The draw for the clay court WTA-1000 tournament in Rome, Italy has taken place, with the event set to run from May 6 to 19. Kazakhstani tennis players Elena Rybakina and Yulia Putintseva have learned the names of their first opponents.
Defending champion of the tournament, Elena Rybakina, will start her campaign from the second round, where she could face Romanian player Ioana Begu (WTA No. 161) or a qualifier.
Yulia Putintseva will play against the home favorite Martina Trevisan (WTA No. 87) in the first round. If successful in the opening game, Putintseva will meet 2017 US Open champion, American Sloane Stephens (WTA No. 35) in the second match.
The top seed in the main draw is world number one Iga Swiatek from Poland. In the second round, she will face either Caroline Dolehide from the USA or a qualifier. World number two Aryna Sabalenka will take on Chinese player Yafan Wang (WTA No. 69) or a qualifier.
In other news, the daughter of a former Kazakhstan national football team player has recently become the champion of a tournament in Albania.
