Matteo Berrettini returned to the tennis courts at the 2024 Stuttgart Open, starting with a hard-fought win over Roman Safiullin.
Berrettini missed a couple of weeks of action on clay as he was getting fit and preparing his body for a significant part of the season for him. The Italian is a great grass player due to his slice and serve, which make him a very tough player to beat on the surface.
He played in the Wimbledon final once and won the Stuttgart Open in the past as well, which is why he chose this ATP 250 tournament to make his comeback. The first set was very tough for Safiullin, who is a very tricky player himself.
He has a powerful serve and really flat shots that are hard to counter on grass. The opening set wasn't particularly exciting because both players dominated on their serve, winning games fairly easily.
The set ended up in a tie-break, which Berrettini won after some really clutch play down the line 10-8. The second set followed a similar trajectory as the first, as both players dominated on the serve.
As the set progressed, though, the Italian started to struggle more and more. He didn't dominate his serve as much, and Safiullin was starting to find some really good solutions.
Eventually, he got break points and converted them to avoid a tie-break, taking the second set 7-5. The final set started well for both players, but Berrettini struggled more.
He struggled throughout the set but somehow avoided getting broken. This paid off hugely because at 6-5 in the final set, Safiullin felt the pressure, and he lost his serve in the most important moment of the match.
Berrettini got break chances and used them to finish the complicated match. It lasted almost three hours, with the final score being 7-6(8), 5-7, 7-5 for the Italian player.
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