Matteo Berrettini has had a lot of physical issues in recent years and has almost never been able to compete with the frequency he would have liked. The Italian ace who reached the final at the Wimbledon Championships in 2021 as his best result had found some consistency earlier this season by returning to the Top 30 of the ATP rankings, but a new abdominal injury suffered during the Mutua Madrid Open forced him to live another nightmare.
The former world number 6 had to miss Roland Garros and returned to action at the Wimbledon Championships, the Grand Slam tournament that best suits his game, but he was eliminated already in the first round and confessed that he was very far from the top of his shape. At that point, he took a break of several months and missed numerous tournaments (including the US Open), recharging his batteries both physically and mentally.
Berrettini immediately lost in Hangzhou
Berrettini returned to action at the Hangzhou ATP 250 this week, but his run was quickly over against world number 99 Dalibor Svrcina who beat him in straight sets. Matteo gave his best in this circumstance, but the long inactivity affected his performance and prevented him from playing his best tennis. He will try to give more convincing signals at the prestigious Tokyo ATP 500 next week.
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In a recent interview with 'Adnkronos', former Italian ace and top analyst Paolo Bertolucci analyzed the current difficulties of his compatriot: "His situation is very delicate, we all know that. If he doesn't find the best shape from a physical and mental point of view, it will be very tough for him to return to the highest level.
His loss in Hangzhou did not surprise me, because he had not played for 80 days and it was impossible for him to express a high level of tennis. He has to play at least ten matches before he can show anything good on the court, hoping that there are no new injuries."
