The ATP1000 Rome Masters continued on the second day of main draw action in the early hours of Thursday morning (Beijing time). In a first-round singles clash, Czech standout Tomas Machac defeated Greek star Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-4, 7-6(4), sending the world No. 8 packing at the Foro Italico. Machac, who also beat Tsitsipas at the Australian Open earlier this year, will next face former champion Daniil Medvedev in the second round.
Croatian veteran Marin Cilic also impressed, overpowering American qualifier Brandon Nakashima 7-5, 6-4 to advance. Another Croatian, young Dino Prizmic, eased past Hungarian Marton Fucsovics 6-4, 6-3, setting up a second-round encounter with Novak Djokovic. The two previously met at the 2024 Australian Open, where Djokovic prevailed in four sets.
In other first-round results: Peruvian Juan Pablo Varillas defeated home favorite Lorenzo Sonego 6-3, 6-3 to set up a meeting with Frances Tiafoe; local Matteo Berrettini beat Argentine Juan Manuel Cerundolo 6-4, 6-4 to face 24th seed Tomas Martin Etcheverry; Madrid semifinalist Belgian Alexander Blockx battled past Italian Stefano Travaglia 4-6, 6-1, 6-3 to meet Dutch No. 1 Tall
