Berrettini Wins Rio Opener After Lengthy Rain Delay

Matteo Berrettini had to wait an extra day to start his Rio de Janeiro campaign. Then he had to wait a little longer to wrap up a 6-4, 6-7(6), 6-3 win over home favourite Thiago Monteiro after failing to convert on two match points in the second set.

Thursday’s rain pushed the second-round match back by a day, and Friday’s showers halted the contest just after the Italian rocketed a forehand winner to bring up break point at 3-4 in the third.

“Everything was really difficult,” said the World No. 6, who was playing his first clay-court match since Roland Garros. “But you have to [go through] that in order to be in this kind of position in the rankings. At these kinds of tournaments, you have to play your best tennis in the important moments. Today worked out really well, especially in the first and the third, so I’m really happy about that.”

After a six-hour delay, they returned with the match on a knife’s edge. Monteiro saved that break point with a big serve to the Berrettini backhand, but clipped the net cord on a second as the Italian closed in on the quarter-finals.

Relying on his usual recipe of big serves and big forehands, Berrettini got to triple match point. After the Brazilian battled back to 40/30, the top seed caressed a clever drop shot to close it out.

Just nine points were required following the resumption of play, and the match finished after 11:30 p.m.

Before the rain, Berrettini won the opening set without facing a break point, but fell behind at 4-1 and 5-2 in the second. He stopped Monteiro from serving out the set at 5-3, then saved a set point on serve in the next game. It was the Brazilian’s turn for a comeback in the tie-break, as he saved two match points in erasing a 5-2 deficit. From 6-4 down, Monteiro won the final four points of the set.

The third set remained on serve until Berrettini’s late charge.

This was the top seed’s first ATP Tour action since his semi-final run at the Australian Open, where he lost to eventual champion Rafael Nadal in four sets. He could face a rematch with Carlos Alcaraz next, one month after he beat the Spaniard in a fifth-set tie-break in the AO third round. 

The seventh-seeded Alcaraz was two points from taking the opening set against Federico Delbonis on Thursday before rain stopped the match at 5-4, 30/15. Following Berrettini’s win, more rain has delayed the resumption of that match on Quadra Guga Kuerten.