Swiatek battles past Kerber as climate protesters invade courts
Iga Swiatek (22) defeated Angelique Kerber (36) 7-5, 6-3 on Monday at the Rome Open to advance to the quarterfinals, where she will face Madison Keys (29), who defeated Sorana Cirstea (34) despite being interrupted by climate activists.
Swiatek, the world number one, has yet to drop a set and is a favourite for a third Foro Italico title before defending her French Open crown later this month.
The three-time Roland Garros champion arrived in the Italian capital fresh off a thrilling victory in Madrid, her third WTA 1000 title of the season after Indian Wells and Doha.
However, the Pole did not have it all her own way against former world number one Kerber, a three-time Grand Slam champion who, at 331st, was the lowest-ranked player ever to reach the round of 16 in this tournament.
Swiatek battled to the first set in under an hour and was frequently tested by 36-year-old German Kerber, who fell behind after saving five set points in game 10 before dropping the first set two games later.
Kerber led by two in the second set, but Swiatek fought back, and after breaking serve in game eight, she held on to win the match.
Swiatek will face Keys, whose 6-2, 6-1 victory was halted for 30 minutes due to a court invasion by Ultima Generazione activists.
Protesters wearing orange vests threw liquid and confetti onto the Pietrangeli court, where Keys was playing, as well as court 12, which was hosting a men's doubles match.
There were also protestors in the stands, and a tournament spokesman told AFP that at least one person attempted to glue their feet to the floor to slow their removal.
"Obviously it's not the greatest feeling when you're on court, your first reaction is kind of your own safety," said Keys.
"I think maybe banning cementing glue from bags would be a start."
"It's obviously something that's becoming more of an occurence and something that tournaments are going to have to figure out how to stop."
Daniil Medvedev will continue to defend his title against Serbian qualifier Hamad Medjedovic, with the men's tournament wide open after a series of high-profile exits, the most recent being fourth seed Andrey Rublev.
Following Novak Djokovic's early elimination on Saturday, Rome will be missing the world's top three men, with Italian world number two Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz withdrawing before the event.
Russian Rublev, who had just won the Madrid title, was knocked out in the third round by French qualifier Alexandre Muller, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2.
Stefanos Tsitsipas, the sixth seed and reigning Monte Carlo champion, is still in contention after defeating Briton Cameron Norrie in straight sets 6-2, 7-6(1).
Naomi Osaka's return to the Rome Open was ended in the last 16 by China's Zheng Qinwen, who defeated her four-time Grand Slam winner 6-2, 6-4 to set up a last-eight match against third seed Coco Gauff.
Japan's Osaka, who has never won a clay-court title, was playing at the Foro Italico for the first time in three years after taking a break from the tour to have her first child. She is ranked 173 in the world.
"I think I'm happy with my performance in Rome. It's been a while since I played well on - I guess I've never played well on clay - so I guess I'm happy," Osaka told reporters.
Later, Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka will face Elina Svitolina for the first time since their handshake incident at last year's French Open.
Sabalenka, Belarus' second seed, was accused by Ukraine's Svitolina of inflaming tensions surrounding the Russia-Ukraine war following the pair's Roland Garros quarterfinal in 2023.
Sabalenka waited at the net for a handshake after defeating Svitolina, despite Svitolina's earlier insistence that she would not offer one, as all Ukrainian players refused to shake hands with their Russian and Belarussian opponents in protest of the ongoing war.
SportsLigue