles, dating back to last year. On Saturday, Sinner plays his opening match against Sebastian Ofner.
The day’s schedule is also headlined by the Italian No.1 in women’s singles, Jasmine Paolini, who is also the defending champion. Plus, top seeds Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff will both play their third round matches.
Here’s a rundown of the most notable matches on Saturday (in chronological order, all times local):
Coco Gauff (3) vs. Solana Sierra – 11:00am on BNP Paribas Arena
Gauff was the runner-up here a year ago, losing the final in straight sets to Paolini. Coco would go on to win her second Major singles title a few weeks later in Paris, yet she’s only claimed one WTA title since. The 22-year-old American is 20-8 on the year, and won her opening round on Thursday in straights. Gauff also defeated Sierra earlier this season in straights, during January’s United Cup. However, Sierra is a clay court specialist, and is coming off a run to the round of 16 last week in Madrid.
Jasmine Paolini (9) vs. Elise Mertens (21) – Not Before 1:00pm on Campo Centrale
After two spectacular seasons of results, including winning her second WTA 1000 title here in Rome last May, Paolini has struggled during 2026. She is just 11-9, and required three sets in her opening match to advance beyond a qualifier. Mertens leads their head-to-head 4-2 overall, and 2-0 on clay, though those two clay courts matches took place six years ago, long before Paolini became a top player. But Mertens owns a stronger record this year of 15-8, and she reached the fourth round here a year ago.
Aryna Sabalenka (1) vs. Sorana Cirstea (26) – Third on Campo Centrale
Sabalenka is a superb 27-2 during 2026, yet she has now failed to win a clay court title in over a year, after suffering a quarterfinal upset in Madrid to Hailey Baptiste. On Thursday, she defeated fellow Major champ Barbora Krejcikova 6-2, 6-3. Cirstea has announced this will be her last season on tour, and she’s ending her 20-year career in good form. The 36-year-old is 24-7 on the year, and she’s another player who advanced to the round of 16 last year in Rome. Sabalenka is 2-1 against Cirstea, having defeated her in straights earlier this season in Brisbane.
Jannik Sinner (1) vs. Sebastian Ofner – Not Before 7:00pm on Campo Centrale
Sinner’s 2026 record now stands at 30-2, and he’s on a 23-match winning streak. 52 weeks ago, he made his return from a 90-day suspension at this event, where he lost in the final to Carlos Alcaraz. Ofner is a former top 40 player who has accumulated 20 match wins this year at all levels, which includes back-to-back Challenger titles on hard courts. These players have never faced off at tour level, but seven years ago at a Challenger tournament, Sinner prevailed 6-2, 6-4.
Saturday’s full Order of Play is here.
