ATP Rome: Alexander Zverev loses to Matteo Berrettini
Alexander Zverev has dropped out of the ATP Masters 1000 tournament in Rome. Last year's finalist lost 5: 7 and 5: 7 to Matteo Berrettini.
by Jens Huiber
last edit: May 14, 2019, 05:33 pm
The last minutes of set one of the game between Alexander Zverev and Matteo Berrettini at the ATP Masters 1000 tournament in Rome held astonishingly high potential for frustration for the German number one: In the eleventh game, Zverev had no less than five chances to break, the third a mistake helped the Italian. Berrettini put on 6: 5, a few moments later used his second opportunity to close the first set with 7: 5.
Zverev, who had promoted Berrettini to one of the best clay court players on the ATP tour at the press conference on Monday, struck back with a break right at the start of round two, taking the wind away not only from his opponent, but also much more from the audience from the sails. The stands of the Campo Centrale were almost completely filled - unsurprisingly, of course, in a game played by a local hero against the man who won his first Masters triumph here in 2017 and almost repeated it last year. Hadn't a rain break helped Rafael Nadal back into the match.
First match ball for Berrettini after 96 minutes of play
This time Zverev took care of himself, the Hamburg native gave his serve to 2-2. Berrettini accepted gratefully. The two opponents had already played against each other in Foro Italico in 2018, when Zverev won 7: 5 and 6: 2. Since then, the Italian has improved significantly, most recently winning a tournament in the 250cc category in Budapest, only losing in Munich in the final. Alexander Zverev, on the other hand, is looking for the matter of course in recent years - although he believes that he is on the right track.
Berrettini defended his serve games in the second half with a little effort, Zverev had to follow suit. In the tenth game, the Italian was only two points away from victory three times, Zverev kept his nerve. In difficult conditions - the Campo Centrale was hit several times by wind gusts. After a playing time of 96 minutes, Berrettini earned his first match ball, Zverev fought back with a lot of risk. And did it 5: 5. The next chance for the surprise Zverev granted his opponent with a double mistake - and corrected again immediately. Match ball number three earned Berrettini honestly. And after 108 minutes, a Zverev ball caught on the edge of the net.
Less than five minutes after the end of the game, Alexander Zverev answered questions from the press. He was already "dead on the pitch", completely without energy. The external conditions would not have helped either. Zverev told Sky that he was probably the worst top ten player of all time in the wind. The preparation for the French Open would be such that he will not attack a racket for the next few days.