Jasmine Paolini secured her second Masters 1000 title in Rome after emerging victorious in the Italian Open final.
Paolini defeated Coco Gauff in straight sets to hold the trophy aloft on Campo Centrale, becoming just the second Italian in the Open Era to win the women’s singles tournament.
The champion not only broke the long dry spell for her home nation with the victory, but also entered an exclusive club alongside a tennis legend, as Paolini joined Serena Williams to become the second player to win the women’s singles title at the Italian Open after turning 29.
With a successful clay swing so far, Paolini now shifts her focus to Roland Garros, which former US Open champion Andy Roddick thinks she has a shot at.
Andy Roddick says Jasmine Paolini is the ‘real deal’ after winning the Italian Open
Weighing up the Italian’s chances at Roland Garros on the Tennis Channel Live Podcast, Roddick said: “She is in there on the shortlist of contenders. I think it is going to be a match-up based.”
“Is the second serve going to be able to stand up against a Madi Keys or a Sabalenka? Someone who can really bruise her off of that wing.”
“But let’s put this in perspective. Roll back the clock 12 months. Paolini has a breakout at the French Open, a very unexpected finalist at that point. Got hot in the Middle East in the early part of next year. And carried that momentum through the French Open.”
“If I were to ask you Steve and Jim, Swiatek vs Paolini in the final and Swiatek wins, who is going to be ranked higher 12 months from now we would have gone Swiatek 12 out of 12 times. No questions asked.”
“Props to her for proving all of us wrong. We thought it was a nice story, a nice run. She’s the real deal. She is here to stay.”
Jasmine Paolini’s breakthrough on the WTA Tour in her late 20s
Before turning 28 in January last year, Paolini had never made the top 15 in the WTA rankings.
That all changed at the Dubai Tennis Championships in 2024, where she defeated Anna Kalinskaya in the final to clinch a maiden WTA 1000 title.
In the same season, the Italian went on to make two Grand Slam finals, reaching the last stage of both Roland Garros and Wimbledon.
Paolini then struck gold at the Paris Olympics, winning the doubles event alongside compatriot Sara Errani.
With her triumph over Gauff, she now moves to number four in the world, surpassing Iga Swiatek in the rankings, whom she lost to in the French Open final last year.
Receive exclusive tennis news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
