The first round of the ATP 1000 Rome Open stretched across two days and delivered a handful of stories worth telling. Matteo Arnaldi, armed with a wildcard and the confidence of last week's Sardegna Open title, beat Jaume Munar in three sets to set up a home-clay rematch with sixth seed Alex De Minaur. Tomas Machac dispatched Stefanos Tsitsipas in straight sets, exposing the backhand frailty that continues to define the Greek's decline, while Alexander Blockx shook off a slow start to back up his stunning Madrid semi-final run. Daniel Altmaier saved two match points to earn an all-German clash with second seed Alexander Zverev. Friday's second round brings the heavyweight names - Novak Djokovic returns from a shoulder injury to face qualifier Dino Prizmic, Zverev and Musetti begin their campaigns.
Arnaldi carries Sardegna momentum into Rome
Wildcard Matteo Arnaldi made the most of his Rome opportunity, defeating Jaume Munar 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 in two hours and 33 minutes to reach the second round. The 25-year-old from Sanremo, fresh off winning the ATP Challenger event in Cagliari last week, played with an attacking intent that reflected his renewed confidence - pushing Munar off the baseline with sharp angle changes and aggressive forehand accelerations. Seven double faults made the scoreline closer than it needed to be, and a flat spell early in the second set allowed Munar to level the match with a 12-3 run of points. But Arnaldi responded with courage in the decider, breaking decisively at 3-2 with a forehand down the line that was his most effective shot all afternoon, then serving out the match with a well-executed serve and volley. The Italian, who has been battling a right foot injury that disrupted the start of his 2026 season, admitted he is not yet at full fitness but said he can feel the work paying off. He faces sixth seed Alex de Minaur next - a rematch of their 2024 Australian Open meeting, this time on Arnaldi's home clay.
Altmaier saves match points to set up Zverev clash
Daniel Altmaier produced the most dramatic escape of the men's first round, saving two match points against Zhizhen Zhang before completing a 4-6, 7-6(3), 6-4 comeback. The German found himself serving at 4-5, 15-40 in the second set after dropping the opener, but held his nerve to force a tiebreak which he controlled convincingly. Altmaier fired 11 aces across the match and was under pressure throughout - he faced 19 serve pressure points to 15 created on return - yet found a way to stay in it through sheer serving quality. The victory was his first ATP Masters 1000 match win of the 2026 season, and his reward is a second-round meeting with compatriot and second seed Alexander Zverev.
Machac eliminates struggling Tsitsipas
Tomas Machac continued his recent momentum with a convincing 6-4, 7-6(4) victory over Stefanos Tsitsipas, extending the Greek's miserable 2026 season. The match laid bare the familiar weakness that continues to define Tsitsipas's decline - his forehand was excellent, producing 20 winners to just 11 unforced errors, but his backhand was a liability throughout, contributing zero winners against 14 unforced errors. Machac exploited this ruthlessly, targeting the backhand and dominating behind his own serve - he won an exceptional 91% of first serve points, a figure that owed as much to Tsitsipas's woeful returning as it did to serving quality. The Czech had a wobble serving out the match in the second set, but recovered composure in the tiebreak where his record now stands at an impressive 6-2 over the past 12 months. For Tsitsipas, ranked around 80th and winless in three of four clay-court first-round matches this season, the trajectory is alarming - the former world number three has a 12-11 record in main draw matches of 2026 and faces serious questions about whether his one-handed backhand can remain viable at this level without significant tactical adjustment. Machac faces seventh seed Daniil Medvedev in the second round - a matchup that could go in almost any direction on clay.
Blockx finds his range after slow start
Alexander Blockx found that backing up a breakthrough run is never straightforward. The Belgian, who stunned the tennis world last week by reaching the Madrid semi-finals as a qualifier - beating three top-20 players including defending champion Casper Ruud in the quarter-finals - looked rusty against Italian wildcard Federico Cina and dropped the opening set 6-4. Cina played a sharp first set that showed his quality, but once Blockx found his rhythm in the second the outcome was rarely in doubt. The 20-year-old's serve, the weapon that powered his Madrid run, came alive with 12 aces across the match, and he converted five of 13 break point opportunities while winning 18 of 24 serve pressure points. He acknowledged afterwards that adjusting from the high altitude in Madrid to Rome's sea-level conditions proved trickier than expected, and that repositioning himself closer to the baseline in the second set was the key adjustment. He faces 29th seed Tallon Griekspoor in the second round.
Friday's second round preview
Seeded players come to play on Friday after traditionally getting byes in the opening round. Bottom half of the draw starts the round of 64 with a few compelling match-ups including top starts of men's draw at Foro Italico. The comeback of Novak Djokovic after caring the shoulder injury is a headline of the day. The sport's legend faces a tricky start against Dino Prizmic. The 20 years-old Croatian has already delivered a big upset in Madrid, defeating Ben Shelton at the same stage. Prizmic carries lot of success on Challenger level at clay surface, having 37-9 record on red dirt at all levels in last 52 weeks. Alexander Zverev plays the all-German mathc against Daniel Altmaier, looking forward another deep run after the final achieved in Madrid.
N. Djokovic (3) vs. D. Prizmic (Q) match preview
A. Zverev (2) vs. D. Altmaier match preview
The new Spanish star will try to keep the rising curve, being seeded in ATP 1000 tournament for the first time in his career, as Rafael Jodar takes on Nuno Borges, having 12-2 record on clay in 2026 including the maiden ATP title in Bucharest and run into quarterfinals on home soil in Madrid. His opponent does not excel this match on clay, but was a quarterfinalist in Barcelona ATP 500. Tomas Machac sets up the clash against 7th seed Daniil Medvedev after aforementioned win over Stefanos Tsitsipas, denying the next chapter of sparkling rivarly between the Russian and the Greek.
R. Jodar (32) vs. N. Borges match preview
D. Medvedev (7) vs. T. Machac match preview
The Italian crowd will especially look forward two matches, as Lorenzo Musetti aims for the first deep run worth his clay courts abilities on home soil. The 8th seed faces the ace bomber Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard who fires 17.7 aces per match on average in 2026. The winner of last week's ATP 175 Sardegna Open in Cagliari - Matteo Arnaldi got wild card into main draw. He made the good use of that so far, defeating Jaume Munar in three sets to set up a clash against 6th seed Alex De Minaur. The Aussie wants to bounce back after slow start to clay courts season, including the beatdown served by Rafael Jodar in first and only one match played in Madrid.