Emil Ruusuvuori came back from the brink twice in quick succession to claim a remarkable first-round victory on Thursday at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia.

The Finn saved two match points before overcoming Ugo Humbert 6-4, 3-6, 7-6(6) at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Rome. Despite Humbert serving on both occasions, Ruusuvuori fended off the first at 4-5, 40/30 in the third set before repeating his escape when trailing the Frenchman 5/6 in the deciding tie-break.

Ruusuvuori ultimately closed out a thrilling three-hour triumph, in which both players broke their opponent’s serve five times, to book a second-round appointment against third seed Daniil Medvedev. The World No. 43 is now 15-12 for the season, a tally which includes reaching his maiden Masters 1000 quarter-final in Miami in March.

It was a third consecutive narrow victory for the Finn in his ATP Head2Head series with Humbert, who himself triumphed in a pair of marathon three-setters en route to the ATP Challenger Tour 175 title in Cagliari last week. Ruusuvuori triumphed in five sets in the duo’s maiden tour-level meeting at Roland Garros in 2022, before prevailing in a pair of tie-breaks against the Frenchman in Madrid just 15 days ago.

Albert Ramos-Vinolas also needed three sets to seal victory on Thursday. The Spaniard saved five of seven break points he faced to beat home wild card Francesco Passaro 4-6, 6-1, 6-4 and reach the second round in Rome for the fifth time. He faces a tough challenge to equal his personal-best 2018 run to the third round at the Foro Italico, however, as he next takes on his countryman and second seed Carlos Alcaraz.

Lorenzo Sonego celebrated his 28th birthday by becoming the fifth Italian into the second round in Rome. The World No. 48, who reached the semi-finals at his home tournament in 2021, eased past Jeremy Chardy 6-2, 6-1. He will next face 25th seed Yoshihito Nishioka.

David Goffin needed all of his experience to outlast #NextGenATP Italian Luca Nardi on Thursday at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia, where the Belgian escaped a precarious position to book his spot in the second round at the clay-court ATP Masters 1000.

The two-time quarter-finalist Goffin prevailed 3-6, 6-4, 6-2 to advance to face 2017 champion Alexander Zverev in the Italian capital. Although he trailed the 19-year-old home favourite Nardi 3-6, 2-4, Goffin converted four of his five break points across the second and third sets to seal a two-hour, 22-minute triumph at the Foro Italico.

“I was a little bit tight at the beginning of the match and he was playing well,” reflected Goffin. “He didn’t leave me any [chances] in the first set and at the beginning of the second. It was a few points that made the difference, because he had the break, and I was really close to coming back in some long games.”

The former World No. 7 Goffin dropped out of the Top 100 of the Pepperstone ATP Rankings for the first time since July 2014 on Monday after struggling for consistency and with his fitness this year. The 32-year-old was pleased with the way he had dug deep to earn his first Masters 1000 victory of 2023.

“If it would have been [6-3, 6-4] for him, it would have been, ‘OK, congrats’, but I had to fight and I won a few important points in the second to turn it around,” said Goffin. “After that I started to play even better and he was a little bit mentally down. I started to play more in the third, so I’m very happy I managed to win this one.”

Daniel Altmaier also held off an up-and-coming home favourite on Thursday in Rome. The German, who reached his maiden Masters 1000 quarter-final in Madrid last week, pulled away to a 7-6(3), 4-6, 6-0 win against 21-year-old Giulio Zeppieri. He will next take on Houston champion Frances Tiafoe.

Despite Nardi and Zeppieri falling just short, Marco Cecchinato gave the home fans something to cheer at the Foro Italico. The 30-year-old moved to 6-0 in opening-round ATP Tour matches for the year by downing Mackenzie McDonald 6-3, 7-5. Cecchinato plays Roberto Bautista Agut next.

Making his Rome debut, the World No. 66 Jason Kubler notched an impressive 6-7(6), 6-4, 6-2 win against Marc-Andrea Huesler. The Australian converted six of his 11 break points against the big-serving Swiss to wrap a two-hour, 31-minute victory, his first at a clay-court Masters 1000 event. Kubler’s reward is a second-round clash against 31st seed Bernabe Zapata Miralles.

