Zverev steps up title defence

Alexander Zverev carried his title defence at the Rome Masters into the closing sprint as the German posted a 6-4, 6-0 defeat of Lithuanian qualifier Vilius Gubas on Sunday.

“I have total respect for qualifiers,” Zverev said. “It was a long time ago but I’ve been there myself. He’s playing great tennis.

The winner said that wind which bothered players in the opening set became less of a problem.

“At the start it was windy but it calmed down,” said the winner who broke his 154th-ranked opponent six times.

The second seed booked a place in the fourth round and a meeting with Frenchman Arthur Fils, who won a bad-tempered contest over Stefanos Tsitsipas 2-6, 6-4, 6-2.

The pair had words at the net post-match with Fils claiming Tsitsipas took shots at his body during the match. The issue was apparently resolved as both men walked to the sidelines looking relatively calm.

Another French player, Corentin Moutet, won a marathon over ninth seed Holger Rune after playing for nearly four hours, 7-5, 5-7, 7-6 (4).