Iga Swiatek, Elena Rybakina, Aryna Sabalenka headline Italian Open draw

Rome [Italy], May 6 (ANI): The Internazionali BNL d'Italia also known as the Italian Open announced the draw on Monday, with World No.1 and top seed Iga Swiatek on the opposite half of the draw to No.4 and defending champion Elena Rybakina.
The Top 32 seeds received byes in the 96-player draw. Swiatek, the champion in Rome in 2021 and 2022 will open against either Guadalajara finalist Caroline Dolehide or a qualifier.
The champion in Rome in 2021 and 2022 Swiatek will attempt to become the sixth player in the Open Era to claim the trophy three times.
Swiatek is expected to meet No.3 Coco Gauff in the semifinals of the second consecutive WTA 1000 tournament, while Rybakina will face No.2 Aryna Sabalenka at the same stage. Sabalenka defeated Rybakina in three sets at the Madrid Open last week before losing to Swiatek in a three-hour, eleven-minute final.
Notable first-round matchups include Mirra Andreeva, 17, meeting former World No.2 Paula Badosa for the first time. Former World No.1s Naomi Osaka and Angelique Kerber are also unseeded as they resume their careers following maternity leave. Osaka will face Clara Burel, with the winner meeting Marta Kostyuk, the No.19 seed. Kerber faces Lauren Davis, with the winner seeing No.17 seed Veronika Kudermetova.
Swiatek will play Sloane Stephens, the No. 31 seed who won her maiden red clay title in Rouen two weeks ago, in the third round. In the fourth round, she is expected to face No.14 seed Ekaterina Alexandrova, who defeated her at the same level in Miami in March. Potential quarterfinal opponents include Wimbledon champion and No.6 seed Marketa Vondrousova, 2016 runner-up Madison Keys, the No.18 seed, and No.12 seed Beatriz Haddad Maia, who defeated Swiatek in three sets in the Rome quarterfinals.
Gauff hopes to make amends in Rome, where she will face fellow 2004-born American Ashlyn Krueger or Magdalena Frech. Her predicted third-round opponent is former Roland Garros winner Barbora Krejcikova, the No.25 seed who has suffered with illness and injuries this year.
No. 15 seed Liudmila Samsonova is set to face Gauff in the fourth round, but she will have to pass a difficult division that includes emerging stars Andreeva and Diana Shnaider.
No. 7 seed Gauff's predicted quarterfinal opponent, Zheng Qinwen, is looking to win consecutive matches for the first time since February. The Australian Open runner-up will face Shelby Rogers or wild card Lisa Pigato in the second round before taking on No.29 seed Linda Noskova in the third. (ANI)