World number one and pre-tournament favourite for overall victory, Sabalenka followed men’s tennis icon Novak Djokovic in going out early from the Rome event following a 2-6, 6-3, 7-5 loss to Sorana Cirstea.
Sabalenka was visibly frustrated with her performance on centre court, muttering to herself with her shoulders slumped during an uncharacteristically sloppy display.
The 28-year-old had not been knocked out of a tournament in the round of 32 since the Qatar Open in February last year, and she looked set for a quick and clean victory after racing to the first set.
But she failed in her bid for a first tournament victory in the Italian capital, with Cirstea facing Linda Noskova in the next round after beating a woman at the top of the world rankings for the first time in her career.
Sabalenka also had to have a time out for what appeared to be a problem with her left hip, casting doubt on her fitness ahead of Roland Garros later this month.
Gauff through, Paolini out
French Open champion Coco Gauff is still in the hunt after taking over two hours to beat Argentina’s Solana Sierra 5-7, 6-0, 6-4.
Gauff has struggled on clay this season, with a last-16 exit in the Madrid Open coming after a disappointing run to the quarter-finals in Stuttgart.
Jasmine Paolini’s defence of her Italian Open title came to an early end after the home favourite was knocked out by Elise Mertens,
Local favourite Paolini lost 4-6, 7-6(5), 6-3 to Mertens following an error-strewn performance.
The 30-year-old is set to drop out of the top 10 of the women’s world rankings after failing to reach the fourth round of a fourth consecutive tournament.
Her fate turned on her failure to capitalise on three match points against the serve at 6-5 in the second set, after which she lost the first two points of the tie-break and never recovered.
“I didn’t make the most of my chances. I needed to keep a clearer head, keep my cool better in those moments,” Paolini told reporters.
“I’m very disappointed to lose, but there were moments in which I felt good on the court, and I was competitive and positive.”
China’s Zheng Qinwen is also out on the women’s side after losing to Jelena Ostapenko, who won their clash 4-6, 6-4, 6-4.
Follow the women’s side of the Italian Open here.
