Wawrinka beats Ivashka after rain delay at Italian Open

At age 38, Wawrinka is the oldest man in the tournament but he dominated Ivashka by hitting more than twice as many winners as his opponent.

Switzerland’s Stanislas Wawrinka celebrates winning his round of 128 match against Belarus’ Ilya Ivashka. | Photo Credit: REUTERS/Guglielmo Mangiapane

Stan Wawrinka wasted little time securing a 6-2, 6-4 win over Ilya Ivashka in the first round of the Italian Open on Wednesday after the start was delayed for 90 minutes due to rain.

At age 38, Wawrinka is the oldest man in the tournament but he dominated Ivashka by hitting more than twice as many winners as his opponent, including one on his first match point to close it out in little more than an hour.

Wawrinka, a three-time Grand Slam champion, next faces 26th-seeded Grigor Dimitrov, with the winner potentially meeting top-ranked Novak Djokovic in the third round.

Djokovic, who has a first-round bye, will open against Tomas Martin Etcheverry, who advanced with a 7-6 (7), 6-3 win over 18-year-old Luca Van Assche, the youngest player in the top 100 of the rankings at No. 85.

Also, Marton Fucsovics defeated Filip Krajinovic 6-4, 6-2 and Sebastian Baez beat Juan Pablo Varillas 7-5, 6-3.

Later on the red clay of the Foro Italico, Andy Murray was facing fellow 35-year-old Fabio Fognini, who received a wild card.

In women’s action, Sloane Stephens beat Nadia Podoroska 6-4, 6-1 and next meets 14th-seeded Victoria Azarenka.