Rome: Top men’s seed Novak Djokovic advanced to the final of the Italian Open for the 10th time on Sunday with a straight sets win over Casper Ruud.

The world number one came through 7-5, 6-3 to advance to the final of the clay-court tournament he has won four times.

Djokovic will also bid for a record 36th Masters title on Sunday, being currently tied on 35 with Rafael Nadal who fell in the quarter-finals. The 33-year-old plays Argentine eighth-seed Diego Schwartzman in the finals.

Schrwartzman shocked nine-time Rome winner Nadal, the two-time defending champion on Saturday, in the tune-up event ahead of the French Open in Roland Garros.

Djokovic was pushed in his first meeting with 34th-ranked Ruud, but knew how to tighten his game at key moments of an intense match, to the delight of the fans.

For the first time on Sunday a maximum of 1,000 people were authorised in the stands at Foro Italico.

Halep reaches her third final

Top seed Simona Halep ousted Spaniard Garbine Muguruza in three sets to advance to her third final at the Italian Open on Sunday, played on front of a small number of spectators for the first time.

The Romanian dropped her second set on clay in Rome before seeing off Muguruza 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 in a battle of former French Open champions before Roland Garros in a week’s time.

Halep — the 2018 French Open winner — will play Czech defending champion Karolina Pliskova, the second seed in the final.

Halep, 28, has finished runner-up in her two previous finals at the Foro Italico in 2017 and 2018.

Ninth seed Spaniard Garbine Muguruza, the 2016 Roland Garros champion, fell to her fourth semi-final defeat in Rome, the furthest she has gone in the tournament.

Wimbledon champion Halep extended her winning streak this season to 13 consecutive victories.

She won the Dubai title in February, before the coronavirus lockdown, coming back to claim victory in Prague last month having skipped the US Open.

SCHEDULE

Today’s Matches (Sept. 21)
Women’s Singles – Finals
1 Simona Halep Vs 2 Karolína Plíšková 6 pm (IST)
Men’s Singles – Finals
1 Novak Djokovic Vs 8 Diego Schwartzman 8.30 pm
Catch live actions on Sony