The road to Roland Garros continues this fortnight with the third of three clay-court Masters 1000 tournaments. It’s the Internazionali BNL d’Italia, where Jannik Sinner is bidding to complete the career Masters slam — winning all nine on the ATP calendar. The top-ranked Italian has won five Masters 1000 events in a row after lifting the Madrid trophy for the first time this past Sunday — leaving Rome as the only missing puzzle piece.
Carlos Alcaraz remains sidelined by a wrist injury, so Sinner is an absolutely massive favorite in front of the home crowd at the Foro Italico. Potential challengers include Novak Djokovic, Madrid runner-up Alexander Zverev, fellow Italians Lorenzo Musetti and Flavio Cobolli, and rising star Rafael Jodar.
With main-draw action getting underway on Wednesday, it’s time to break down what is always one of the most entertaining tournaments on the annual tennis circuit.
Internazionali BNL d’Italia
Where: Rome, Italy
Surface: Clay
Points: 1000
Prize money: 8,235,540 Euros
Top seed: Jannik Sinner
2025 champion: Carlos Alcaraz (not playing)
Draw analysis: It is a nice one for Djokovic, who is making his 2026 clay-court debut and has not taken the court since Indian Wells. Not only is the 38-year-old Serb on the other side from Sinner, but he also has an extremely favorable path at least through the fourth round. Djokovic, even if he is a bit rusty, should coast into the quarterfinals before running into either Musetti, Jiri Lehecka, or Casper Ruud.
Elsewhere in the bottom half of the brackt, Zverev and Jodar are on a collision course for the quarterfinals. Jodar, who is coming off a quarterfinal run in Madrid, will try to lock up a seeded spot at the French Open with a decent performance in Rome. The 19-year-old Spaniard could meet Alex de Minaur in round three after he destroyed the Australian 6-3, 6-1 during second-round action at the Caja Magica.
The draw is much tougher at the top for players like Arthur Fils and Ben Shelton. Fils could face Sinner as early as round four, while Shelton is a possible quarterfinal opponent for the world No. 1. The news at the Foro Italico is even worse for Jakub Mensik, who has the misfortune of being the first seeded opponent whom Sinner could play.
The top half is also home to Felix Auger-Aliassime, Daniil Medvedev, Flavio Cobolli, and Joao Fonseca. Auger-Aliassime vs. Fonseca is a possible third-round battle, while Medvedev will have a difficult opening match on his hands against either Stefanos Tsitsipas or Tomas Machac.
In addition to Tsitsipas vs. Machac, first-round matchups to watch include Zizou Bergs vs. Terence Atmane, Jenson Brooksby vs. Sebastian Baez, Matteo Berrettini vs. Alexei Popyrin, and Denis Shapovalov vs. Mariano Navone.
Hot: Jannik Sinner, Alexander Zverev, Jiri Lehecka, Flavio Cobolli, Arthur Fils, Valentin Vacherot, Rafael Jodar, Ethan Quinn, Alexander Blockx, Vit Kopriva, Ignacio Buse, Thiago Agustin Tirante, Alejandro Tabilo
Cold: Daniil Medvedev, Karen Khachanov, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Zhizhen Zhang, Lorenzo Sonego, Daniel Altmaier, Roberto Bautista Agut, Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, Jaume Munar, Jan-Lennard Struff, Adrian Mannarino, Jenson Brooksby, Valentin Royer
Quarterfinal predictions: Jannik Sinner over Andrey Rublev, Flavio Cobolli over Joao Fonseca, Lorenzo Musetti over Novak Djokovic, and Rafael Jodar over Alexander Blockx
Semifinals: Sinner over Cobolli and Musetti over Jodar
Final: Sinner over Musetti