The current world No. 1 has advanced to the quarter-finals in Rome for the 17th consecutive year
Posted Date – Tue, 16 May 23 at 10:15pm
Photo: IANS
Rome: Novak Djokovic continues his pursuit of a record-breaking 39th ATP Masters 1000 title as he beat Cameron Norrie 6-3, 6-4 to advance to the quarterfinals of the Italian Open on Tuesday Champion laurels.
The current world No. 1 has advanced to the quarter-finals in Rome for the 17th consecutive year. This is the 91st time in Djokovic’s career that he has reached the quarter-finals of the ATP Masters 1000.
“So far so good,” the ATP Tour website quoted Djokovic as saying. “We got up early today. Weird conditions, we only had 20 minutes to warm up. I was a bit rushed, we couldn’t play because of the rain, so I’m happy to beat the challenge in straight sets and move on,” he said.
Djokovic has finished in the top eight in every tournament he has played. At Foro Italico, the Serbian has won six tournaments and is the defending champion.
The 35-year-old Serb is chasing his seventh title in Rome, having won the competition in 2008, 2011, 2014-15, 2020 and 2022. After the 89-minute victory, he will meet the Dane Holgloone in the next game.
Norrie, on the other hand, is aiming to reach the quarter-finals of the ATP Masters 1000 for the second time this season after reaching the quarter-finals at Indian Wells.
Rune, on the other hand, blocked Alexei Popyrin’s career-best finish in the ATP Masters 1000 tournament. The 20-year-old Dane took a tough 6-4, 5-7, 6-4 victory in Tuesday’s fourth-round showdown.
Rooney, who made his debut in Rome, has an 11-2 record on clay this season. The world No. 7 reached the final in Monte Carlo last month before winning his fourth tour-level title in Munich.
After beating the Serb in the 2022 final in Paris, the Dane will enter the quarter-finals against Djokovic with confidence.
