Matteo Berrettini has continued his impressive Middle Eastern swing after reaching the quarter-finals in Dubai.
Berrettini beat Novak Djokovic for the first time in Doha last week, en route to reaching the Qatar Open quarter-finals where he lost to eventual runner-up Jack Draper.
After the match, Djokovic praised Berrettini on social media and wished him the best of luck for the remainder of the tournament.
The Italian has continued his good form into the Dubai Tennis Championships, beating Gael Monfils and Christopher O’Connell to reach the last-eight.
Due to his recent form, Berrettini could be a dark horse for Indian Wells which will be his next tournament after the conclusion of his week in Dubai.
Matteo Berrettini calls for more consistency with ball changes
Although Berrettini is enjoying his time on the court at the moment, the world number 30 does appear to have concerns about the quality of the balls on the ATP Tour.
Frequent ball changes have been suggested to cause wrist injuries, elbow and shoulder injuries.
Berrettini, who underwent wrist surgery in March 2022, has voiced his concerns when speaking to The National.
“I feel like the balls are getting slower and slower all the time,” said Berrettini. “But at the same time what’s most important for us, I think, is consistency.
“We have to try with the same ball, at least on the same surface. We play on clay, we play with the same ball and the quality of the ball is really important, so for our injuries, and I know a lot about that, it’s really important.
“I personally like a lot the Dunlop balls, I think they’re the best. But again, everybody has different opinions.”
The Dunlop balls that Berrettini enjoys playing with are the ones that are used at the Dubai Tennis Championships.
What has Alexander Zverev previously said about frequent ball changes?
Berrettini is one of many people to have voiced his concerns, with Carlos Alcaraz also critical of frequent ball changes.
One of the most outspoken people on this topic is world number two Alexander Zverev, who spoke about balls last year.
“The ball is a significant issue,” Zverev said at the 2024 ATP Finals. “Being part of the players’ council, it was an interesting topic for me. I did some research and asked the companies about tennis ball production.
“Since COVID, all companies have declined significantly in quality. The main reason is that, due to COVID, the companies tried to cut costs using a different rubber material now.
“They are using a different material for the balls, making them on average 30% to 60% slower compared to how they used to be before COVID. It’s not just one company; overall, they are now worse and much slower, less consistent, and don’t last as long.”
Zverev could be in more bother after he elected to skip speaking to press following his second round loss in Acapulco.
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