Matteo Berrettini shared his relief at being able to compete at Wimbledon 2023 after injuries disrupted the Italian's season.
Berrettini's injury concerns started at the beginning of clay season in April when the 27-year-old was set to play Holger Rune in the round of 16 at Monte Carlo before he withdrew. A period of difficulty followed, and the Italian tried to make a comeback at the Stuttgart Open but was below par when he lost in straight sets against Lorenzo Sonego.
Reflecting on his injury woes when speaking to the official ATP website, Berrittini explained that being off the court was a real low point of his career. In addition, the Italian said a period on the sidelines led to a loss of love for tennis.
"That's what I lost a little bit [with the] many injuries that I had. I lost the joy for the sport. I lost everything… That's for me what makes me feel alive.”
“Just feeling alive, it means that it's you. You're doing it for [yourself] and you're not thinking about anything else. This is what you love to do."
During grass court season, Berrittini's fitness concerns continued and he was unable to defend his 2022 Queen's title and withdrew from the competition. Although, the 27-year-old returned to produce an admirable performance at Wimbledon and reached the last 16 before losing to eventual winner Carlos Alcaraz.
Yet, the Italian admitted that the ongoing negativity around his injury led to a difficult mindset as he went into the third Grand Slam of the season.
“I felt not ready, I felt really kind of sad on court and at Queen's [Club] I felt my ab again. So I was like, this is a never-ending story. I saw everything dark. I thought there was going to be no chance that I was going to be able to play again, missing Wimbledon again after last year COVID. [I had] so many thoughts, negative thoughts.”
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