We have already reached the third of three Masters 1000 clay-court tournaments. Yes, the European swing is flying by and Roland Garros is on the horizon. But we can’t look past the Internazionali BNL d’Italia, which takes center stage over the next two weeks. It marks the return of Jannik Sinner, while Carlos Alcaraz is also back after missing the Madrid Masters due to a leg injury.
The main draw begins on Wednesday, so it’s time to make my picks.
Internazionali BNL d’Italia
Where: Rome, Italy
Prize money: 8,055,385 Euros
Top seed: Jannik Sinner
Defending champion: Alexander Zverev
Sinner and Alcaraz could have been on the same side of the bracket since the Spaniard is seeded third behind Alexander Zverev, but instead they are in opposite halves and could go head-to-head in the final. Of course, both guys have a long way to go before that could happen. Sinner has an especially rocky road through the draw in his first appearance since the Australian Open. The top-ranked Italian could face Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the third round, Francisco Cerundolo in the fourth, and either compatriot Matteo Berrettini or Madrid champion Casper Ruud in the quarterfinals.
The other section in the top half features Taylor Fritz, Alex de Minaur, Tommy Paul, Andrey Rublev, and Miami winner Jakub Mensik. It’s an especially bad draw for Rublev, who could open with Joao Fonseca before possibly running into Mensik in round three.
Alcaraz is reportedly 100 percent—and he’ll have to be if he wants to make a deep run at the Foro Italico. Estoril Challenger champ Alex Michelsen is a potential opponent in the last 32, while an in-form Grigor Dimitrov looms large in the fourth round. Madrid runner-up Jack Draper and Barcelona champion Holger Rune are possible quarterfinal foes for the Spaniard.
Zverev’s path to the SFs is likely to feature Denis Shapovalov in the third round, Stefanos Tsitsipas or Arthur Fils in the fourth, and Lorenzo Musetti or Daniil Medvedev in the QFs. Fils probably has a tough opening match on his hands in the form of Tallon Griekspoor or Miomir Kecmanovic, while Tsitsipas will get things started against either Jiri Lehecka or Alexandre Muller.
First-rounders to watch are Griekspoor vs. Kecmanovic, Lehecka vs. Muller, Fonseca vs. Fabian Marzosan, Flavio Cobolli vs. Luca Nardi, Learner Tien vs. Reilly Opelka, Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard vs. Jordan Thompson, and Matteo Arnaldi vs. Roberto Bautista Agut.
Quarterfinal picks: Jannik Sinner over Matteo Berrettini, Joao Fonseca over Matteo Arnaldi, Carlos Alcaraz over Holger Rune, and Lorenzo Musetti over Stefanos Tsitsipas
Semifinals: Sinner over Fonseca and Musetti over Alcaraz
Final: Sinner over Musetti
Ricky contributes to 10sballs.com and also maintains his own tennis website, The Grandstand. You can follow him on Twitter at @Dimonator.