Wimbledon 2021: Mats Wilander - "Matteo Berrettini will win a Grand Slam"
Mats Wilandergave his assessments of the Italian finalist Matteo Berrettini in the run-up to the Wimbledon final in 2021 at Ubitennis.com. And only had respect for the 25-year-old Roman.
by Michael Rothschädl
last edit: Jul 10, 2021, 07:28 pm
In the end, it was a fairly safe four-set success that Matteo Berrettini achieved on Church Road in London on Friday afternoon to bring his biggest career success to date in a dry wipe. The 25-year-old defeated Hubert Hurkacz from Poland and thus made it into the final of a major tournament - a feat that the world number nine had not yet succeeded in.
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This success also earned the Roman the respect of the most attentive observers of tennis, such as Mats Wilander. The Swede particularly valued Berrettini's mental performance in not starting to think after losing the third set: "What he did at the beginning of the fourth set is the signal we all want to see a player. He has the third set lost and he didn't care. For me that is the signal that he will become one of the best players in the world who will definitely win a Grand Slam. "
Berrettini can win "anywhere"
Where could he celebrate this major triumph? "Everywhere! Maybe the backhand will reduce his chances on clay a bit, but on grass Matteo knows how to hide his weaknesses and that's fundamental. Great players know how to hide their weaknesses. Roger Federer is the perfect example of that" , stated the Eurosport expert.
With the Swiss veteran, Wilander also sees slight deficits on the backhand side: "With Federer, the weak point was the backhand. With the backhand, Roger could defend himself, with the slice he could stay alive, but then he almost always stayed behind." In this context, however, the Roman has a decisive advantage: "Matteo, on the other hand, can play slices and then come forward, he has twice the stature of Roger on the net, it is very difficult to get past him."
Players like Zverev try to shoot hard on both sides
Wilander on the mistake of some young players
In addition, the Roman is a bit ahead of the other players of his generation, as Wilander emphasizes: "Matteo is different from the others from this time. When I look at the other players, such as Zverev, they try to shoot hard on both sides and where they are weaker they make mistakes. While Matteo knows what to do, he doesn't want to try to play with his weakest stroke against a good hit rate. "
On Sunday, Matteo Berrettini already has the chance to make Mats Wilander's prophecy come true. The Roman is contesting his first final in a Grand Slam final against Novak Djokovic, who has won 19 major titles.
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