Carlos Alcaraz and Aryna Sabalenka cruise to wins at the Italian Open

ROME – Carlos Alcaraz said his “body is feeling great” after kicking off his bid for a first Italian Open title by cruising past Serbian qualifier Dusan Lajovic 6-3, 6-3 in Rome on May 9.

World No. 3 Alcaraz got past Lajovic in one hour and 23 minutes on his return to action following a thigh injury suffered in his Barcelona Open final defeat to Holger Rune in April.

He skipped the Madrid Masters in April owing to an adductor injury and played with a precautionary knee wrap against Lajovic.

“The body is feeling great,” said Alcaraz, who celebrated his 22nd birthday on May 5. “I moved well and made a few good sprints today without any pain and that is great.

“It was a test for me and I think I passed the test. I tried to feel more comfortable on the court. Moving and not thinking about the injury.”

The Spaniard showed some signs of ring rustiness with 22 unforced errors but still managed to win the first four games of the match to give Lajovic too much to do in the first set.

And Alcaraz closed out the match in professional style with another quick start in the second set which put him three games ahead, allowing him to serve out for the win.

Alcaraz will now face one of Alex Michelsen and Laslo Djere in the third round as he eyes a potential final with world No. 1 Jannik Sinner in the Italian capital.

Sinner will make his comeback from a three-month doping ban on May 10, when he takes on Mariano Navone in front of what will be a partisan crowd at the Foro Italico.

One of Alcaraz’s potential opponents in the last 16, Grigor Dimitrov, fell at the first hurdle against wild card entrant