Alexander Zverev booked his place in the fourth round of the Italian Open with a comfortable win over Alexander Blockx.
Just over a week after their maiden clash at the Madrid Open, Zverev made it 2-0 in the head-to-head against the 21-year-old Belgian, beating him in straight sets, 6-1, 6-4.
The German, seeded second in Rome, has made at least the semifinals of each ATP Masters 1000 tournament this year, and has a favourable route to the final four once again.
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Zverev came through his opening match at the Italian Open against Daniel Altmaier while suffering from an illness, having still managed to win in straight sets over his compatriot.
Versus Blockx, it was clear from the first set that the world number three was feeling better, which he confirmed after the match.
Alexander Zverev speaks after beating Alexander Blockx in Rome
Asked for an update on his fitness in his on-court interview, Zverev said: “Yeah, better.
“I think you can still hear it by my voice. I’m a little bit sick, but I’m much better than I was two days ago and very happy about that.
“I got my energy back, and yeah, definitely a much better match today. I think it was difficult to play pretty tennis from the baseline today because it was very, very windy, and the conditions were not easy,
“But overall, I’m generally happy with the win today,” concluded Zverev who has won the Italian Open twice before.
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Observing Zverev’s performance from the stands was six-time major champion Stefan Edberg, one of the best volleyers of his generation.
Zverev, whose next game has been solid recently, hit a perfectly weighted volley in the second set, which Edberg was visibly impressed by.
“Yeah, when I saw him, I had to maybe think about doing something special, and I did a very special shot for me,” said Zverev.
“I mean, maybe if Carlos had been on the court, everybody would think it was normal, but for me, it’s not normal.
“Yeah, look, I think overall, again, happy with the match, happy with the performance and happy to be through.”
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With Jannik Sinner on the other half of the draw and no Novak Djokovic or Carlos Alcaraz to contend with, Zverev has a promising path to the final.
Should he get there, Zverev will have made back-to-back ATP Masters 1000 finals for the first time since 2018.
That year, he won the Madrid Open and reached the final of the Italian Open, but has not managed to advance to consecutive title bouts ever since.
Having finished as the runner-up in Madrid recently, Zverev now has a chance to finally end that streak.
Zverev has not hoisted an ATP Masters 1000 trophy since the Paris Masters in 2024.
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