At Wimbledon, Matteo Berrettini set for derby-rival with Lorenzo Sonego

At Wimbledon, Matteo Berrettini set for derby-rival with Lorenzo Sonego

Matteo Berrettini wants to erase a year that has been extremely bad as far as tennis is concerned: a year ago he was blocked by Covid on the eve of an edition of which he was perhaps the big favorite, then a whole series of physical problems, but now he is ready to return to Wimbledon and play the first round against Lorenzo Sonego, a sort of rematch of the all-Italian derby played in Stuttgart and ended with Sonego’s clear victory and Berrettini’s tears. Here are the words of the Roman tennis player in the press conference.

“I’ve been better and I arrived with more confidence, but I really want to enjoy the derby and the emotions on the court, the excitement, the adrenaline, the tension. In these months of stop I always wondered what I liked to do most. And round and round I always answered that I wanted to compete. So here I am, hungry for excitement.”

After the controversy and insults over his relationship with Melissa Satta, Berrettini decided to stop looking at social media: “I don’t look at any comments, neither positive nor negative so as not to waste energy. I just want to focus on working hard, my team, family. The tears in Stuttgart? It was because I didn’t have fun, I didn’t feel the adrenaline and I was waiting for that moment so much. But now I am here, ready to give everything I have.”