World number one Jannik Sinner continued his dominant run at the Italian Open after defeating fellow Italian Andrea Pellegrino 6-2, 6-3 to reach the quarter finals in Rome.
The victory not only secured Sinner’s place in the last eight at the Foro Italico, but also saw the Italian equal a remarkable record previously achieved only by Novak Djokovic. The 24-year-old has now recorded 31 consecutive victories in ATP Masters 1000 events, further underlining his status as the dominant force on the tour.
Playing under the spotlight on the iconic Centre Court, Sinner quickly imposed himself against a nervous Pellegrino, who was appearing in the first Masters 1000 round of 16 of his career. The world number one broke twice during a commanding opening set to take it 6-2, although Pellegrino showed flashes of resilience by saving break points and forcing Sinner to defend one of his own.
The second set proved more competitive as Pellegrino gradually settled into the occasion and began striking the ball with greater confidence. However, Sinner’s relentless intensity eventually proved decisive once again. The top seed secured the crucial break in the seventh game before calmly serving out the match 6-3.
Despite the defeat, Pellegrino leaves Rome having emerged as one of the standout surprise packages of the tournament, producing a memorable run on home soil that earned widespread praise from the Italian crowd.
Sinner will now face either Andrey Rublev or Nikoloz Basilashvili for a place in the semi-finals.
Speaking after the match, Sinner reflected on the significance of facing a fellow Italian in front of the home crowd.
“An Italian derby here is always special,” he said. “Andrea and I played each other seven years ago and it was beautiful to meet again today on one of the most beautiful courts in the world.”
The Italian also praised Pellegrino’s performances throughout the tournament.
“It is a pity this match was only in the round of 16, it would have been even nicer later in the tournament. I am very happy for him because he had an extraordinary tournament. He played a great match.”
Sinner also admitted that the difficult, windy conditions made life far from straightforward.
“The quarter finals are already an important stage. I started the tournament playing at night, and now I have had two matches during the day with a lot of wind, so it was not easy to express good tennis. The rest day will help me.”
