ROME - World number one Ashleigh Barty advanced to the third round of the Italian Open in Rome on Wednesday with a 6-4, 6-1 win over Kazakh Yaroslava Shvedova.
Days after her shock defeat in the Madrid Open final, the Australian overcame an early break of serve to see off Shvedova, a three-time Grand Slam quarter-finalist making her way back after giving birth to twins.  Playing with her left thigh strapped, Barty dropped her opening service game but rallied to level at 4-4, taking control of the match against Shvedova on the red clay of the Foro Italico. Barty will next meet 28th-ranked Russian Veronika Kudermetova as she bids for a first Rome quarter-final on her third appearance. 
Kudermetova beat France’s 56th-ranked Caroline Garcia 6-4, 6-4. Former Rome champion Karolina Pliskova, seeded ninth, also advanced past Anastasija Sevastova of Latvia 6-2, 6-3. Czech Pliskova, winner in 2019 and runner-up last year, built on her powerful serve, and converted six of her 13 break point chances. The former world number one next plays Russian Vera Zvonareva who ousted Czech 11th seed Petra Kvitova 6-4, 3-6, 6-4. Fifth seed Elina Svitolina of Ukraine dropped a set before advancing past American Amanda Anisimova 2-6, 6-3, 6-4. Meanwhile, Austrian fourth seed Dominic Thiem rallied from a set down to battle past Hungary’s Marton Fucsovics into the third round of the ATP Italian Open on Wednesday. US Open champion Thiem, a semi-finalist in Madrid last week, won through 3-6, 7-6 (7/5), 6-0 in 2hr 33min against 44th-ranked Fucsovics in the clay-court tournament which acts as a warm-up for the French Open in which the Austrian has twice finished runner-up.
The 27-year-old will next play an Italian, either Lorenzo Sonego or wildcard entry Gianluca Mager, in a match in front of spectators, with 25 percent capacity allowed at the ForoItalico after the early rounds were played behind closed doors.