Italian Fabio Fognini earned his biggest win of the season Wednesday evening when he defeated Scot Andy Murray at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia.

It has been a struggle to begin 2023 for the former Top 10 star, who arrived at the Foro Italico with a 2-8 tour-level record. But the wild card thrilled the Rome crowd with a 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 victory to reach the second round after two hours and 54 minutes.

“For sure I’m happy because coming back from injury is never easy, especially at our age. But winning here in Rome against a really big player like Andy, I mean I’m happy,” Fognini said in his on-court interview. “Now it’s important to recover and let’s see how I recover and I wake up tomorrow because it’s going to be tricky and a nice question to my mind if I will recover well. But I just want to enjoy this night and going home with this victory.”

The veterans entered the match having split their first eight ATP Head2Head clashes. This was their first meeting since 2019 in Shanghai, where Fognini won a final-set tie-break. They played at the Foro Italico in 2017, when Murray was the No. 1 player in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings. Fognini emerged victorious in straight sets on that occasion.

The Rome ATP Masters 1000 event has not always been Fognini’s best tournament (14-15 record), but he has often found magic on home soil against Murray, whom he has defeated in all three of their showdowns in Italy.

It was clear from the early moments of Wednesday’s match that it would turn into a battle of wills. Both men worked hard for every point, with the first six games taking 48 minutes and the first set lasting 73 minutes.

In the early stages, Fognini showed his intent to try to control play and prevent Murray from weaving his tricky strategic web from the baseline. The Italian broke serve on his sixth opportunity and surged through the rest of the set against last week’s Aix-en-Provence ATP Challenger Tour 175 champion.

As the match wore on, Murray appeared to try to take the initiative, and he took a 5-1 lead in the second set. But even then, Fognini refused to allow the in-form Scot to walk into a decider, getting back on serve before relinquishing the set.

The key in the third set was Fognini’s dominance in his service games, losing just three points on serve throughout the set. Murray let slip a break immediately by missing a short forehand wide, and was never able to recover.

“I was feeling really good at the beginning of the clay in Estoril, I was playing great. But I got injured and I stopped like a month, I was 10 days with the crutches,” Fognini said. “These kind of matches give me a lot of emotions and really good memories.”

In the same section of the draw, #NextGenATP Frenchman Arthur Fils earned his first ATP Masters 1000 main draw win when he defeated fellow qualifier Juan Manuel Cerundolo of Argentina 6-1, 1-6, 6-4.

^{Photo: Corinne Dubreuil/ATP Tour}
Fils ousted Fognini in the final round of qualifying at last year’s Rolex Paris Masters before losing in a rematch with the Italian in the first round of the main draw. They will meet again in Rome if they both reach the third round.

Fils will face a stiff challenge from seventh seed Holger Rune, who lifted the trophy last year at Paris-Bercy. Fognini will face 30th seed Miomir Kecmanovic of Serbia.

Did You Know?
Fognini is at No. 130 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings. In April the Italian slipped from the world’s Top 100 for the first time since 2009.

“I can’t go anywhere without my pizza, you can count on that!”

There is no second guessing what Alex de Minaur’s favourite food is. The 24-year-old even enjoys a pepperoni pizza alongside pasta on a match day, he revealed to ATP Uncovered in the newest edition of the ‘What I Eat’ series.

“Pizza is the secret to the speed!” De Minaur said. “Big pepperoni pizza for me, I just like meat too much.”

The Australian also shared what foods he indulges in on those beloved ‘cheat days’, when De Minaur does not mind racking up calories.

“That’s when I really enjoy my food,” De Minaur said. “As many calories as I can, because that’s my time to enjoy what I eat.”

If you can’t find De Minaur at the courts, perhaps look to the nearest coffee shop because as the Sydney native stated, “Any day of the week, coffee is the most important thing. If not, I’m not waking up!”

A seven-time tour-level titlist, how did De Minaur celebrate winning this year’s ATP 500 event in Acapulco? Watch the full video above to find out his answer and more on what the Aussie eats.

