Cameron Norrie advances at the Italian Open to prepare for Novak Djokovic’s round of 16 clash

Cameron Norrie set up a round of 16 clash with Novak Djokovic at the Italian Open thanks to a 6-2, 7-6(4) win over Marton Fucsovics.

The British number one looked headed for an outright triumph as he won the first set with minimal fuss and then took a 5-1 lead in the second, only for his Hungarian opponent to rally 5-5.

However, Norrie overcame the ensuing tiebreaker, 7-4, and will next face Djokovic after the world number one continued his winning streak by beating Grigor Dimitrov 6-3 4-6 6-1.

The Serb had a tough test with the Bulgarian, who, having been 3-1 down in the second set, broke twice to force the decider, but the top seed and defending champion rallied to watch the match convincingly.

“(I was) very solid. I think he could have won in straight sets,” Djokovic, a 22-time Grand Slam winner, told the ATP website.

“I was up a set and 4-2 and I had a pretty decent forehand down the middle of the court at deuce on his serve and I missed that.

“He held his serve well, we had new balls in the next game, I double-faulted, the crowd got in and supported him and of course the energy of the venue and the match changed.

“My level went down a bit but luckily I managed to find it right away in the first game (of the third set), made that crucial break and it kind of shifted the momentum to my side, so I’m very pleased with the way I did it. . I closed the game.”

Russian world number three Daniil Medvedev earned his first tournament win with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Finn Emil Ruusuvuori and expressed his relief to finally win a match in Rome.

“We can talk about all the matches I lost here, they were different,” Medvedev told the ATP website after reaching the third round.

“The first one, I feel like I should have won, but it is (what it is). Every time I come to a tournament, I know I can play well, so I’m happy to finally get the win here in Rome.”

Denmark’s Holger Rune continued his hot run with a 6-4, 6-2 win against Andy Murray’s conqueror Fabio Fognini, while Norway’s world number four Casper Ruud defeated Alexander Bublik 6-1 , 4-6, 7-6 (0).

In the women’s event, defending champion Iga Swiatek squeezed into the round of 16 with a comfortable victory over Lesia Tsurenko.

The world number one continued her strong start to the tournament, posting a 6-2, 6-0 success, and was pleased with another strong performance.

“Of course, after quite a rusty start, I was able to recover quite quickly, so I’m happy to have played a solid game,” he said in his post-match press conference.

“Just to have another experience playing Center Court… and I’m glad it wasn’t raining!”

Czech Marie Bouzkova stunned Coco Gauff in their last 32 meeting, prevailing 4-6, 6-2, 6-2 to oust the sixth-seeded American, while Madison Keys advanced to the last 16 after she her opponent Victoria Azarenka will retire due to a leg injury. injury.