Berrettini, yet another withdrawal by the Roman has raised so many doubts about his future. The truth is all in this confession.
He smiled and carried the backpack containing his rackets on his shoulders. The photo of him at the airport, happy at the thought of leaving for Australia, was from just a few days ago. But so much has changed since then that it actually feels as if months and months have passed since that snapshot.
In the meantime, we believed, the moment that snapshot was shared online, that the worst was behind us. That Matteo Berrettini was ready to sweep away the bad memories of 2023 and start anew. With newfound enthusiasm and with a brand new and experienced coach by his side. We could not have imagined that none of this would actually happen in Melbourne. We did not yet know that the Roman would not play a single match as part of the Australian Open, which has been in full swing for a few days.
There is much confusion around the Roman champion’s situation, but it seems that the withdrawal is due, once again, to a problem with his right foot. The same problem he began to deal with last August 31, in the middle of the Us Open. Or, it is possible that the injury is actually over, but that Berrettini did the math and realized that it would be smarter to be patient for a while and take advantage of the protected ranking, rather than debut against Stefanos Tsitsipas and cash in on a – frankly inevitable – defeat.
Berrettini, no surprises: he’s been like this forever
Whatever the reason, the fact remains that Berrettini’s situation seems to be deteriorating by the day. The former No. 1 of Italy is slipping further and further in the rankings – he is now 124th – and the road is going to get more and more uphill with such a placement within the ranking.
What everyone would like to understand at this point, however, is how it is possible for Matteo to get injured all the time. What are really the limits of his physique and how can one, assuming it is possible, get out of this tunnel that has ended up irreparably compromising his career.
There is an answer to this dilemma and it has been provided, just in the past few hours, by Vincenzo Santopadre. The former coach of the Roman, interviewed by Repubblica, said something rather eloquent on the subject: “He has a peculiar physique,” he said referring to Berrettini, “He has always had to worry more about staying healthy than playing. A problem with distant roots, then, and one that may not be so easily solved at this point. Especially if, as we fear, these problems continue to affect his mental strength. Which was, in Matteo’s heyday, his added value.
