Pablo Carreño Busta Faces Martin Damm Jr. in Italian Open 2026

Pablo Carreño Busta will face Martin Damm Jr. in the first qualifying round of the Italian Open 2026 on May 4, 2026.

The match is crucial for both players as they seek to advance in the tournament.

Carreño Busta has a 10-3 record on clay this year, with most of his wins at the Challenger level.

He has a 6-7 record at the Italian Open, with a quarterfinal finish in 2018 being his best result.

This will be the first meeting between Carreño Busta and Damm Jr., with the head-to-head currently standing at 0-0.

Damm Jr. has compiled a 3-3 record on clay this year, with wins over Cristian Garin and Alexei Popyrin in Madrid.

Carreño Busta reigned supreme at the Murcia Challenger to begin his clay swing on a positive note.

He came close to claiming his second successive Challenger title a week later in Alicante but lost to compatriot Pablo Llamas Ruiz in the final.

Carreño Busta is expected to win in three sets, given his prior experience on clay.

The match is predicted to have at least 26 games, with at least one tie-break.

Carreño Busta's campaign at the Barcelona Open came to an abrupt end after an injury forced him to withdraw during his first-round qualifying match.

He fought past Marton Fuscovics in the first round of the Madrid Open, and then lost to 20th seed Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the second round.

Damm Jr. started his clay swing with back-to-back first-round exits, but scored wins over Andrea Pellegrino and Cristian Garin to qualify for the Madrid Open.