Teenage sensation Rafael Jodar secured a place in the Italian Open’s fourth round by defeating Italian wildcard Matteo Arnaldi 6-1, 4-6, 6-3 in his ATP Masters 1000 debut. Despite a strong comeback attempt by Arnaldi, Jodar rallied from a 1-3 deficit in the final set, winning five consecutive games to clinch the victory.
Jodar’s victory, lasting two hours, improved his clay court record to 14-2 in 2026, as per the ATP Win/Loss Index. This successful run included his first ATP Tour title in Marrakech, a semi-final appearance in Barcelona, and a quarter-final finish in Madrid. Reflecting on his win, Jodar expressed his happiness and acknowledged the challenge of facing an Italian opponent in Rome.
In his first appearance as a seeded player on the ATP Tour, Jodar is set to face Learner Tien, the reigning Next Gen ATP Finals champion, in the upcoming match. Tien, who recently defeated Alexander Bublik 4-6, 6-3, 7-5, achieved consecutive wins on the ATP Tour for the first time since his impressive quarter-final run at Indian Wells in March.
In other matches, former world No. 2 Casper Ruud comfortably defeated Czech 11th seed Jiri Lehecka 6-3, 6-4 in a swift 80-minute encounter. Ruud, currently outside the Top 20, aims to capitalize on this opportunity to regain ranking points and momentum ahead of Roland Garros, where he seeks to replicate his past successes.
Meanwhile, Croatian qualifier Dario Prizmic, who caused a stir by defeating Novak Djokovic in the opening round, continued his remarkable journey by overcoming No. 31 seed Ugo Humbert of France 6-1, 7-5.
