Matteo Berrettini took on his good friend Lorenzo Sonego in the 2024 Marrakech Open quarter-final and won the match in two sets to reach the semi-final.
This is the first time Berrerttini is in the semi-final of an ATP event since he came back from his injury in 2024. That shouldn't be surprising because it's only the second Tour-level event he's been playing since coming back from injury and being able to play so well certainly is very encouraging.
The matchup was anything but easy because he was facing a player who knows him pretty well and is good on clay. Sonego was a pretty tough challenge to overcome, especially in the second set, which he nearly won.
The first set was very close because both players dominated on their serve. Both Berrrettini and Sonego dropped only a handful of points when they hit their first serve, and the more experienced Italian actually hit them in 92% of times.
He lost only four points on his serve in the entire opening set, which shows how well he was playing. Sonego was pretty good himself, but he allowed his compatriot a break point, and the Italian took it, which was enough to win the opening set 6-3.
The second set was another close affair that had to be settled in the tie-break. Both players had chances to break, but neither did. Sonego saved several early break points in the second set, which boosted his confidence, and he started to play better.
Berretitni had to save a set point late in the second set to force the tie-break, and he did. In the tie-break, it was Berrettini who got out to an early lead, but Sonego didn't give up.
Eventually, Berrettini found the match point at 6-5, and he took it to win the match 6-3, 7-6(5) and secure the semi-final.
0 Comments