Italian Open: Novak Djokovic defeated Aslan Karatsev, Cameron Norrie wins in Rome
Novak Djokovic wins his Italian Open second-round match against Russian Aslan Karatsev
Italian Open: Novak Djokovic enters Round 3Djokovic continued his preparations for his defense of the French Open with a comfortable win over Karatsev. The Grand Slam champion has played only a few tournaments this year owing to his unvaccinated status.
Djokovic played well and delivered perfect shots despite not being in his best form. More formidable challenges are about to be faced by Djokovic as he plans to retain his number one ranking by entering the Rome semi-finals. The 20-time Grand Slam winner will then face fellow Serb Laslo Djere or Swiss three-time major champion Stan Wawrinka, who secured his first tour match in 15 months on Monday, in the last 16. The Masters 1000 event in the Italian capital will conclude on Sunday, a week before the French Open starts at Roland Garros.
British number one Cameron Norrie puts up an impressive show.
British number one Cameron Norrie beat teenage wildcard Luca Nardi in the first round. The 26-year-old served well and held his ground during crucial moments to win 6-4, 6-4. He had cracked into the world's top 10 for the first time last month and is currently seeded ninth in the Italian capital having had to qualify to reach the main draw last year. 18-year-old Luca gave him a tough time in between, but Norrie, who won 87% of first-serve points, faced two break points in his opening service game before winning.
Norrie was 15-40 down when serving for the first set, but his strong first serve in the following two points pulled the game to a deuce, and he served it out. He broke in the first game of the second set and maintained his early advantage. World number 11 Norrie was beaten in the third round in Madrid last week by eventual champion Carlos Alcaraz. In the second round, the former will face Croatia's 2014 US Open champion Marin Cilic.
Meanwhile, in the women's draw, British number one Emma Raducanu quit the first round due to a back injury which allowed fellow US Open champion Canadian Bianca Andreescu a walk over to the next game.