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Paris - Danish tennis star Caroline Wozniacki revealed Wednesday that she refuses to play in Rome because the Eternal City makes her permanently ill.
Wozniacki, 26, said playing the tournament in the Italian capital compounds her hay fever, but that the problem is unique to the Foro Italico where the event is staged.
Unfortunately for the two-time US Open runner-up, the clay court event is a key warm-up tournament ahead of the French Open which is ongoing.
"I literally can't breathe," she said. "But it's really strange. It's really only at the courts, which is even more strange.
"Any time I get on-site, I think it's those big trees that do it, because when I'm into the city centre and walk around I'm feeling fine.
"I have tried all the medicine we are allowed to take and nothing really helps, or it puts me to sleep, which either way isn't really great."
Wozniacki missed the Madrid event this year through injury and was forced to retire from her opening match in Strasbourg with a back injury.
That put her participation in Paris, where she was a quarter-finalist in 2010, in doubt.
However, she showed little rustiness on Wednesday with a 6-0, 6-0 demolition of Canadian qualifier Francoise Abanda in just 52 minutes.
"I'm feeling pretty good. Clay isn't my favourite surface of all surfaces, but at the same time, I feel like I'm hitting the ball well," said the 11th seed, who missed last year's French Open with an ankle injury.
"I felt like I have been very comfortable and confident all season, so hopefully I can just keep that going in the second half of the season."
French Open results on Wednesday, the fourth day of the 2017 tournament at Roland Garros (x denotes seeding):
Men
2nd rd
Milos Raonic (CAN x5) bt Rogerio Dutra Silva (BRA) 4-6, 6-2, 6-3, 6-4
Guillermo Garcia-Lopez (ESP) bt Marco Trungelliti (ARG) 7-5, 6-4, 7-5
Pablo Carreno Busta (ESP x20) bt Taro Daniel (JPN) 7-5, 6-4, 4-6, 6-0
Grigor Dimitrov (BUL x11) bt Tommy Robredo (ESP) 6-3, 6-4, 7-5
Jiri Vesely (CZE) bt Aljaz Bedene (GBR) 6-3, 6-3, 4-6, 6-3
Roberto Bautista Agut (ESP x17) bt Mikhail Kukushkin (KAZ) 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (7/3)
Nikoloz Basilashvili (GEO) bt Viktor Troicki (SRB) 7-6 (7/3), 7-6 (7/2), 7-6 (8/6)
Rafael Nadal (ESP x4) bt Robin Haase (NED) 6-1, 6-4, 6-3
Dominic Thiem (AUT x6) bt Simone Bolelli (ITA) 7-5, 6-1, 6-3
Steve Johnson (USA x25) bt Borna Coric (CRO) 6-2, 7-6 (10/8), 3-6, 7-6 (8/6)
Horacio Zeballos (ARG) bt Ivo Karlovic (CRO x23) 7-6 (7/5), 7-6 (7/5), 6-3
David Goffin (BEL x10) bt Sergiy Stakhovsky (UKR) 6-2, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3
Lucas Pouille (FRA x16) bt Thomaz Bellucci (BRA) 7-6 (7/5), 6-1, 6-2
Albert Ramos-Vinolas (ESP x19) bt Benjamin Bonzi (FRA) 6-2, 6-1, 6-1
Diego Schwartzman (ARG) bt Stefano Napolitano (ITA) 6-3, 7-5, 6-2
Novak Djokovic (SRB x2) bt Joao Sousa (POR) 6-1, 6-4, 6-3
1st rd
Renzo Olivo (ARG) bt Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA x12) 7-5, 6-4, 6-7 (6/8), 6-4
Women
2nd rd
Lesia Tsurenko (UKR) bt Ekaterina Makarova (RUS) 6-2, 6-2
Jelena Ostapenko (LAT) bt Monica Puig (PUR) 6-3, 6-2
Samantha Stosur (AUS x23) bt Kirsten Flipkens (BEL) 6-2, 7-6 (8/6)
Bethanie Mattek-Sands (USA) bt Petra Kvitova (CZE x15) 7-6 (7/5), 7-6 (7/5)
Caroline Wozniacki (DEN x11) bt Francoise Abanda (CAN) 6-0, 6-0
Catherine Bellis (USA) bt Kiki Bertens (NED x18) 6-3, 7-6 (7/5)
Zhang Shuai (CHN x32) bt Aliaksandra Sasnovich (BLR) 6-2, 4-6, 6-3
Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS x8) bt Oceane Dodin (FRA) 7-6 (7/5), 5-7, 6-3
Garbine Muguruza (ESP) bt Anett Kontaveit (EST) 6-7 (4/7), 6-4, 6-2
Yulia Putintseva (KAZ x27) bt Johanna Larsson (SWE) 6-3, 1-6, 6-3
Shelby Rogers (USA) bt Cagla Buyukakcay (TUR) 7-6 (8/6), 6-4
Kristina Mladenovic (FRA x13) bt Sara Errani (ITA) 6-2, 6-3
Venus Williams (USA x10) bt Kurumi Nara (JPN) 6-3, 6-1
Elise Mertens (BEL) bt Richel Hogenkamp (NED) 6-3, 6-4
Timea Bacsinszky (SUI x30) bt Madison Brengle (USA) 6-0, 6-2
Ons Jabeur (TUN) bt Dominika Cibulkova (SVK x6) 6-4, 6-3
