Former Italian player Nicola Pietrangeli takes dig at Matteo Berrettini, says he is dedicating himself more to advertising than to tennis
Nicola Pietrangeli, considered one of Italy's greatest men's players of all time, has taken a potshot at Matteo Berrettini, calling him a handsome-looking guy who does not move enough on the tennis court.
Speaking to the press in Rome where he was bestowed with a sporting achievement award, Pietrangeli remarked that Lorenzo Musetti is the best Italian player in the world right now. He also predicted a very bright future for Jannik Sinner, stating that the 21-year-old will do better than being just the Italian No. 1 in the future.
Legendary Nicola Pietrangeli on Matteo Berrettini:
“He is handsome but his legs don’t move the way they should on court”
“Too concerned with advertising/commercials/sponsors”
“Sinner is the best Italian player”
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Touching on Berrettini after that, the two-time former French Open champion opined that he was too dedicated to advertising than to tennis, likening him to Adriano Panatta in that respect. Panatta, the only Italian man to have won a Grand Slam in the Open Era, was a big proponent of not taking himself too seriously on the court and scored several endorsements from sponsors during his playing days.
"The one who currently plays best in Italy is Lorenzo Musetti, but Sinner certainly won't stop there. Will he win a Grand Slam? If I knew, I'd bet on it. It seems to me that [Matteo Berrettini] is dedicating himself more to advertising than to tennis," he said.
"He is a good boy, but he is a bit like Panatta was: fantastic from the waist up, but the legs [don’t move the way they should on court]."
Matteo Berrettini out of the top 20 after Australian Open exit
Matteo Berrettini, who has a career-best World No. 6 ranking, is now out of the top 20, thanks mainly to his premature exit at the Australian Open this year.
Having reached the semifinals last year, Berrettini exited in the first round in 2023, losing a five-setter against Andy Murray. The loss took him from Italian No. 1 to No. 3, with Jannik Sinner and Lorenzo Musetti both ahead of the 26-year-old now.
Interestingly, Berrettini has not signed up for any of the tournaments since then, leaving fans wondering where he will play next. The only update they received was when he shared a photo of himself training with Stefanos Tsitsipas in Monte-Carlo a few days back, following which there has been no other news.
Thankfully, the Italian doesn't have a lot of points to defend until the grass swing, as he missed much of the clay season last year due to injury. After a Round-of-16 exit at Indian Wells, Matteo Berrettini skipped the Miami Open and all three Masters 1000 events on clay as well as the French Open, meaning that he can quickly make up the rankings with a couple of good results in the coming days.