Carlos Alcaraz, Taylor Fritz, Jack Draper, Holger Rune: the list of absentees at the Rome Masters 1000 reads like a who’s who of the top 20. Two days before Monday’s draw, the Foro Italico is losing several marquee names and the bracket is being fundamentally reshaped.
Alcaraz, the defending champion and world number two, will miss his second consecutive clay Masters 1000 after Madrid. His right wrist injury, which forced him out of Barcelona and the Spanish capital, also rules him out of Roland-Garros. Sebastian Ofner takes his spot as a lucky loser.
Fritz, the world number five, is dealing with an unspecified physical issue. Draper has been battling a stubborn knee problem for weeks and has already ruled himself out of Roland-Garros. Rune is sidelined with an Achilles tendon injury. Three major absences that open the door for Zachary Svajda, Hamad Medjedovic and Damir Dzumhur.
On the WTA side, the draw loses Marketa Vondrousova, provisionally suspended by the International Tennis Integrity Agency. The fitness of Cori Gauff and Iga Swiatek, both of whom fell ill in Madrid, remains to be monitored.
Who stands to benefit? Jannik Sinner, the top seed and natural favourite on Italian soil, should enjoy a lighter draw. Alexander Zverev and Novak Djokovic will round out the top three seeds. Ben Shelton and Felix Auger-Aliassime, seeded fourth and fifth respectively, have a rare window to target the last four.
In the women’s draw, world number one Aryna Sabalenka leads the field. Jasmine Paolini, the defending champion, will play in front of her home crowd with ambitions of retaining her crown. Five men’s wildcards have been awarded to Italians, including Matteo Arnaldi and Luca Nardi, a sign the federation is banking on the depth of its talent pool.
Thirteen players have withdrawn in total, a record for this edition. Monday’s draw will reveal whether the absence of the big guns truly opens the door for outsiders or whether the usual hierarchy reassembles without them.