Stan Wawrinka is up and running at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia.

Making his 18th appearance in Rome, the former World No. 3 moved past Ilya Ivashka 6-2, 6-4 on Wednesday at the ATP Masters 1000 event to reach the second round for the 13th time.

The 38-year-old was in control throughout the 78-minute clash on Center Court. The Swiss took large cuts at the ball off both wings to strike 26 winners and saved the one break point he faced to earn his 12th tour-level win of the season.

“I was ready for it. I am playing well. It was a good first match and I am really happy to get through again,” Wawrinka said. “I have been working hard to get to this level. This year I am playing much better, but I need to win more matches. That is what I am missing a bit, the confidence to win more matches. But in general the level is great.”

Wawrinka, who at 38 is the oldest player in the Rome draw, is making his 119th appearance at an ATP Masters 1000 event this week, tying him for the seventh most. His best result in Rome came in 2008, when he fell against Novak Djokovic in the final.

After levelling his ATP Head2Head series against Ivashka at 1-1, Wawrinka will next face Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov.

Hyeon Chung was once one of the most promising young talents on the ATP Tour. The inaugural Next Gen ATP Finals champion in 2017, the South Korean has struggled for several years with injuries.

But the 26-year-old is on the road back. Chung played his first singles match in two and a half years two weeks ago at an ATP Challenger Tour event in Seoul and was back in action on Tuesday in Busan at the Head Busan Open.

The former World No. 19 lost his return match to Jordan Thompson in straight sets, but showed signs of improvement in a three-set loss Tuesday to Yasutaka Uchiyama.

“It is still a shame that I did not win. I played my best [on] every point… I played for more than two hours, so I am satisfied with the way that I played today,” Chung said in answers provided by tournament staff. “For my part, I would like to give myself credit for finishing the match without any injuries or soreness, and last but not least, I have given all I had for each point.”

Chung found tennis takeaways from the match, but was most pleased with battling on court for two hours and 35 minutes.

“It would have been better if I had used [the] court widely, but I was too rigid, and my opponent strongly dragged me around,” Chung said. “The most notable thing about today’s game is that I finished with playing more than two hours of [an] actual match. Despite training for more than two hours, [I] never played more than two hours of [an] actual match.”

Fans might notice a change in Chung’s service motion. He brings his serving arm into a “trophy position” before tossing the ball and serving.

“This is the least injury-prone, least uncomfortable serve movement,” Chung said. “At the moment, avoiding injuries is more important than being able to make a powerful serve.”

Chung was hoping he could play multiple matches in Busan to gain rhythm and get used to competing in a match setting again. After playing two tournaments in South Korea, he will start to look overseas.

“At the moment, there are no games that can be played in the country. My team and I will review the overseas competition schedule and protected rankings so that I can play as many ATP events as possible,” Chung said. “There is no doubt in my mind that I will try overseas tours again.”

Chung’s focus has been on rehabilitation, and he believes that he will be able to shift that focus to more on-court training. The South Korean hopes that will help him return to his top level. For now, he is happy to have made his return to singles competition on home soil.

“I am so grateful to have a comeback match in Seoul and Busan,” Chung said. “Thanks a lot to my fans and to the tournament organisation for coming to see me and giving me this incredible opportunity. I will do my best to ensure my fans see the best performances I can provide.”

Jannik Sinner enters the Internazionali BNL d’Italia at fifth in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin, having reached the quarter-finals or better at seven of his eight events this season. He won his seventh tour-level title in Montpellier and also reached the finals in Miami and Rotterdam, in addition to a semi-final run in Indian Wells.

Despite pulling out of Barcelona ahead of the quarter-finals due to illness and missing Madrid the following week, Sinner enters Rome at full health and in full confidence. He is at a career-high Pepperstone ATP Ranking of No. 8, first achieved on 10 April.

“I’m very good, to be honest,” he said of his physical conditioning, speaking with ATP Media. “I took a little bit of time off after some very long tournaments, which is a good sign, I made a lot of good [results]. The start of the season was good and I’m happy to be back here, especially in Rome. It’s a special tournament for all Italians and also obviously for me. Physically, we worked very hard for one week now and I’m happy to be here.”

