Novak Djokovic beats Stan Wawrinka to ease into Italian Open quarters

Swiatek beats Azarenka; Zverev, Tsitsipas progress

ROME: Novak Djokovic strolled into the Italian Open quarter-finals on Sunday with a routine 6-2, 6-2 win over Stan Wawrinka, while Iga Swiatek continued her bid for a fifth straight tournament victory by beating Victoria Azarenka.

Chasing a sixth title in Rome, Djokovic took one hour, 16 minutes to get past his Swiss opponent without stretching himself and will now face Felix Auger-Aliassime in the last eight.

Wawrinka, whose first-round victory over Reilly Opelka was his first win in 15 months, was no match for top seed Djokovic and beyond a few classic passing shots he offered little resistance.

The injury-hit 37-year-old, now ranked 361 in the world, beat Djokovic in finals to win two of his three Grand Slam titles, but has now lost 20 of their 26 career meetings. The only real moment of pressure for Djokovic was when Wawrinka broke serve in game six of the second set.

Top-ranked Swiatek was tested before pulling out a 6-4, 6-1 victory over former No. 1 Azarenka to reach quarterfinals and extend her winning streak to 25 matches. Azarenka took a 3-0 lead before Swiatek won five straight games in a grueling first set that lasted 1 hour, 20 minutes.

The defending champion in Rome, Swiatek is attempting to win her fifth straight tournament.

The last player to win more consecutive matches was Serena Williams, who had a streak of 27 in a row over 2014 and 2015.

Swiatek's run makes her a favorite to win a second French Open when the year's second Grand Slam gets underway in 10 days.

In a sign of how challenging it was for Swiatek to hold serve on the red clay court at the Foro Italico, she played more than twice as many points with her serve than Azarenka did — 98 to 47.

Azarenka got rattled when a spectator entered the front row of the mostly empty VIP section just behind her as she was facing a break point late in the first set. When she then double-faulted to hand Swiatek control of the set, she slammed her racket in frustration and complained to the chair umpire about the mid-game interruption.

Swiatek will next face 2019 U.S. Open champion Bianca Andreescu, who eliminated Croatian qualifier Petra Martic 6-4, 6-4.

Also, third-seeded Aryna Sabalenka beat Madrid Open finalist Jessica Pegula 6-1, 6-4.

Second seed Paula Badosa thrashed Aliaksandra Sasnovich 6-1, 6-2, Seventh seed Danielle Collins beat Simona Halep 7-6 (1), 6-3, Jil Teichmann beat Elena Rybakina 6-7 (3), 6-3, 7-5, Amanda Anisimova beat Danielle Collins 6-2, 6-2.

In the men's tournament, Stefanos Tsitsipas rallied past Karen Khachanov 4-6, 6-0, 6-3 for a tour-leading 29th win of the year.

Also, 2017 Rome champion Alexander Zverev, who is also coming off a run to the Madrid final, beat Alex De Minaur 6-3, 7-6 (5).

Zverev, who is still seeking his first title of the year, has his father and coach, Alexander, back on the circuit with him after a prolonged absence for reasons the family has kept personal.

Eighth seed Felix Auger Aliassime beat Marcos Giron 6-3, 6-2, 10th seed Jannik Sinner beat Filip Krajinovic 6-2, 7-6 (6).

Moreover, fifth seed Casper Ruud beat Jenson Brooksby 6-3, 6-4 while Cristian Garín beat stunned Marin Cilic 6-3,4-6,6-4 to reach the last-eight stage. Agencies

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