Jannik Sinner defeats Andrej Rublev, reaches the semi-finals of the Italian Open and achieves his 32nd consecutive victory in the Masters 1000, surpassing the record previously held by Novak Djokovic .
It was a quiet day for the Foro Italico crowd after Darderi-Jodar's wild night. And it's thanks to the world number one, who made everything too easy and won 6-2, 6-4 in an hour and a half . The Russian had a fearsome forehand, but little else to scare a resurgent Sinner for at least a set and a half, before a slump that wasn't enough for Rublev to get back into the match.
Jannik immediately breaks, breaking his opponent's serve again in the seventh game and then easily closing out the first set 6-2. The first half of the second set played out the same way, with the Italian up a break early on. A small setback at 4-1 occurred when Sinner—up two breaks—lost his serve for the first time of the tournament, but then closed the match 6-4, holding on to his first serve, which is always decisive in crucial moments.
And in fact, Jannik himself admitted at the end of the match: "I'm feeling a bit tired, I've played a lot in the last few months. Now I'm trying to recover." On the match: "Very difficult, with a bit of wind, but I'm happy to be here again in the semifinals. It's a special tournament, and besides, we're both Italians."
Sinner hasn't lost in a Masters 1000 since retiring in Shanghai, then won in Paris in 2025, Indian Wells, Miami, Monte Carlo and Madrid in 2026. With today's win, he has 32 consecutive victories, the longest streak of all time: he is behind Djokovic who had stopped at 31. Thirty-two victories during which he has lost only two sets.
Considering all tournaments, Jannik has been winning uninterrupted for three months: 27 consecutive victories, the last defeat against Mensik in Doha dates back to February 19th . By conquering Rome, he would win his sixth consecutive Masters 1000 title and the only title in the category still missing from his immense palmares.
Tomorrow, Friday, May 15th, the semifinal against the winner of the match between Medvedev and Landaluce . Tomorrow will also be the other semifinal, also featuring an Italian, Darderi, who will face the Norwegian Casper Ruud .
(Unioneonline/L)