Sinner learns Rome Open fate as Djokovic returns after Injury layoff
Hope
World Tennis number one Jannik Sinner faces a challenging path at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia (Rome Open), as he targets a historic Career Golden Masters on home soil.
Sinner, who leads the ATP Rankings, will begin his campaign against either Alex Michelsen or Sebastian Ofner. The Italian could meet Jakub Mensik in the third round, one of only two players to have beaten him this season after a quarter-final win in Doha.
If he progresses, Sinner is projected to face Arthur Fils in the fourth round. Sinner recently defeated Fils in straight sets at the Mutua Madrid Open semi-finals, but the Frenchman remains in strong form this season.
The Italian holds an impressive 30-2 win-loss record in 2026 and is chasing a rare milestone, becoming only the second player after Novak Djokovic to win all nine ATP Masters 1000 tournaments.
Sinner’s half of the draw also includes top contenders such as Felix Auger-Aliassime, Ben Shelton and Daniil Medvedev. Medvedev, a former world number one, won his only clay title in Rome in 2023 and could face a difficult opening match against Stefanos Tsitsipas or Tomas Machac.
In the bottom half, Djokovic returns after more than six weeks out with injury. The six-time Rome champion is set to open against Marton Fucsovics or a qualifier. He shares a section of the draw with home favourite Lorenzo Musetti, as well as Jiri Lehecka and Casper Ruud.
Second seed Alexander Zverev will be looking to bounce back after losing to Sinner in the Madrid final. The two-time Rome champion opens against Daniel Altmaier or Zhang Zhizhen.
Meanwhile, Alex de Minaur could meet Zverev in the quarter-finals. He begins against Matteo Arnaldi or Jaume Munar, with a potential third-round clash against rising teenager Rafael Jodar. Meanwhile former number one Carlos Alcaraz remains sidelined following the injury sustained in Monte Carlo which saw him miss Madrid Open as welll.
Rome Open tournament will run from 5 to 17 May 2026.
