SEPT 25 - 27, 2026 | LONDON
The final clay-court test before Roland-Garros is underway in Rome, and for several players bound for Laver Cup London 2026, the ATP Masters 1000 offers a measure of form and an opportunity to build momentum.
Among them is Ben Shelton, newly confirmed for Team World, who arrives in Rome as the fifth seed. Shelton has a first-round bye and will open against a qualifier, carrying confidence after his second clay title in Munich in April. That win made him the first American man to claim an ATP 500-level title or higher since Andre Agassi, now Team World Captain, won the Italian Open in 2002.
“I have big ambitions for the clay courts,” Shelton declared after winning Munich. “It is slowly becoming one of my favorite surfaces to play on.”
Shelton will be joined in London by fellow Team World player Alex de Minaur, the sixth seed in Rome. De Minaur also benefits from a first-round bye and will face Italian wildcard Matteo Arnaldi in his opening match. The Australian has built a consistent record at the Foro Italico, reaching the fourth round in each of the past two editions.
On the European side, Alexander Zverev enters as the second seed and one of the form players of the season. His 2026 campaign has been defined by deep runs across the tour, including semifinals at the Australian Open, Indian Wells, Miami, Monte-Carlo, and Munich, as well as a final appearance in Madrid.
Zverev’s pedigree in Rome is well established. A two-time champion (2017 and 2024), he owns seven ATP Masters 1000 titles and remains firmly in the conversation heading into Roland-Garros, where he will again sit on the opposite side of the draw to top seed Jannik Sinner.
Zverev’s run to the 2024 final in Paris, where he pushed Alcaraz to five sets, underlined his credentials on clay. Also looming in the bottom half of the draw is No.4-ranked Novak Djokovic, who has not competed since Indian Wells.
The Rome Masters is held at the historic Foro Italico. Built in the 1930s the venue sits just outside the center of Rome – the “Eternal City” – and remains one of the most distinctive stops on the tour. The tournament started in Milan, moved to Rome in 1935 and became ‘open’ to professionals in 1969.
Its roll of honor includes Laver Cup namesake Rod Laver, who won the title in 1962 as an amateur and again in 1971 in the Open Era. Yannick Noah, now Team Europe Captain, lifted the trophy in 1985 and finished runner-up in 1980, while former Team Europe representative Rafael Nadal remains the most successful player in the tournament’s history with 10 titles.
Rome has long served as a barometer for Paris, and with Roland-Garros looming, performances here carry added weight, not just for Grand Slam positioning, but for the narrative building toward London in September. The first Monday after Roland-Garros will lock in qualification standings for the Laver Cup, sharpening the stakes for those on the edge.
Under Laver Cup rules, the three highest-ranked players from each region, Europe and the World, based on their ATP singles ranking as of the Monday following Roland-Garros, receive an automatic invitation to compete in the Laver Cup.
If a top-three-ranked player declines, the offer is made to another high-ranked player, until three players on each six-man team are confirmed. The remaining spots are Captains’ Picks, which can be announced any time before the start of the US Open. If any players are announced before Roland-Garros, the respective team Captain is committing to using a Captain’s Pick on any or all of them if they do not qualify based on ranking.
Currently, all players confirmed for Laver Cup 2026 sit in the Top 10 of the rankings:
Team Europe:
Carlos Alcaraz [2]
Alexander Zverev [3]
Team World:
Ben Shelton [6]
Taylor Fritz [7]
Alex de Minaur [8]
