Italian Open: Daniil Medvedev progresses to third round, defeats Emil Ruusuvuori

Medvedev handled a potentially difficult opening match with his usual tenacity from the baseline. On Court Pietrangeli, he diverted Ruusuvuori's strong groundstrokes to great effect, breaking the Finn's serve five times en route to an 88-minute victory.

After winning for the first time in four main-draw outings on the Rome clay, the five-time Masters 1000 champion will look to maintain his momentum in a third-round match against Bernabe Zapata Miralles.

Medvedev will face Bernabe Zapata Miralles in a third-round clash.

"It is a little bit [of a relief]. We can talk about all of the matches I lost here, they were different. The first one, I feel like I should have won, but it is [what it is]. Whenever I come to a tournament, I know that I can play well, so I'm happy to finally get the win here in Rome," ATP.com quoted Medvedev as saying after the match.

"I want to win as many matches as possible. I know it can be a little bit trickier for me on clay, but honestly this year I am playing really well," said Medvedev.

"The matches I lost, I lost against great opponents who [just] played better than me and not much [else] to say. I'm doing my absolute best and playing well. I already beat a lot of good opponents. Last week [in Madrid] Emil was one of only two players who won a set against Carlos [Alcaraz], so I'm feeling great and just looking forward to trying to play my best tennis until the end of the clay season," he added.

On the other hand, Stefanos Tsitsipas did not take long to join Medvedev in the third round.

Tsitsipas, the fifth seed, reached his first Rome final in 2022 and now has a 10-5 record in the Italian capital. The 24-year-old is a two-time Masters 1000 champion on clay, having won in Monte-Carlo in 2021 and 2022. He will next face home favourite Lorenzo Sonego in his bid for his first ATP Tour championship of the season. (ANI)