Ruud described Sinner's level as "close to perfection." Casper reflected on the match and admitted it did not feel that bad. He also stated it was fun to witness an opponent on a different level.

Or maybe Jannik Sinner just likes playing against Casper Ruud.Whatever it was, the top-ranked Sinner cranked up his level to near-perfection in a 6-0, 6-1 dismantling of Ruud in the Italian Open quarterfinals on Thursday — a day after Sinner was granted a private audience with the new tennis-playing pope just down the road at the Vatican.

Casper Ruud suffered a crushing defeat against Jannik Sinner in the quarterfinals of the Rome Open, in a match that beforehand seemed much more evenly matched.