Iga Swiatek Marches On in Rome, Madison Keys Next
World No. 1 Iga Swiatek continued her impressive run at the Italian Open, defeating Angelique Kerber in straight sets to reach the quarterfinals. The two-time Rome champion needed eight set points to secure the opener, but then cruised to a 7-5, 6-3 victory over the German veteran.
Swiatek’s next opponent will be Madison Keys, after the American player eased past Sorana Cirstea 6-2, 6-1. However, Keys’ match was temporarily suspended due to an environmental protest, with two protesters jumping onto the court and throwing confetti, while others glued themselves to the stands.
“As soon as I saw them come over the barrier, my first thought was like, ‘Should I go tackle one of them?’ But I stopped myself,” Keys said. “And then the chair (umpire) started yelling at me to go sit down.”
Despite the interruption, Keys was able to regain her focus and advance to the quarterfinals, setting up a repeat of last week’s Madrid Open semifinal against Swiatek.
In other action:
- Third-seeded Coco Gauff rallied to beat Paula Badosa 5-7, 6-4, 6-1.
- Both of the Madrid finalists were eliminated from the men’s tournament:
- Fourth-seeded Andrey Rublev was upset by French qualifier Alexandre Muller.
- Madrid runner-up Felix Auger-Aliassime was beaten by ninth-seeded Alex De Minaur.
Defending champion and second seed Daniil Medvedev was also in action, facing Serbian qualifier Hamad Medjedovic.
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