Rome [Italy], May 10 : Italian tennis player Matteo Berrettini put up an impressive show in front of his home crowd at the Internazionali BNL d'Italia on Saturday after his victory over Jacob Fearnley at the Italian Open.
On his first appearance in Rome since 2021, and conjured a 6-4, 7-6(0) to move to the third round of the tournament. After trailing at 3-5, Berrettini mounted an impressive comeback, saved two set points and scripted a hard-fought victory in a contest that lasted for one hour and 55 minutes.
Earlier in the Madrid Open, Berrettini had to retire against Jack Draper in the third round due to an abdominal injury. But he returned to Rome with resolve and starred with a stellar display.
Berrettini will face the Madrid champion Casper Ruud, who has kept his scorching form intact with a 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 victory over Alexander Bublik. Rudd extended his unbeaten run to seven matches and will look to continue riding high on his form in Rome, a tournament where he has previously reached three semi-finals.
"It feels great. I'm not sure how to address this match. It's a lot of ups and downs, here and there, side to side. When Sascha starts his game, it becomes a bit of a show, so you just try not to admire it, to stay focused," Rudd said as quoted from ATP.com.
"He always hits spectacular shots, and sometimes it's a little frustrating for us opponents. But all in all, happy to be through a tough three-setter. It's never easy against Sascha, we had a tough match here in Rome a couple of years ago, so happy to get another today," he added.
In other fixtures, Marcos Giron ousted the fourth seed Taylor Fritz 7-6(4), 7-6(3) to reach the third round of the tournament. The 31-year-old Giron trailed 0-4 in the second set but upped the ante to seal a remarkable win in a one-hour, 45-minute fixture.
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