Emma Raducanu has been drawn to potentially face Solana Sierra or a qualifier in the second round of the Italian Open in Rome as she prepares for her first tournament since March and her first clay-court event this year.
Raducanu returns to the WTA Tour after extending an absence since Indian Wells because of a viral illness. She recently withdrew from the Mutua Madrid Open with a right-hand injury and has yet to play a match on clay this season.
Projected women’s draw
R1 – BYE
R2 – Solana Sierra / qualifier
R3 – Coco Gauff
R4 – Jovic / Bouzkova
QF – Andreeva / Paolini / Mertens
SF – Sabalenka / Anisimova / Bencic / Noskova
F – Rybakina / Swiatek / Svitolina / Pegula
Raducanu, ranked world No. 30, has a bye into round two and will open against Argentina’s world No. 72 Solana Sierra or a qualifier. She would most likely meet reigning French Open champion Coco Gauff in round three, with Madrid finalist Mirra Andreeva the highest-ranked possible quarter-final opponent. World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka is in the same half of the draw as Raducanu.
Last year Raducanu reached the fourth round in Rome before losing to Gauff.
Raducanu spent time training last week in Spain with Andrew Richardson at the Ferrer Tennis Academy near Alicante; Richardson was her coach when she won the US Open as a qualifier. Since splitting from Francisco Roig she has mainly worked with hitting partner Alexis Canter, briefly reunited with Mark Petchey at Indian Wells, and is currently being guided in Rome by childhood coach Jane O’Donoghue.
British Top 5 (May 4)
WTA
1. Emma Raducanu – 30
2. Sonay Kartal – 56
3. Katie Boulter – 60
4. Fran Jones – 101
5. Harriet Dart – 174
ATP
1. Cameron Norrie – 19
2. Jack Draper – 50
3. Jan Choinski – 122
4. Jacob Fearnley – 123
5. Jack Pinnington Jones – 137
British No. 3 Katie Boulter, who reached the quarter-finals in Rouen and won a match in Madrid, opens against Germany’s Eva Lys. Cameron Norrie has started 2026 strongly—third round at the Australian Open, quarter-finals at Indian Wells and Barcelona—regained the British No. 1 ranking and returned to the top 20; he has a first-round bye. Jacob Fearnley, Jan Choinski, Jack Pinnington Jones and Billy Harris are attempting to reach the main draw through qualifying.
Men’s notes
World No. 1 Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic can only meet in the final. Djokovic makes his first appearance since March, when he lost to Jack Draper at Indian Wells. If Sinner wins at the Foro Italico he would join Djokovic as the only men to complete the Career Golden Masters; Djokovic has won all nine ATP Masters 1000 events twice.
Projected men’s quarter-finals by seeding
Sinner vs Shelton
Auger-Aliassime vs Medvedev
Musetti vs Djokovic
De Minaur vs Zverev
When is the Italian Open 2026?
The women’s draw begins Tuesday, May 5, with the men’s starting Wednesday, May 6. The tournament runs through finals weekend on May 16-17. Day sessions start at 10am and evening sessions at 6pm. Live coverage is available on Sky Sports Tennis and via streaming options.