Paula Badosa will be hoping that Rome sees her finally return to form after beginning the tournament with an impressive win over Mirra Andreeva. She eased past the highly rated Russian, punishing her on return through out the 6-2 6-3 win. She is just 7-9 on the season, having struggled following a back injury that cut her 2023 season early.
It was a tidy performance throughout from the Spaniard, who hit 23 winners to just 13 unforced errors. She will want to get back to making news on the tennis court as opposed to off it, following the end of her relationship with Stefanos Tsitsipas. A good run of results is going to be necessary for the former No.2, who came into this event well outside the Top 100.
Shelby Rogers and Angelique Kerber were amongst the other high profile winners on Tuesday. Magdalena Frech booked a second round date with Coco Gauff but the other Top 4 players will need to wait until Wednesday to see who their first opponents will be. Often a struggler on clay, Naomi Osaka will also play on Wednesday with Clara Burel likely to fancy her chances against the former No.1.
