Russia`s Veronika Kudermetova and Belgium`s Elise Mertens have successfully moved into the second round of the WTA 1000 doubles tournament in Rome. They secured a victory over the Hungarian-Brazilian duo of Timea Babos and Luisa Stefani in their opening match.
Kudermetova and Mertens defeated their opponents in straight sets with a scoreline of 6-4, 6-2. The encounter lasted for 1 hour and 19 minutes. This marked the first time these two pairs competed against each other.
Match Statistics:
| Category | Kudermetova/Mertens | Babos/Stefani |
|---|---|---|
| Aces | 2 | 0 |
| Double Faults | 1 | 1 |
| Breaks | 3 | 0 |
| Total Points Won | 58 | 40 |
In the next round, Kudermetova and Mertens are scheduled to face the team of Hsieh Su-wei from Chinese Taipei and Jelena Ostapenko from Latvia.
Marcus Blakely 
Gilbert Pendleton