Alexander Zverev (Photo by Takeo Tanuma)
At the BNL Italy International (ATP Masters 1000, Rome), third-seeded Alexander Zverev of Germany, ranked world No. 3, secured a straight-sets victory over Belgium’s Alexander Blockx (world No. 36) with scores of 6-1, 6-4 in the men’s singles third round on May 10, booking his spot in the round of 16.
The match was a rematch from last week’s Mutua Madrid Open semifinal, where the two had also clashed. In the first set, Zverev showcased remarkable control, posting eight winners against three from Blockx and limiting his unforced errors to six (compared to Blockx’s ten). He took the set in just 29 minutes. In the second set, Zverev held onto his early lead and cruised to victory, reaching the round of 16 for the eighth time and sixth consecutive year without trouble.
During the post-match press conference, Zverev said, “I felt much better than two days ago. The wind was extremely strong, making it difficult to play beautiful tennis from the baseline, but today I was efficient. I’m happy to win in straight sets.”
Regarding the 21-year-old Blockx, Zverev praised him as “a very dynamic player with power and a promising future.” However, he also emphasized his own mindset as a top player: “If you don’t constantly improve, you only fall behind.”
In the fourth round, Zverev will face Luciano Darderi (Italy, world No. 20), the 18th seed, who came back from a set down to upset 16th seed Tommy Paul (USA, world No. 18).
Meanwhile, 20-year-old Dino Prizmic of Croatia (world No. 79), who stunned Novak Djokovic in the previous round, defeated 31st seed Ugo Humbert of France (world No. 33) with a confident performance, 6-1, 7-5, reaching the fourth round of a Masters 1000 event for the first time and climbing to world No. 68 in the live rankings.
23rd seed Casper Ruud of Norway (world No. 25) defeated 11th seed Jiří Lehečka of the Czech Republic (world No. 13) 6-3, 6-4, extending his winning streak against Lehečka to three matches. Ruud, who has reached the semifinals three times at this event that suits him well, aims to return to the top 20. Next, he will face eighth seed Lorenzo Musetti of Italy (world No. 10), who survived a tight battle against Francisco Cerúndolo of Argentina (world No. 27).