Italian Open: Ruud Reaches First Final Since Stockholm With Rome Rout

Ruud cruises past Darderi to reach Italian Open final in Rome

Ruud’s win over Darderi was his 140th on clay since 2020, more than any other ATP player in that period, as he advances to the Italian Open final.

Ruud brushed aside Darderi in Rome despite a two-hour rain delay, continuing his strong form on clay ahead of the French Open...

Casper Ruud booked his spot in the Italian Open final on Friday, brushing aside Italy’s Luciano Darderi 6-1, 6-1 despite a lengthy rain delay.

The Norwegian, who thrives on clay, made light work of the flashy Darderi and stayed in control even after waiting almost two hours to resume a match he was already dominating.

The heavy downpour briefly halted play but didn’t slow Ruud down on his path to a first final since lifting the trophy in Stockholm last October.

Casper does it - and in some style ⭐️@CasperRuud98 produces a brilliant performance to defeat Darderi 6-1, 6-1 and reach his first Rome final! @InteBNLdItalia | #IBI26 pic.twitter.com/fsYKkms05d

— ATP Tour (@atptour) May 15, 2026

When the match was paused, Ruud led 4-1 and held advantage in the sixth game of the opening set. He closed it out immediately after play resumed on Rome’s centre court.

Excluding the delay, Ruud wrapped up the win over Darderi in just over an hour. It marked his 140th clay-court victory since 2020 – the most on tour in that span – and he’s won more titles on the surface than any other ATP player in that time.

He’ll head into the weekend without knowing his opponent yet. Further rain pushed Jannik Sinner and Daniil Medvedev’s semifinal into Saturday, with Sinner a break up in the deciding set when play stopped.