Matteo Berrettini is enjoying a new lease of life at Roland Garros, where he has just battled into the quarterfinals.
Berrettini defeated Juan Manuel Cerundolo 6-3, 7-6(7-2), 7-6(8-6) in the fourth round of the clay-court Grand Slam, exacting revenge for his compatriot Jannik Sinner.
He has expertly filled the void left by his fellow Italian, with Sinner having lost to Cerundolo in the second round of the tournament.
Significantly, however, Berrettini certainly isn’t the only Italian to have stepped up in Sinner’s absence at Roland Garros.
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Matteo Berrettini helps make Grand Slam history at Roland Garros
ATP icon Berrettini is joined in the quarterfinals of the Grand Slam by compatriots Flavio Cobolli and Matteo Arnaldi.
And their superb efforts mean three Italian players have reached the men’s singles quarterfinals at a Grand Slam for the first time in the Open Era.
It’s a hugely impressive feat for Italian tennis, and one that the trio involved can be very proud of.
Unfortunately, at least one of the players will exit at the quarterfinal stage, where Berrettini has been drawn against Arnaldi.
Meanwhile, Cobolli faces a tough test against fourth seed Felix Auger-Aliassime, with the winners of the two matches set to meet in the semifinals.
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Matteo Arnaldi breaks Grand Slam record with Roland Garros run
While Arnaldi joins Berrettini and Cobolli in a superb achievement, he has been making history on his own in Paris.
It is, however, somewhat of an unwanted record, with the Italian enduring a remarkably lengthy journey to the quarterfinals of Roland Garros.
He has now spent a stunning 17 hours and 42 minutes on court, which is almost two hours more than any other player has needed to reach a Grand Slam quarterfinal since the ATP started recording times in 1991.
| Roun | Opponent | Time |
| Round one | Tallon Griekspoor | 4hr 1m |
| Round two | Stefanos Tsitsipas | 3hr 17m |
| Round three | Raphael Collignon | 4hr 58m |
| Round four | Frances Tiafoe | 5hr 26m |
Intriguingly, his fellow quarterfinalist Joao Fonseca is now fifth in that all-time list with his total of 14 hours and 29 minutes at Roland Garros.
Meanwhile, American ace Frances Tiafoe, who fell to Arnaldi in round four, spent over 17 hours on the clay courts of Paris before his exit.
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