Matteo Berrettini had arrived in Wimbledon at the nadir of his career after a nightmare 18 months filled with injuries and despair. As new ailments frequently sprung up and old wounds failed to heal, his body was crumbling under the strain of professional tennis. He spent his days before the tournament considering whether it would be worthwhile to simply withdraw.
Instead, he chose to play, tearing through the draw to reach the second week. On Monday, the Italian provided Carlos Alcaraz with one of the most difficult tests of his young career on the grass court, yet Alcaraz responded to the challenge supremely. After trailing by a set, the top seed recovered to reach the Wimbledon quarter-finals for the first time in his career, defeating Berrettini 3-6, 6-3, 6-3, 6-3.
It is, perhaps, Alcaraz’s best career grass-court victory and a signifier of the progress he continues to make on the surface. A former Wimbledon finalist in 2021, Berrettini has won four of his seven career ATP titles on grass and he is a rare player of this generation whose strengths are actually accentuated on this surface. After losing the opening set, the top seed stepped up and thoroughly outplayed him.
Before the tournament, it seemed unlikely that the 27-year-old would play any role past the opening round. After an injury-ravaged 2022 season, which included being forced to withdraw from Wimbledon because of Covid, his struggles this season left him in bed for days, thinking about all the events that had passed him by.
Upon his return from an abdominal injury at the beginning of the grass season in Stuttgart, Berrettini was demolished 6-1, 6-2 by Lorenzo Sonego and he left the court in tears. After withdrawing from Queen’s Club a week later, he doubted whether his body would last a match at Wimbledon.
From being a non-entity at the start of the tournament, though, Berrettini’s form exploded. En route to the fourth round, he defeated Alex de Minaur and Alexander Zverev in straight sets without losing serve in either match. He stepped on to Centre Court against the top seed as one of the in-form players in the draw.
As the Spaniard imposed his game, Berrettini’s confidence was reflected in how readily he navigated difficult moments in opening service games, saving three break points in the first set. Each time Alcaraz loomed, Berrettini kept him at arm’s length with a big serve or wicked forehand. His mediocre two-handed backhand, targeted by all, initially held up.
After keeping himself alive in the first set, Berrettini pounced at 4-3, demonstrating the delicate touches in his game that suit grass courts so well as he elicited a break point by winning a breathless cat-and-mouse rally, an excellent lob allowing him to slam down an overhead winner. After taking the first break, Berrettini comfortably served out the set.
Despite trailing by a set, the world No 1 could still take solace from his level of play despite failing to take his opportunities. Against one of the best servers in the world, Alcaraz was able to impose pressure in most return games.
He forced himself back into the match with more stellar returns, constantly taking the initiative with his explosive forehand and bringing Berrettini forward with his usual mixture of drop shots. His recovery included one of the shots of the tournament as he flicked a backhand around the net post at full sprint for a clean winner. Alcaraz broke serve early and saw out the set.
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As Alcaraz’s game flowed, his far greater returning, athleticism and the freedom with which he struck his forehand marked the difference between them, Berrettini struggled to keep up. As night fell and the Centre Court roof was closed, Alcaraz finished with one final explosive forehand to move on.
With his victory, Alcaraz ensured there will be another chapter in the rivalry between the two outstanding young players on the tour as Alcaraz faces Holger Rune, his fellow 20‑year‑old.
Rune, the sixth seed, also reached his first Wimbledon quarter-final by defeating Grigor Dimitrov 3-6, 7-6 (6), 7-6 (4), 6-3. Wednesday will mark the first time in the open era that two players under the age of 21 contest a Wimbledon quarter-final against each other.
