STUTTGART, June 8, 2022
Matteo Berrettini has made a successful comeback to the tour with a hard-fought second-round win at the BOSS Open in Stuttgart. The No. 2 seed of the ATP 250 grass-court event and brand ambassador of the tournament’s main sponsor battled past Moldovan qualifier Radu Albot 6-2, 4-6, 6-3 on Wednesday afternoon.
Berrettini was playing his first match since 16 March when he lost to Miomir Kecmanovic in the fourth round of the ATP Masters 1000 in Indian Wells. Later that month, the 26-year-old Italian had to undergo a minor right hand surgery.
In his opening match at the Tennis Club Weissenhof, Berrettini showed a solid display of tennis, as he fired 21 aces and won 81 per cent of his first-service points to secure victory in one hour and 53 minutes.
Back with a bang! 💥
Matteo Berrettini makes his return to the @atptour with a 6-2 4-6 6-3 win over Albot#BOSSOPEN @theweissenhof pic.twitter.com/VvYVN0Ehks
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) June 8, 2022
“I am happy to be here, I knew it would be a tough match. “It is always tough to come back, finding the rhythm, the attitude and the mindset. Especially on grass, there is just one break. The match can change but I am very happy with the level of my game in the third set. I got the win, through to the quarters, that was the goal,” said Berrettini.
“No matter, how much you practice. Official matches are always different. The tension, the adrenaline, my muscles are going to hurt a lot tomorrow. And also mentally. That’s something you get when you play more matches. That’s why I knew that this match today will probably one of the toughest of the year. I need these kind of matches and there are a lot of good players here.”
Berrettini, who captured the title here two years ago, remains unbeaten in Stuttgart. “I definitely like the conditions here. This year is even more special with BOSS and everything. I really like it here and hopefully it will be long run.”
However, being the “face of the tournament” and seeing portrait posters of him in the entire city makes Berrettini feel a bit weird. “It’s really nice, but it’s something I am not really used to it. The first day when I saw it, it felt like “Wow” but BOSS is the main sponsor so I think it’s normal. I am quite shy, but the pictures are great. So no need to complain about that,” he said with a smile.
The BOSS ambassador’s home tournament.#Berrettini #Stuttgart @theweissenhof pic.twitter.com/80hOMHoK7g
— Florian Heer (@Florian_Heer) June 8, 2022
Asked about the general situation of professional tennis in Italy with 17 men ranked inside the Top 200, Berrettini replied: “I don’t think that there is one secret of the success. There are a lot of reasons. The first one is luck. Sometimes it happens that there are several players of the same age growing up together and practice together. They help each other. I practice a lot with Jannik (Sinner) and also did with Lorenzo (Sonego) in the past. It’s really nice.
“It probably started for us with Marco Cecchinato in 2018. He showed us that we could achieve great results in the Slams. He made it into the semis (at Roland-Garros) and so I began to believe that I could also do it. After that we felt that it was possible. I don’t know how long I will stay the highest-ranked Italian but it’s a nice situation right now.”
Up next for the World No. 10 will be either his compatriot Lorenzo Sonego or local wild card entry Jan-Lennard Struff. Their match was suspended due to rain with the sixth-seeded Italian leading 7-6(2), 3-4.
Earlier in the day, Benjamin Bonzi booked his spot in the quarterfinals. The World No. 58, who opened his Stuttgart campaign with a straight-set win over Spanish veteran Feliciano Lopez, edged out fellow Frenchman Arthur Rinderknech 7-6(3), 6-2 in one hour and 14 minutes. Bonzi awaits the winner of the encounter between Germany’s Oscar Otte and No. 4 seed Denis Shapovalov of Canada in the stage of the final eight.
