On the third day of the Italian Open, a former world No.1 and a rising star both impressed in Rome.
Maria Sharapova kicked-off her campaign with a three sets win over 16th seed Ashleigh Barty. This week the Russian, who reached the quarter-finals in Madrid, has returned back into the top 40 for the first time since returning from a doping suspension. Following her match, Sharapova talked about practising with Rafael Nadal and if she would like to one day do the same with Roger Federer.
In the men’s draw, Denis Shapovalov battled back from a set down to score a milestone win over Tomas Berdych. The 19-year-old will now overtake Milos Raonic to be the new Canadian No.1 for the first time in his career. Prior to this month, Shapovalov had only won one tour match on the clay. Now he has won seven following his run to the Madrid quarter-finals. He will take on Robin Haase in the second round.
