Jannik Sinner has marched into the fourth round of the Rome Masters with another ruthless performance, losing just two games in a 6-2, 6-0 demolition of Alexei Popyrin on Monday. The world No. 1 needed only 66 minutes to dispatch the Australian, delighting the home crowd as he continues his quest to conquer the only Masters 1000 title missing from his collection.
From the outset, Sinner signaled his intent. He broke Popyrin’s serve in the opening game and, despite a few early forehand errors, quickly found his rhythm to dominate from start to finish. The Australian offered little resistance on his own serve and had no answers from the baseline against Sinner’s solid, aggressive tennis, which grew increasingly comfortable on the Roman clay.
The first set took just 39 minutes, and the second was even more decisive. Popyrin faded completely, as the top seed strung together games with insulting ease, closing out the victory without conceding a single chance.
“It was quite windy, difficult conditions,” Sinner explained after the match, before thanking the Italian supporters for their constant encouragement.
With this win, the 24-year-old from San Candido has now racked up 30 consecutive Masters 1000 victories, extending a remarkable streak that already includes titles at Paris 2025, Indian Wells, Miami, Monte Carlo, and Madrid. He continues to chase one of his career’s biggest goals: completing the so-called “Career Golden Masters” by winning all nine Masters 1000 events — a feat achieved only by Novak Djokovic.
The absence of Carlos Alcaraz and the early elimination of the Serbian have only strengthened Sinner’s role as the overwhelming favorite in Rome, where Italy dreams of lifting the trophy for the first time since Adriano Panatta’s triumph in 1976.
Sinner’s next opponent will be his compatriot Andrea Pellegrino, one of the tournament’s surprises after eliminating American Frances Tiafoe.
