Sinner win streak reaches 25 as he aims to complete Masters collection at Italian Open

ROME (AP) — Jannik Sinner’s winning streak reached 25 matches after beating Alexei Popyrin 6-2, 6-0 before his home fans in the third round of the Italian Open on Monday.

The top-ranked Sinner set the tone when he broke 60th-ranked Popyrin in the opening game.

Sinner is heavily favored to win the Rome tournament with Carlos Alcaraz sidelined due to a right wrist injury.

Sinner hasn’t lost since Feb. 19, to Jakub Mensik in the Qatar Open quarterfinals. He’ll next face a fellow Italian, qualifier Andrea Pellegrino, who beat Frances Tiafoe.

If Sinner raises the trophy in Rome, he’ll become the second man after Novak Djokovic to triumph at all nine Masters 1000 events. Djokovic has won each event at least twice.

Sinner has won five straight Masters events and has the second-most consecutive wins at that level with 30. Djokovic has the record of 31.

Earlier, Coco Gauff saved a match point in the second set of a 5-7, 7-5, 6-2 victory over fellow American Iva Jovic to reach the quarterfinals.

Gauff also survived in the previous round from falling behind by two breaks in the third set against Solana Sierra.

Gauff reached the Rome final last year and is preparing to defend her French Open title.

Roland Garros starts on May 24.

AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis

Fans are reflected in a glass partition as Coco Gauff, of the United States, serves the ball to United States' Iva Jovic during their match at the Italian Open tennis tournament in Rome, Monday, May 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

United States' Coco Gauff celebrates after winning the second set during her match against United States' Iva Jovic at the Italian Open tennis tournament in Rome, Monday, May 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Italy's Jannik Sinner strikes a forehand to Australia's Alexei Popyrin, during their match at the Italian Open tennis tournament in Rome, Monday, May 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Italy's Jannik Sinner reacts after beating Australia's Alexei Popyrin 6-2, 6-0, after their match at the Italian Open tennis tournament in Rome, Monday, May 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Italy's Jannik Sinner stretches to return the ball to Australia's Alexei Popyrin, during their match at the Italian Open tennis tournament in Rome, Monday, May 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — The South African Parliament said Monday it will establish an impeachment committee to reinvestigate four-year-old allegations that President Cyril Ramaphosa committed serious misconduct by hiding the theft of more than half a million dollars in cash, which had been stashed in a sofa at his game ranch.

The new decision follows a ruling by the top Constitutional Court on Friday saying a 2022 Parliament vote that blocked impeachment proceedings against Ramaphosa over the scandal was unconstitutional.

At the time of the vote, Ramaphosa's African National Congress party had a majority in Parliament. The vote was held despite an independent report finding evidence of wrongdoing by the president in allegedly not properly reporting the theft to police and trying to keep an investigation to recover the money secret.

The Constitutional Court last week said that, according to procedure, the 2022 independent report should have been referred to an impeachment committee for further investigation.

Impeaching the leader of Africa's top economy would require the support of at least two-thirds of lawmakers in the 400-member Parliament, according to the Constitution.

Ramaphosa was due to address the country over the issue in a speech on live television Monday night, his office said.

His office previously said after the court ruling on Friday that he respected the decision and “maintains that no person is above the law and that any allegations should be subjected to due process without fear, favor or prejudice.”

The multi-party impeachment committee still needs to conduct an investigation before any move to hold an impeachment vote. No time frame was given for that in Monday's Parliament statement.

Ramaphosa's ANC party lost its Parliament majority in a landmark 2024 election and is now the largest in a coalition government of 10 parties. He still could survive an impeachment vote if his party's lawmakers back him.

The scandal badly damaged the reputation of a president who took office in 2018 on an anti-corruption ticket after a decade of government graft scandals under former leader Jacob Zuma.

The allegations against Ramaphosa were first made by a former head of South Africa's state security agency, who walked into a police station in 2022 and accused the president of money laundering and other offenses over the money. It emerged the theft happened in 2020 and had been kept secret.

Ramaphosa denied wrongdoing and said the money — in U.S. dollars — came from the legitimate sale of buffaloes on his ranch. However, questions arose over the source of the money and why it was hidden in a sofa.

The 2022 independent report said there was “legitimate doubt” over the source of the money, and some evidence that the amount was more than the $580,000 Ramaphosa claimed. It also said Ramaphosa had used the head of his presidential protection unit and others to “surreptitiously” try and track down the suspects.

AP Africa news: https://apnews.com/hub/africa

FILE — The entrance to the wildlife Ranch of South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, Phala Phala Wildlife Farm in Bela Bela, South Africa, June 3, 2022. (AP Photo, File)

FILE - South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa receives military honors during a welcome ceremony at the Planalto Presidential Palace, prior to a meeting with Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in Brasilia, Brazil, March 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Luis Nova, File)