Rome Tennis 2024 Serves Up Nadal and Djokovic
Italian Open 2024: ATP, WTA Draw Preview and Analysis
The Italian Open is where serious Roland Garros prep begins, and Rome tennis 2024 takes on a different look than it did in Madrid due to the lower altitude. True clay court connoisseurs tend to emerge here, irrespective of their serving prowess.
Young princes of tennis Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz are injured and will not take part in Rome, which presents opportunities for other players.
Will Nadal Play In Rome in 2024?
King of Clay Rafael Nadal and top seed Novak Djokovic will both play in the Italian Open, and they have landed on opposite sides of the 128-player Rome tennis 2024 draw.
Sometimes highly-ranked ATP players have a seed in Rome that is higher than their clay ability. Unfortunately for Djokovic, he didn’t draw many of these kinds of players in his section. His draw is challenging.
With retirement imminent, Nadal is using his protected ranking at Rome tennis 2024 and will play a qualifier in Round 1. If he wins that match, he would face Hubert Hurkacz– a stellar player but a guy with a 2-4 career record in Rome. Definitely a plus for Rafa.
To the Rome tennis 2024 preview and draw analysis:
Djokovic Draw at Rome tennis 2024
The world number one should not have a problem in his first few rounds. Rising Czech star Jakub Mensik has a handful of impressive wins in 2024, but he’s struggling with an arm injury that forced him out of Madrid last week.
The middle rounds is where the challenge begins for Djokovic. Francisco Cerundolo of Argentina is one of the best current clay courters on the ATP Tour. At 25, you have to be fit to keep up with Fran, and Novak hasn’t seen action since Monte Carlo.
If Djokovic can get through that, he could face Karen Khachanov, Ben Shelton and clay court superstar Casper Ruud. With a 74% winning percentage on clay, the top seed who drew Ruud in his quarter got the short straw. That was Novak.
Zverev Draw
Alexander Zverev holds the 3-seed in Rome and sits on the same side of the draw as Djokovic. The German famously beat Novak in the 2017 Italian Open final. Zverev’s body of work here stands at a noteworthy 18-6. This is a good tournament for him.
Complicating matters? Zverev’s upcoming trial later this month over allegations of domestic abuse. Still, his off-court problems have not seemed to affect his results before, and he maintains his innocence.
His only hitch on the way to the quarters could be Italian Lorenzo Musetti. Names like Taylor Fritz and Grigor Dimitrov shouldn’t be too concerning on this surface.
Andrey Rublev’s Rome tennis 2024 Draw
As the 4-seed and coming off a win in Madrid, Rublev would seem well-positioned in Rome. But the ginger’s big serve won’t mean as much here as it did in the high altitude of Spain.
Rublev will also be tired from a long run in the Spanish capital, and his overall record in Rome is only 5-4. Players I like in this quarter include Stefanos Tsitsipas, recently freed from romantic entanglements, hometown favorite Matteo Berrettini and Felix Auger Aliassime, who is finally starting to show signs of confidence.
Medvedev’s Rome Draw
Defending champion Daniil Medvedev has arguably the toughest draw in Rome, with several clay-court gunners in his section. First of all, Nadal resides in this quarter– who wants that? The crowd will be crazy for Rafa, a 10-time champion in Rome. Would Medvedev feed off that or be driven to distraction?
Secondly, look at other the pesky problems for Meddy in this Rome tennis 2024 draw: Thiago Seyboth Wild, who ousted Medvedev from Roland Garros last year, Tomas Martin Etcheverry, Sebastian Baez, Holger Rune, Tommy Paul and Alejandro Davidovich Fokina. It’s tricky!
This wild section is a tossup, but with a strong run to the final last year, it could be Rune’s time to emerge.
Players to Watch:
QF: Ruud, Zverev, Tsitsipas, Rune
SF: Ruud, Tsitsipas
F: Ruud
WTA Rome Tennis 2024 Draw Analysis
Going from back-to-back expanded 1000 events is one of the toughest, most grueling tasks in tennis. It’s especially tough for players who had a deep run in the first of this double-headed monster. Iga Swiatek, Aryna Sabalenka and Rome defending champion Elena Rybakina all went deep in Madrid. It is crucial for these players not to peak too early before Roland Garros.
The top seed who did not go as deep in Madrid is Coco Gauff. Advantage her. Gauff is a quality clay court player with a solid portfolio in Rome. Coco has a real opportunity here. If she can get through potential matchups with players like Barbora Krejcikova and Daria Kasatkina, her path sets up nicely.
Rybakina will be exhausted from her epic loss to Swiatek in Madrid and should be focused on Roland Garros. Jasmine Paolini is a plucky Italian star who could grind Elena down.
Aryna Sabalenka had one of the most grueling Madrid tournaments and did not walk away with the trophy after holding 3 championship points. She could use a break, and her game is not as suited to Rome. Plus she drew Ons Jabeur in her section– an elite player who is beginning to steady herself from a slump.
As the number one player in the world and a 2-time Italian Open champ, Swiatek is well-suited to conditions in the Eternal City. Sloane Stephens and Beatriz Hadaad Maia are quality stars in her way, but they don’t have what Iga has on clay.
Players to Watch:
QF: Swiatek, Gauff, Paolini, Jabeur
SF: Swiatek, Jabeur
F: Swiatek
