Matteo Berrettini suffered an injury earlier this year, which saw him miss several months of action.
The Italian star was last seen in action at Wimbledon, where Berrettini lost in round one to Poland’s Kamil Majchrzak.
He subsequently withdrew from the sequence of events leading up to and including the US Open while he recovered from injury.
During this period, some questioned whether Berrettini could be forced into an early retirement, as he missed his seventh Grand Slam since 2022.
Proving he still has more to give, Berrettini returned to tennis in China, but how did he perform in his opening match?
Matteo Berrettini lost in straight sets to world number 99 Dalibor Svrcina
Berrettini was drawn against Czech youngster Dalibor Svrcina in the first round of the Hangzhou Open.
The Italian didn’t take long to get up to speed, but couldn’t quite keep up with the world number 99.
In straight sets, Berrettini lost to Svrcina 3-6, 3-6, extending his ATP Tour losing streak to three matches.
Matteo Berrettini’s losing streak
- 2025 Italian Open 3R – Matteo Berrettini lost to Casper Ruud
- 2025 Wimbledon 1R – Matteo Berrettini lost to Kamil Majchrzak
- 2025 Hangzhou Open 1R – Matteo Berrettini lost to Dalibor Svrcina
Berrettini’s second serve let him down against the Czech youngster, winning just 32% of his points behind the shot as he was broken three times.
| Player | Aces | Double faults | 1st Serve % | Win % on 1st Serve | Win % on 2nd Serve | Break points |
| Matteo Berrettini | 7 | 1 | 59% | 73% | 32% | 0/1 |
| Dalibor Svrcina | 1 | 2 | 73% | 78% | 75% | 3/6 |
Svrcina was unsurprisingly delighted with the win, making the most of his lucky loser spot.
“I wasn’t the favorite coming into this match, so I just wanted to come here, enjoy playing freely,” he said.
“Yesterday I lost in the qualies so I’m happy I got the chance to play again, and I think I made the most of it.
“I’m very happy that I managed to win today. Matteo [Berrettini] is an incredible player; he is coming [back] after an injury, so he is obviously not where he wants to be yet, but I’m very happy that I got the win today, and this is the biggest win of my career so far.”
He’ll now advance to play either Yunchaokete Bu or Zhang Zhizhen in the second round on Saturday, September 20, but what’s next for Berrettini?
Where will Matteo Berrettini play next?
The former Wimbledon finalist is scheduled to play two more events in Asia before heading back to Europe for the last few months of the year.
- Japan Open (ATP 500) – Begins Wednesday, September 24
- Shanghai Masters (Masters 1000) – Begins Wednesday, October 1
- Stockholm Open (ATP 250) – Begins Monday, October 13
He’ll be hoping for a few strong results between now and the end of the season to maintain his place in the world’s top 100.
Berrettini currently sits 70th in the ‘Live ATP Race to Turin’, and is yet to surpass 1,000 points in 2025.
| Rank | Name | Country | Points |
| 1 | Carlos Alcaraz | Spain | 10,540 |
| 2 | Jannik Sinner | Italy | 7,950 |
| 5 | Ben Shelton | USA | 3,710 |
| 8 | Lorenzo Musetti | Italy | 3,070 |
| 10 | Felix Auger-Aliassime | Canada | 2,705 |
| 25 | Stefanos Tsitsipas | Greece | 1,425 |
| 50 | Marton Fucsovics | Hungary | 860 |
| 70 | Matteo Berrettini | Italy | 710 |
| 75 | Juan Manuel Cerundolo | Argentina | 672 |
| 100 | Arthur Cazaux | France | 518 |
He trails his countryman, Lorenzo Musetti, the player occupying the last ATP Finals qualification spot by 2,360 points.
Berrettini last appeared at the ATP Finals in 2021, when he lost a thrilling opening set to Alexander Zverev in front of his home fans in Turin before withdrawing due to injury.
Once a consistent top ten player, it’s hard to imagine Berrettini returning to the tour finals anytime soon, with his recurring injury problems.
Never one to give up without a fight, Berrettini will try to take a positive step forward at the Japan Open, which begins on Wednesday, September 24.
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