Jannik Sinner pours out Pellegrino for 31st straight Masters 1000 win

Jannik Sinner won a 26th straight match as he closes in on a possible sixth consecutive Masters 1000 title at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia, the world No. 1 winning an all-Italian fourth round against Andrea Pellegrino, 6-2, 6-3 to reach the quarterfinals.

Sinner hasn’t lost a match since February 19—a three-set defeat to Jakub Mensik at the Qatar ExxonMobil Open—and is still perfect at Masters 1000 tournaments in 2026, increasing his streak to 31 on this level and ending the qualifier’s career-best week after one hour and 29 minutes on Center Court.

“I’m very happy for him. He’s been working very hard,” Sinner said of Pellegrino during his on-court interview. “We played seven years ago on a definitely smaller court, so it’s nice. Of course, from an Italian point of view, it’s amazing we have so many Italians, but at the same time it’s a bit unfortunate because it’s the round of 16. But look, it was a very good match, I think, from both of us. Hopefully I’m ready for the quarterfinals.”

The top seed, who indeed faced Pellegrino at an ITF M25 tournament back in 2019, made history last week at the Mutua Madrid Open when he became the first man to win five Masters 1000 titles in a row, a streak that dates back to the Rolex Paris Masters last fall. With chief rival Carlos Alcaraz out of action due to a wrist injury, Sinner is in pole position to complete a box set of Masters 1000 and Grand Slam victories in Rome and Roland Garros, the only two titles still to elude him.

Sinner is yet to drop a set at the Foro Italico, dropping just two games against Alexei Popryin to book his spot in the fourth round against a bubbling over Pellegrino. Unseeded in qualifying, the 29-year-old upset Martin Landaluce in the final round to reach the main draw and scored back-to-back wins over No. 15 seed Arthur FIls (via retirement) and No. 20 seed Frances Tiafoe.

For a man who has never cracked the Top 100, Pellegrino was unsurprisingly overawed from the outset against Sinner, who claimed a double-break lead in the first set to ultimately serve it out with little fanfare. Pellegrino settled somewhat in the second set, but Sinner grabbed a crucial break at 3-3 and reeled off the final three games of the match, breaking to end the match in just under 90 minutes.

“I’m happy with how I’m trying to handle these situations,” Sinner said. “The stages are getting bigger, so I’m happy to put myself in these kinds of positions. A day off will be important for me to try and rest before the quarters.”

Sinner, who reached the final in Rome last year, could end the week with just under 15,000 ranking points should he win his home tournament, but he will first have to get past No. 12 seed Andrey Rublev or Georgian qualifier Nikoloz Basilashvili. Sinner leads Rublev 7-3 in their head-to-head, with the latter winning just one completed match at the 2024 National Bank Open.