Internationals: eighth with Musetti, Darderi and the Sinner-Pellegrino derby

It’s the day of three blue musketeers to Internazionali BNL d’Italia Of tennis. As in Dumas’ masterpiece, there are actually four, but we already know that, if things go as all Italians hope, in the end there will only be three left in the quarter-finals. The blue derby with the world no.1 Jannik Sinner opposed to the revelation of the tournament Andrea Pellegrino around 3pm, in fact, it will inevitably deprive us of an Italian team, even if it guarantees us a place in the quarterfinals.

On the field today at 11am immediately Lorenzo Musetti (n.10 ATP and eighth in seeding) opposite the clay specialist, the Norwegian Casper Ruud (former world no.2 and current no.25). It will be the third match at ATP main draw level, with a balance of one victory each, in matches played between 2022 and 2023. There is a further match between the two, dating back to the qualifiers of the Internazionali BNL d’Italia 2019won in two sets by Ruud. Both have the semi-final as their best result at the Foro Italico: Musetti in the 2025 edition (beaten by the future champion Carlos Alcaraz), Ruud in three editions (2020, 2022 and 2023).

Darderi attempts the feat with Zverev

On the arena of BNP Paribas Arena they will then compete not before 2pm Luciano Darderi (n.20 ATP) and third in the world ranking Alexander Zverevtwice champion at the Foro Italico (2017 and 2024) and the only opponent on paper capable of worrying (or at least challenging) Jannik Sinner. The two faced each other for the first time in Rome in 2024, in a hard-fought third round match with the Italian doing well to withstand the German’s power and take the first set to a tie-break, only to be defeated in two sets. The round of 16 achieved this year represent the best placing of the 24 year old Italian at the International.

The derby between Sinner and Pellegrino

For Italian fans, however, the most awaited race is the one that in theory should reserve the least emotions: the derby scheduled no earlier than 3pm on the Centrale between the n.1 in the world Jannik Sinner e Andrea Pellegrino (n.155 ATP), coming from the qualifiers and capable of hitting for the first time in his career round of 16 of a Masters 1000. Digging into the annals of tennis we discover that there is only one precedent between the two dating back to 2019 when the Future M25 of Santa Margherita in Pula the 17-year-old Jannik, already a rising star of Italian tennis, won 6-1 6-1 Pellegrino.

The evening match on Centrale

The day of men’s eighths ends on Centrale with the second match of the evening program Daniil Medvedev (n.9 in the ranking) e Thiago Agustin Tirante (n.69 ATP), author of the elimination of Flavio Cobolli in the third round. There are no precedents between the 25-year-old Argentine and the 30-year-old from Moscow, former world no.1 and champion of the 2023 edition of the International.

The women’s quarterfinals scheduled

In the women’s field, the first two are scheduled quarter finals. On Centrale, after Musetti-Ruud, the 36-year-old Romanian will face each other Sorana Cirstea (n.27 in the ranking and 26 in the seeding), which surprisingly eliminated the WTA n.1 Aryna Sabalenkaand Latvian Jelena Ostapenko (n.36 WTA, former champion at Roland Garros). The second quarter-final of the women’s draw opens the evening program on Centrale, with the finalist of the IBI25 Coco Gauff (n.4 in the ranking and 3 in the seeding) opposite to Mirra Andreevan.7 in the ranking (and eighth in the seeding). The American won all the direct clashes against the 19-year-old from Krasnojarsk, the most recent which took place at the Foro Italico last year in the quarter-finals.

The Errani-Paolini double on the pitch

Today the champions of the last two editions of the championships also return to the field THE PLACE Sara Errani e Jasmine Paolini in the second round match of double.