After Great Escape, Berrettini To Face Thiem

Matteo Berrettini survived a major scare on Friday at the EFG Swiss Open Gstaad, rallying past fifth seed Pedro Martinez 3-6, 7-6(5), 6-1 to reach the semi-finals and extend his winning streak to 11 matches.

The Italian was on the brink of defeat in the second-set tie-break, trailing 1/5. However, the second seed found his best level just in time, reeling off six consecutive points to clinch the set, before he raced away in the third set to advance after two hours and 16 minutes.

“Sometimes it is just tennis. It is a crazy sport. At 1/5 I thought I was done. Then I played two good points and it was 3/5 and I thought ‘let’s try’,” Berrettini said in his on-court interview. “I don’t think I played my best match here. But sometimes it is important to win when you are not playing well. I managed to find some energy inside me and I am really happy to be through.”

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The 26-year-old will next play Austrian Dominic Thiem after the former World No. 3 continued to gather momentum with a 6-4, 6-3 victory over Peruvian qualifier Juan Pablo Varillas. Berrettini leads Thiem 3-2 in their ATP Head2Head series.

“Dominic has had an unbelievable career,” Berrettini said. “He is a Slam champion and he got injured, but he is coming back. I saw some of him today and his level is coming back, so it is going to be a tough match. We always play great matches, so tomorrow will be a good one.”

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Berrettini overcame Richard Gasquet in his opening match at the ATP 250 clay-court event to earn victory on his return to Tour, after missing Wimbledon due to Covid. He lifted trophies on grass in Stuttgart and London in June after missing the spring clay swing in Europe due to a right hand injury.

The 26-year-old, currently No. 14 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings, is making his second appearance in Gstaad, having not dropped a set en route to the title in 2018.

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In other action, reigning champion Casper Ruud moved to within two wins of retaining his title in Gstaad, defeating Jaume Munar 7-6(3), 7-6(4) in two hours and 18 minutes.

The Norwegian saved two set points on serve at 4-5 in the second set, before holding his nerve in the tie-break to improve to 2-0 in their ATP Head2Head series. Ruud is aiming to clinch his third title of the season this week, having triumphed in Buenos Aires and Geneva.

The 23-year-old, who now holds a 14-0 record in Switzerland, will next face fourth seed Albert Ramos-Vinolas or Chilean Nicolas Jarry.