The Rome Masters continues on Monday and this is the last big week on the Tour before the French Open.
Players will take part in events next week, but the majority of the top names will feel that the groundwork has been laid ahead of the second Grand Slam of the season.
Some of the leading contenders on both the ATP and WTA Tours are still going strong in Rome, which is an event played in conditions much more familiar to those who will be playing in Paris compared with the Madrid Masters. Personally it has also felt like the Rome Masters is more of an indicative tournament as to the kind of successes that could be had in Paris and could form part of a staking plan.
The opening selections from the tournament both came through in largely comfortable fashion and on Monday there are three Picks that can be read below.
Coco Gauff - 4.5 games v Iva Jovic: Two American players meet in the Fourth Round in Rome and the experience of Coco Gauff should be a telling factor in the outcome of the contest.
There is no doubting the excitement around Iva Jovic and the potential she has, but the 18 year old is still going to be learning her trade on the clay courts. That is especially the case at this level having reached the French Open Doubles Final in her time in the Junior ranks, while Iva Jovic has only had one win against a player Ranked higher than Number 47 on the surface this season.
The two wins in Rome have been against compatriots, but neither McCartney Kessler nor Taylor Townsend can bring the credentials that Coco Gauff takes onto the court.
Coco Gauff is the defending French Open Champion and she has been amongst the best clay courters in the world on the WTA Tour.
Vulnerabilities remain with the second serve, but Gauff is very comfortable on the surface and she has won at least 50% of return points played on clay courts since the beginning of the 2024 season. That puts a huge amount of pressure on any opponent she faces and Iva Jovic is still going to be working on the serve and how to make the best use of that shot on this surface compared to the hard courts.
Every one of these kind of matches will help Jovic develop, but Coco Gauff should have enough to remind everyone of her threat to win the French Open again by producing a strong, solid win on Monday.
Mirra Andreeva - 4.5 games v Elise Mertens: This portion of the clay court season is relatively short and so you can't always take numbers being produced by players on their own without any context.
Someone like Elise Mertens has been playing well all season and has the kind of tennis that should work on all surfaces- she has previously had solid runs on the clay courts and so has to be respected.
However, the numbers from the six matches played on the surface this season are so much higher than previous years that you do have to wonder if she can maintain current levels. Elise Mertens has beaten home favourite Jasmine Paolini in her run to the Fourth Round in Rome, but Paolini has been struggling for consistency and this match is against a player that has really strong clay court form since she joined the Tour.
Mirra Andreeva lost in the Madrid Final at the last 1000 tournament, but she has won a clay court title in 2026 and reached the Semi Final in Stuttgart at another big event.
The 19 year old now has an 82-19 career record on the clay and Mirra Andreeva has not been slowed down by taking part in the bigger events on the Tour.
The serve continues to be an important weapon for Mirra Andreeva, although she has to be working on her return to take the next step on this surface. Her best Grand Slam results have been at the French Open where she has reached the Semi Final and the Quarter Final in the last couple of years, but Andreeva knows that is when you need to step up even more if wanting a place in the Final and then to pick up the title in Paris.
The World Number 22 will cause problems, but the Elise Mertens second serve can become vulnerable and that may be the edge that helps Mirra Andreeva win outright and perhaps narrowly cover this spread.
Andrey Rublev - 1.5 games v Alejandro Davidovich Fokina: You cannot ignore the fact that both of these players can be pretty erratic on the court, but the lack of recent tennis played by Alejandro Davidovich Fokina has to be a factor.
He does have a terrible record against Andrey Rublev, but the last clay court meeting ended in a win for Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in Barcelona last year.
The Spaniard had not played since the Miami Masters and went 1-1 in Madrid at the last tournament, while Davidovich Fokina has already won a match here in Rome. However, it is a considerable challenge against someone like Andrey Rublev who reached the Final in Barcelona in April and who has long been pretty comfortable on the clay courts.
A lack of match competitiveness cannot be ignored, while Andrey Rublev holds wins over Alejandro Davidovich Fokina at the Madrid Masters and Rome Masters in previous years.
Over the last twelve months, there have been signs that Andrey Rublev is getting back to something like his best tennis and he can battle through this Third Round match.
MY PICKS: Coco Gauff - 4.5 Games @ 1.80 William Hill (1 Unit)
Mirra Andreeva - 4.5 Games @ 1.91 William Hill (1 Unit)
Andrey Rublev - 1.5 Games @ 1.80 William Hill (1 Unit)
Rome Update: 2-0, + 1.57 Units (2 Units Staked, + 78.50% Yield)
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