Cameron Norrie has been knocked out of the Italian Open in Rome after a commanding performance by Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas, who secured a 6-2 7-6 (7-1) victory. Tsitsipas showcased his superior skills in the opening set, breaking Norrie twice and dominating with his exquisite drop-shots, powerful forehand winners, and rocket serves. In the second set, Tsitsipas continued to display his dominance by taking an early lead, although Norrie displayed resilience by breaking back and forcing a tie-break. Despite Norrie’s efforts, Tsitsipas secured a one-sided victory in the tie-break, finishing with a 7-1 win through a forehand winner.
Following this impressive win, Tsitsipas is set to face Australian Alex de Minaur in the Italian Open quarter-finals. De Minaur displayed his own resilience by coming from a set down to defeat Canada’s Felix Auger-Aliassime with a score of 6-7 6-4 6-4 earlier on Monday, securing his place in the next round.
Interestingly, World No 6 Andrey Rublev, the Madrid Open champion earlier this month, experienced an unexpected exit from the tournament, losing to French qualifier Alexandre Muller with a score of 3-6 6-3 6-2.
Moreover, climate protesters caused disruptions during the matches on Monday, leading to the suspension of several games. This included the last-16 match between Madison Keys and Sorana Cirstea on the women’s side of the draw. Environmental protest group Ultima Generazione’s members entered the court, wearing orange vests and throwing confetti, while other activists glued themselves to the stands. This led to a statement on the Italian Open website expressing displeasure and acknowledging the police and firefighters’ intervention.
A statement on the Italian Open website read: “With the public very angry against the demonstrators, the police officers and firefighters also arrived.
“One of the demonstrators had moved onto the lawn under the big screen of (Court) Pietrangeli. He was taken away by the police.”
Additionally, protestors interrupted play on Court 12, where a second-round doubles match between Santiago Gonzalez and Edouard Roger-Vasselin and Marcelo Arevalo and Mate Pavic was underway. This series of events brought unexpected interruptions to the tournament, creating challenges for both players and event organizers.
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