Rome draw: Swiatek, Rybakina on opposite halves; Andreeva to face Badosa

The 2024 Internazionali BNL d'Italia draw has been released, with No.1 seed Iga Swiatek View Profile on the opposite half of the draw to No.4 and defending champion Elena Rybakina View Profile .
For the second consecutive WTA 1000 event, Swiatek is projected to face No.3 Coco Gauff View Profile in the semifinals, while Rybakina is slated to face No.2 Aryna Sabalenka View Profile at the same stage. At last week's Mutua Madrid Open, Sabalenka edged Rybakina in three sets before falling to Swiatek in a 3-hour, 11-minute final thriller.
The #IBI24 @WTA draw is OUT 👇 pic.twitter.com/MkN1xgBL8c
— Internazionali BNL d'Italia (@InteBNLdItalia) May 6, 2024
Last year, Rybakina and Swiatek met in the quarterfinals, with Swiatek retiring at 2-2 in the third set with a right thigh injury. The pair have met twice this year; Swiatek triumphed 7-6(8), 6-2 in the Doha final, and Rybakina came out on top in the Stuttgart semifinals 6-3, 4-6, 6-3. Rybakina leads the overall head-to-head 5-3.
The Top 32 seeds all receive byes in the 96-player draw. Noteworthy first-round matches include Mirra Andreeva View Profile , 17, facing former World No.2 Paula Badosa View Profile for the first time. Former World No.1s Naomi Osaka View Profile and Angelique Kerber are also unseeded as they continue their comebacks from maternity leave. Osaka faces Clara Burel View Profile , with the winner to meet No.19 seed Marta Kostyuk View Profile . Kerber takes on Lauren Davis View Profile , with the winner to meet No.17 seed Veronika Kudermetova View Profile .
Click here to view the full draw. Here's how the quarters of the draw break down.
First quarter
Swiatek, the champion in Rome in 2021 and 2022, will bid to become the sixth player in the Open Era to lift the trophy three times (following Chris Evert, Gabriela Sabatini, Conchita Martínez, Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova). She will open against either Guadalajara finalist Caroline Dolehide View Profile or a qualifier.
Swiatek is slated to face No.31 seed Sloane Stephens, who won her first red clay title in Rouen two weeks ago, in the third round. In the fourth round, she is projected to meet No.14 seed Ekaterina Alexandrova View Profile , who upset her at the same stage of Miami in March. Potential quarterfinal opponents include Wimbledon champion and No.6 seed Marketa Vondrousova View Profile , 2016 runner-up Madison Keys View Profile , the No.18 see, and No.12 seed Beatriz Haddad Maia View Profile , who took Swiatek to three sets in the Rome quarterfinals.
A first-round match to circle is Italian No.4 Martina Trevisan View Profile 's matchup with Madrid quarterfinalist Yulia Putintseva View Profile , a battle that promises a passionate atmosphere. The winner will face Stephens. Former US Open finalist Leylah Fernandez View Profile could meet Vondrousova in the second round if she navigates past Ana Bogdan View Profile in her opener.
First-round matches to watch: Martina Trevisan View Profile (ITA) vs. Yulia Putintseva View Profile (KAZ), Lauren Davis View Profile (USA) vs. Angelique Kerber (GER), Ana Bogdan View Profile (ROU) vs. Leylah Fernandez View Profile (CAN)
Second quarter
Gauff, a semifinalist here in 2021, was the only member of the Top 4 who didn't hold her seed in Madrid. The US Open champion will bid to right that in Rome, opening against fellow 2004-born American Ashlyn Krueger View Profile or Magdalena Frech View Profile . Former Roland Garros champion Barbora Krejcikova View Profile , the No.25 seed who has struggled with illness and injury this year, is her projected third-round opponent.
No.15 seed Liudmila Samsonova View Profile is slated to meet Gauff in the fourth round, though will have to navigate a fiendish section including fast-rising youngsters Andreeva and Diana Shnaider View Profile .
No.7 seed Zheng Qinwen, Gauff's projected quarterfinal opponent, is bidding to win consecutive matches for the first time since February. The Australian Open runner-up will face either Shelby Rogers or wild card Lisa Pigato in the second round and is scheduled to meet No.29 seed Linda Noskova View Profile in the third. Potential fourth-round opponents for Zheng or Noskova include Kostyuk, Osaka and No.10 seed Daria Kasatkina View Profile .
First-round matches to watch: Mirra Andreeva View Profile vs. Paula Badosa View Profile (ESP), Naomi Osaka View Profile (JPN) vs. Clara Burel View Profile (FRA)
Third quarter
Rybakina, a three-time titlist this year already, will open her title defense against either Irina-Camelia Begu View Profile or a qualifier. In the fourth round, she is slated to face No.13 seed Danielle Collins View Profile in what would be a rematch of the Miami final, which Collins won 7-5, 6-3.
2019 semifinalist Maria Sakkari View Profile is the No.5 seed, and Rybakina's projected quarterfinal opponent. Sakkari will have to navigate stern opposition to get there. She could face last year's runner-up, No.30 seed Anhelina Kalinina View Profile in the third round, and her potential fourth-round opponents include Italian No.1 Jasmine Paolini View Profile , the No.11 seed, and 2013 finalist Victoria Azarenka View Profile , the No.24 seed.
Dubai champion Paolini could face off against Azarenka in the third round.
First-round matches to watch: Petra Martic View Profile (CRO) vs. Mayar Sherif View Profile (EGY), Diane Parry View Profile (FRA) vs. Anna Blinkova View Profile
Fourth quarter
In contrast to her success in Madrid, Sabalenka has advanced past the third round of Rome only once -- a semifinal run in 2022. Her bid to add to that will start against either Wang Yafan or a qualifier. No.32 seed Dayana Yastremska View Profile , who leads their head-to-head 3-0, could await in the third round.
No.16 seed and two-time Rome champion Elina Svitolina View Profile is projected to face Sabalenka in the fourth round. The Ukrainian will open against the winner of an intriguing stylistic contrast between Sara Errani View Profile and Amanda Anisimova View Profile . No.8 seed Ons Jabeur View Profile , the 2022 runner-up, is scheduled to meet Sabalenka in the quarterfinals. The Tunisian will start against either Italian No.2 Lucia Bronzetti View Profile or former Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin View Profile .
No.9 seed Jelena Ostapenko View Profile , a semifinalist in Rome last year, will open against either Anastasia Potapova View Profile or Wang Xiyu, and is projected to meet Jabeur in the fourth round.
First-round matches to watch: Sofia Kenin View Profile (USA) vs. Lucia Bronzetti View Profile (ITA), Anastasia Potapova View Profile vs. Wang Xiyu (CHN), Sara Errani View Profile (ITA) vs. Amanda Anisimova View Profile (USA)