Matteo Berrettini has joined an increasingly lengthy list of players who have pulled out of the Italian Open, as he was forced to abandon his plans of playing in front of his home fans.
The 2021 Wimbledon finalist has been battling injury problems over the last couple of years, but he made a successful comeback on the ATP Challenger Tour as he won a tournament in Phoenix in March.
The Italian was hoping that would kick-start his return to the full-time tennis tour, but his injury problems are refusing to relent and now he has been forced to withdraw from the ATP 1000 event on home soil.
Berrettini burst back into the top 100 of the ATP rankings after his win in Phoenix, but his hopes of making his mark on the red dirt in Rome and possibly at the French Open must are now in doubt.
“I just want to talk to you guys and say personally I’m not going to be able to play tomorrow. I’m not ready to perform and to give my best on court,” he told the media in Rome.
“I tried everything because this tournament is extra special for me.
“I have to put away my heart, I would say, use my brain a little bit more, and think about what’s most important for me, which is my health and not getting injured again, not being away from the courts for months potentially.
“It’s with a lot of sadness that I have to pull out. Just think about this tournament for 2025 and hopefully nothing is going to happen.
“Maybe wish that’s something is going to happen so nothing is going to happen. Extra sad again for me pulling out.”
READ MORE: Novak Djokovic sends out ominous French Open warning and reveals new fitness coach
With Jannik Sinner already missing out on the chance to play in front of the Italian fans, Berretini’s exit is another blow to an event that will also be without world No 3 Carlos Alcaraz.
The number of injuries affecting top players has been a theme in the men’s draw during the Madrid Open and now in Italy, with world No 5 Alexander Zverev suggesting the extended ATP 1000 tournaments are an extra challenge for the game’s top players.
“I think the two-week Masters 1000 events are great for players that are ranked between 50 and 100 in the world because they get a chance to play a main-draw event at a Masters 1000 event. I think it’s not great for top-10 players. It’s as simple as that,” said Zverev.
“You do get told you have a day in between, you don’t have to play every day. At the end of the day, that’s not resting.
“Resting is when you’re spending time at home, when you’re sleeping in your own bed, maybe with your family, maybe with your dogs, maybe with your kids if you have kids, right? That’s what resting is. A day between matches, if you’re at a different place, that’s not resting.
“If you’re going deep in events, if you’re trying to, like Jannik and Carlos, I guess that’s who we’re talking about here. If you’re trying to make semifinals or finals of every event, you’re just away a lot longer, and you have to work a lot more.”
