Elena Rybakina got her Italian Open campaign off to a blistering start after she overpowered Maria Sakkari in one hour and 16 minutes to reach the third round. 

The second seed was playing in her first match since her round of 16 defeat to Anastasia Potapova at the Madrid Open, but she was back to her best in her 6-4 6-1 win on Friday.

Rybakina set the tone for her victory by getting the better of Sakkari's serve in the opening game of the match as she quickly raced into a commanding 3-1 advantage. 

But Sakkari battled back with a break of her own in the sixth game to level things up, only for Rybakina to return the favour before closing out the set with a love service game. 

And from there, Rybakina wasted little time in setting up a clash with Alexandra Eala in the next round, as she advanced with a huge forehand that was returned into the net. 

Light Work for Lena

Elena Rybakina cruises past Sakkari in straight sets.#IBI26 pic.twitter.com/7mAcnhNX8u

— wta (@WTA) May 8, 2026

Rybakina will be joined in the next round by Naomi Osaka, who overcame a stern test from Eva Lys to win 6-4 4-6 6-3 and tee up a meeting with Diana Shnaider next. 

Madison Keys was also pushed the distance in order to reach the third round in Rome by compatriot Peyton Stearns, but she too prevailed in three sets with a 4-6 6-4 6-2 win. 

It was, however, smooth sailing for fifth seed Jessica Pegula, who needed just over an hour to defeat Turkiye's Zeynep Sonmez 6-4 6-0. 

Data Debrief: Rybakina back in the groove on clay

Since the start of the 2020 season, only Iga Swiatek, Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff have claimed more WTA-level match wins on clay than Rybakina's 61, and she will be keen to put things right after a shock early exit in Madrid. 

Rybakina (65.8%, 25-14), also only trails Swiatek, Sabalenka and Serena Williams (minimum 20 matches) for win rate against WTA-1000 champions since the format's introduction in 2009. 

But her quality against the serve has been key this season. Only Mirra Andreeva (165) has broken serve on more occasions than Rybakina (127) at WTA level so far in 2026.