Supertennis arena

Pablo Llamas Ruiz: Daniil Medvedev received an early boost in his campaign at the Italian Open after Czech player Tomas Machac withdrew from the tournament due to illness on Saturday. The withdrawal, confirmed by the ATP ahead of the day’s play in Rome, handed former champion Medvedev a walkover into the third round without the Russian needing to step onto court.

Machac, currently ranked world No. 53, had been scheduled to face Medvedev in one of the headline second-round contests at the Foro Italico. Instead, the 2023 Rome champion now advances directly and will face the winner of the clash between France’s Corentin Moutet and Spain’s Pablo Llamas Ruiz.

The late withdrawal also forced organisers to make several changes to Saturday’s schedule. Andrey Rublev’s encounter against Serbia’s Miomir Kecmanovic was moved to Centre Court, while the Moutet-Llamas Ruiz fixture was shifted to the Supertennis Arena.