The 21-year-old reached the Rome quarter-finals for the first time last season but enters this year’s event with even loftier goals, having already compiled a 12-3 record across the first three ATP Masters 1000 of the season.

“I have a different mindset now,” he explained. “I’m not scared to say that I can win big, big matches. I’m here, I can do it… But in another way, you have to have the right respect for every single player. Every player is so tough. Also emotion-wise, it’s sometimes not easy. But if I go in my way, I want to push myself to the limits because I know that, especially there, I can show some very good tennis.”

Adding to Sinner’s confidence is the boost he knows he can count on from the Italian crowd. He says he has learned to use their support to fuel him after perhaps feeling the pressure of home expectation in his younger years.

“In the beginning it was not easy to connect with the people, with the crowd, but now I feel that it’s natural,” the San Candido native said. “You play in front of the crowd and they only want to push you, they want to help you to win. I’m happy that I have a chance again this year to play in front of my home crowd. Hopefully I can make good things happen, which I believe I can do.”

With Sinner in his home nation, he was also asked to recommend some Italian cuisine. He delivered with a menu of options: “Here it’s tough to find not good places to eat. I think it’s impossible,” he said with a smile. “But for sure carbonara, cacio e pepe—this is very good pasta if you like pasta. Obviously pizza in Italy is very good. You will not [go wrong] with the food here.”

If you were stuck on an island with an ATP Tour player, who would you pick and why?

Three-time major champion Andy Murray has a couple requirements, he revealed to ATP Uncovered in the newest edition of our Fan Questions series.

“I would need someone resourceful to get me off the island,” Murray said. “But also, I’d want someone to keep me entertained.”

What music has the 35-year-old been listening to lately? You may be surprised to learn he’s been enjoying a song from Disney’s movie Zootopia.

The former World No. 1 also revealed his favourite Beatles song and answered the great debate: Messi or Ronaldo?

“That’s a good question,” Murray stated. Which superstar did he choose?

Watch the full video to learn the answer as well as the title Murray wants to win before he retires and more. Just keep the fried Mars candy bars away from the Scot.

Daniil Medvedev has labeled himself a ‘hard-court specialist’, but that doesn’t mean the World No. 3 isn’t looking for answers to develop his game on clay.

Known for his flat groundstrokes and all-court coverage, the 6’6” Medvedev moves exceptionally well. But a few challenges arise when it comes to the red dirt, specifically the unique movement. Heading into the ATP Masters 1000 event in Rome, Medvedev has been critiquing his game to better suit the clay.

The 27-year-old also revealed a strategy he implements when competing on the surface.

“[Playing with] some more spin,” Medvedev said in his pre-tournament press conference. “Especially the sliding, I think the sliding was always a problem [for me]. After Madrid, after I lost, a couple days I practised there, I tried to focus on the sliding, on the movement. I felt like I improved in these couple of days.”

A four-time titlist this year, Medvedev arrives at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia boasting a 33-5 season record. Medvedev has been pleased with his form while practising in Rome and hopes to carry a high-level into the tournament.

“I feel great physically. Every day I’m trying to put [together a] strong session and try to work on small things with my coach,” Medvedev said. “It has been working great, so I’m looking forward to try and play the same in the matches because it’s never the same.

“These two days [practising], I was playing really good clay tennis. I was not missing many balls here these last two days. It was tough for my opponents. Again, you never know. I say all this, but maybe first match it’s not the case. But it’s good to have some good practice. I was really happy about it.”

Searching for a first win in Rome in his fourth appearance, Medvedev will open against Frenchman Ugo Humbert or World No. 43 Emil Ruusuvuori. The 19-time tour-level titlist is seeded to meet Andrey Rublev in the quarter-finals. But you won’t catch Medvedev looking ahead in the draw.

“[I’m] looking forward to the tournament because [I’ve] never won a match [here],” Medvedev said. “So, that’s the first goal.”