By Richard Pagliaro | @Tennis_Now | Tuesday, April 8, 2025
Photo credit: Matthew Calvis
The Monte-Carlo Country Club was once a haunted house for Matteo Berrettini.
Today, Berrettini turned the place into a bounce house.
Filipina Fighter: Eala Shocks Keys in Miami
A bold Berrettini bounced top-seeded Alexander Zverev 2-6, 6-3, 7-5 in a rousing Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters upset that had the capacity crowd chanting “Matteo! Matteo!” with many fans bopping up and down in the aisles.
After failing to serve out the match at 5-4, Berrettini dug in with defiance.
The former Wimbledon finalist prevailed in a pulsating 48-shot rally that ended with Zverev bending over at the waist gasping gulps of breath while Berrettini raised a clenched fist toward cheering fans.
That punishing rally helped the 28-year-old Italian break for 6-5 as Berrettini scored his biggest career win, by ranking, and first career victory over a Top 2-ranked player.
Afterward, Berrettini said he focused on two tasks in the decider: Fighting and inciting fans into screaming support.
“I really had to push hard, especially mentally, you know, to tell myself to believe in my strokes and to believe in my tennis and just to enjoy the fight,” Berrettini said. “That’s what I did and what I kept telling myself, especially in the third set when things were a little bit tricky at the end of it.”
The roaring crowd was emotional fuel for Berrettini to find the finish line.
“[Crowd support is] so important for us, for all the Italians,” Berrettini said. “I think it’s special. It definitely helped me when, you know, in some moments I also tried to make them even louder. You know, like it gives you energy, especially when you’re tired.
“So definitely thanks to them and thanks to their support and support of my team, it was one of the big reasons why I was able to turn the match around.”
Could this win be a turning point for Berrettini?
A year ago, Berrettini was ranked No. 154 and this year he’s already scored wins over reigning Olympic gold-medal champion Novak Djokovic and former gold-medal holder Zverev.
Recalling a career low point, Berrettini shared how the cheers once haunted his head when he was bed-ridden in Monte-Carlo.
“I have this memory of three years ago when I got injured here, and the next day I was in bed, because I couldn’t move,” Berrettini said. “My ab was really hurting. Every time I was sneezing or coughing, it was really painful.
“They were playing on center court, and I could hear them, like, from my apartment. It was a tough day. It was a tough day.”
Hearing Monte-Carlo fans chant his name was music to Berrettini’s ears today as he conducted a breakthrough comeback.
“So [today] it was like now I’m going to enjoy, now I’m going to make them scream for me, and that’s why I also found that kind of energy in the third,” Berrettini said.
Next up for Berrettini is either Davis Cup teammate Lorenzo Musetti or Jiri Lehecka.
