Jannik Sinner is on a historic run heading into the French Open. The world number one defeated Russia's Andrey Rublev 6-2, 6-4 on Thursday to reach the Italian Open semifinals, setting a new record with his 32nd consecutive Masters 1000 victory.
Sinner now stands alone, surpassing the previous mark held by Novak Djokovic. A title in Rome would put him a step closer to matching Djokovic's achievement of winning all nine Masters 1000 events.
"I don't play for records. I play for my own story," Sinner said. The 23-year-old Italian acknowledged the emotional toll of playing at home, adding that his priority is physical recovery ahead of a night match.
Sinner will face either former world number one Daniil Medvedev or Spanish teenager Martin Landaluce in the semifinals.