Medvedev captures Italian Open over Rune, winning first clay title - plus what we learned for Paris in Rome
Daniil Medvedev won his 20th career title, triumphing in Rome over the young Dane. With Rafael Nadal out of the French Open, Medvedev adds his name to the favourites' list.
Tennis
Daniil Medvedev has joked about being a clay-court specialist for years. Now the world No. 3 might just be one.
Medvedev captured his first-ever clay tennis title on Sunday (21 May) with a 7-5 7-5 win over youngster Holger Rune in Rome at the Italian Open, solidifying himself as one of the favourites for Roland-Garros, which starts in one week's time.
On Wednesday (17 May), reigning and 14-time French Open champ Rafael Nadal announced his withdrawal from the event for a first time since 2004, giving the men's field an open feeling for the first time in nearly two decades.
Enter Medvedev, who beat big-hitting Rune, as well as two-time major runner-up Stefanos Tsitsipas and Olympic champ Alexander Zverev on his way to a fifth title of 2023 and 20th of his career.
It's a sixth ATP Masters 1000 title for Medvedev, the 2021 US Open winner. With the win, he leapfrogs Novak Djokovic for the No. 2 spot in the world rankings, meaning he and Carlos Alcaraz, who will re-claim the world No. 1 on Monday (22 May), will likely anchor the two halves of the draw in Paris.
Wimbledon winner Elena Rybakina won the women's title on Saturday (20 May), as well. She beat Anhelina Kalinina, the surprise of the week, 6-4 1-0, retired.
Italian Open: What we learned for the French Open
What notes do we take from Rome and apply to Paris?
Rybakina - much like Medvedev - levels up to be among the women's contenders for the clay major. In the quarer-finals, she beat two-time French Open champ and world No. 1 Iga Swiatek, though the Polish star retired early in the third set due to injury.
Swiatek took to social media to assure her fans she is still planning on defending her title: "Booking my flight to Paris, so...fingers crossed," she wrote.
While questions swirl around Swiatek's thigh and Nadal is officially out, neither Alcaraz nor Djokovic had the run-up they exactly wanted, nor did Madrid women's winner Aryna Sabalenka, who lost her first match in Rome to 2020 Australian Open winner Sofia Kenin.
Rune, however, has embedded himself among the top men, the Danish 20-year-old having had a breakout run to the semi-finals at Roland-Garros last year before falling to Casper Ruud, whom he beat this week in Rome in the semis.
Kalinina, the world No. 47, adds her name to a long list of must-watch women, though top 5 stars Jessica Pegula, French home hope Caroline Garcia and Coco Gauff - the 2022 RG runner-up - have struggled to find their best form on the red clay.
Alcaraz's loss in Rome came to the most unlikely of characters: world No. 135 Fabian Morzsan, who had never won an ATP match prior to beating the Spanish. The 23-year-old from Hungary heads to French Open qualifying, which gets underway on Monday (22 May).