Quarterfinals in Rome: The Viking challenges Sinner

Now things are getting serious for Jannik Sinner. A true clay-court specialist, who's also in top form, awaits in Thursday's quarterfinals.

15 May 2025

From: do

A visit to the Pope, Watching the Coppa Italia final Between his favorite club, Milan, and Bologna: Jannik Sinner is back in the spotlight – and not just on the tennis court. Besides these little outings, the Sextner still has a tournament to play. The 1000-year-old will compete in the quarterfinals of the Masters 23 in Rome on Thursday at 19 p.m. on his way to a possible tournament victory in his comeback event after the suspension.

On his journey to the top eight in the Eternal City, Sinner has so far beaten Mariano Navone, Jesper De Jong, and Francisco Cerundolo without dropping a set – opponents who didn't scare the world number one. But now the South Tyrolean faces one of the best clay-court players on the planet, who is also in excellent form.

Jannik Sinner is the big favorite. © ANSA / FABIO FRUSTACI

Casper Ruud has been among the world's best tennis players for years, has already reached three Grand Slam finals – twice at the French Open and once at the US Open – and a few days ago won his first 1000-game ATP Tour title. The Norwegian defeated Jack Draper in three sets in Madrid – confirming his reputation as a clay court artist.

Advantage Sinner

The Viking and the South Tyrolean have faced each other three times so far – all three matches clearly went to Sinner, but all of these encounters took place on hard courts, twice in Vienna and once at the ATP Finals last September. This will be the first time the two have met on Ruud's preferred surface, which, combined with his strong form, should give the Norwegian a considerable amount of confidence.