Swiatek takes center stage on action-packed Monday

Hope may have stirred briefly in the hearts of those remaining at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia on Sunday when Lesia Tsurenko captured the first two games of her match with top-ranked No.1 Iga Swiatek.

Just as swiftly it would have flamed out, for Swiatek won the last dozen games to advance to Monday’s Round of 16.

“After a pretty rusty start, I was able to break back pretty quickly, so I’m happy that I played a solid game,” Swiatek told reporters later.

That “rusty” beginning was the only hiccup she’s experienced so far in Rome. For the record, Swiatek won her other three sets 6-0 -- and now has a Hologic WTA Tour-leading 10 shutout sets for the still-young season. The two-time defending champion has also won 13 consecutive matches at the Italian Open, joining Chris Evert, Conchita Martinez, Gabriela Sabatini, Maria Sharapova and Serena Williams.

With the Nos. 2-6 seeds all out, Swiatek looms as an even larger favorite than usual.

She will be part of eight high-profile matches in play on Monday, featuring three Czech Republic players, an all-South American and a China vs. China matchup as well. Five of the 16 competitors are unseeded.

Top half

No.1 Iga Swiatek vs. No.21 Donna Vekic

Vekic defeated No.16 Liudmila Samsonova 2-6, 7-6 (5), 6-2 in the final third-round match, which concluded after 10 p.m. local time.

Swiatek is now 60-17 in WTA 1000 events and into her fifth Round of 16 -- only Caroline Wozniacki reached this destination more times before her 22^nd birthday. Swiatek holds a 3-0 record against Vekic, but this is their first meeting on clay.

No.7 Elena Rybakina vs. Marketa Vondrousova

Rybakina advanced when Anna Kalinskaya retired 35 minutes into the match after trailing 4-3.Vondrousova was a 7-5, 6-3 winner over No.9 seed Maria Sakkari.

Vondrousova won the only previous match between them, in straight sets, two years ago in Moscow.

No.8 Daria Kasatkina vs. No.20 Jelena Ostapenko

Down 5-1 in the first set, Ostapenko staged an unlikely (and ultimately masterful)  escape to defeat No.10 Barbora Krejcikova 7-6 (2), 6-0 in a match between two former Roland Garros champions. This is familiar ground for the 25-year-old Latvian. She reached the round of 16 in Rome for the fourth time in eight years.

Kasatkina was a 7-5, 4-6, 7-6 (2) winner over Julia Grabher. Ostapenko leads the head-to-head series 4-2, with the last two wins coming on the grass in 2021. On clay, however, it’s 1-all.

“She’s a good player,” Ostapenko said of Kasatkina, “but I always have focus more on myself. I played the second set really well, so I will try to bring that level tomorrow.”

Paula Badosa vs. Karolina Muchova

Badosa, who was ranked a career-high No.2 a year ago, defeated No.32 Marta Kostyuk 6-4, 6-2. Muchova was a winner over Italians Martina Trevisan and Camila Giorgi back-to-back.

Muchova won their only previous match, in straight sets, in the Round of 16 two years ago at Wimbledon.

Bottom half

No.27 Marie Bouzkova vs. No.11 Veronika Kudermetova

Bouzkova had Sunday’s upset of the day, a 4-6, 6-2, 6-2 win over No. 6 Coco Gauff. She’s on the top line in the bottom half that has seen the departures of No.2 Aryna Sabalenka, No.3 Jessica Pegula, No.5 Caroline Garcia and No.6 Coco Gauff.

Kudermetova won by a 7-5, 3-6, 6-1 count over No.23 Anastasia Potapova. The head-to-head is two-all, going back to 2015.

“I expect a tough match,” Bouzkova said. “She’s a big hitter. I just have to grind it out like I did today.”

No.12 Beatriz Haddad Maia vs. Camila Osorio

Osorio, a qualifier ranked No.100, is the lowest-ranked player left in the tournament and coming off a breakthrough victory.

In heavy conditions favorable to her game, Osorio upset No.5 seed Caroline Garcia 6-4, 6-4, her best win by ranking for the 21-year-old player from Colombia.

“I’ve been training and working hard to get this victory,” said Osorio, who saved a match point in her first-round victory over Varvara Gracheva. “I’m so thankful and happy and proud.”

It was her first Top 10 win of the season, after falling to Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka, and only the second in eight career matches. This is her first berth in a WTA 1000 Round of 16.

Haddad Maia, meanwhile, defeated No.17 Magda Linette 7-5, 6-4. This is the first time two South Americans have faced off in the Round of 16 (or beyond) in a WTA 1000 event, going back to 2009.

These two have never played.

No. 19 Madison Keys vs. No.30 Anhelina Kalinina

After Sofia Kenin knocked off No.2 seed Aryna Sabalenka, Kalinina took down Kenin 6-4, 6-2. Keys advanced when No.14 seed Victoria Azarenka withdrew with a right leg injury.

Kalinina holds a 2-0 career advantage over Keys, including last year’s 6-4, 6-4 win in Rome.

No.22 Zheng Qinwen vs. Wang Xiyu

Here’s an all-China matchup, the first at a WTA 1000 since Qiang Wang defeated Yafan Wang in Miami four years ago.

Zheng was a 7-6 (2), 6-4 winner over qualifier Anna Bondar . Wang, who defeated No.31 seed Irina-Camelia Begu in the second round, defeated qualifier Taylor Townsend 6-2, 0-6, 7-5.

Zheng won their only previous match, last year’s Valencia 125 final, in three sets.

“[Wang] plays really aggressive tennis,” Zheng said. “She’s a lefty which gives her advantage on serve. She plays really good, a great player. I’ll need to go all out playing against her.”