Coco Gauff’s Former Coach Reacts to Matteo Berrettini–Lorenzo Musetti Fallout Over Ex-Girlfriend’s Cheating Rumors: “Nothing Surprises Me”

Grad Gilbert, the former coach of Coco Gauff, Andre Agassi, Andy Roddick, and Andy Murray, has reacted to the rumors of a fallout between Italian stars Matteo Berrettini and Lorenzo Musetti. According to Gilbert, tensions due to personal stuff are nothing new on the men’s tour.

During the recently concluded Lyon Open, rumors circulated about Musetti having an affair with Berrettini’s ex-girlfriend, Vanessa Bellini. The rumors also claim Musetti has broken up with partner Veronica Confalonieri, also the mother of his two children.

Berrettini, who was part of Italy’s Davis Cup-winning teams in the previous two seasons, is left out of the squad this time, with fans believing the tensions between the two could be the reason why one of the players was not added to the team. Amid this, Berrettini’s awkward on-court interview following his win over Tomas Martin Etcheverry in the first round of the Vienna Open went viral.

When the interviewer asked him about Musetti’s Lyon Open triumph, Berrettini asked him, “Is it live?” and, after an awkward laugh, said, “It’s okay. I know he worked really hard to come back and I guess he deserved it.” Reacting to the rumors on The Big T Podcast‘s ‘Italian tennis drama’ segment, Gilbert said:

This is not the first compadres to have some issues with each other. There have been numerous things like this. I can remember in the 1981 Davis Cup final, USA versus Argentina. When Jose Luis Clerc and Guillermo Vilas were playing [John] McEnroe and [Peter] Fleming, one would come over on the changeover and sit, and the other would go to the other side of the court. And the match ended up being 11-9 in the fifth (to the USA), they didn’t even talk to each other.

Both Musetti and Berrettini are competing in Vienna. The 24-year-old beat Frances Tiafoe and scheduled his second-round match against Arthur Fery. Berrettini will face compatriot Flavio Cobolli in the second round.

So, huge controversy. For years, the Czech guys have had issues. In today’s social media, nothing surprises me. We had blowups and maybe almost fisticuffs in the locker room over things like this. These days, with Twitter, you don’t know exactly [what happened], but like I said, these kind of things have happened forever in men’s tennis.

Brad Gilbert added

Musetti finally ended his title drought by beating Taylor Fritz in Lyon, winning his first title since the 2022 Tennis Napoli Cup. It was his second final of the season following the Hong Kong Open, which he lost to Alexander Bublik.

Brad Gilbert reacts to Aryna Sabalenka’s slump in form

Brad Gilbert also discussed Aryna Sabalenka‘s struggles on court this year on The Big T Podcast. Gilbert said that once top players like her start losing, the locker room starts thinking that she is beatable.

Remember that match she lost against [Hailey] Baptiste? She had six or seven match points. At the French [Open], she was up a set and 5-1 against [Diana] Shnaider [and lost]. So she’s let some big leads slip away. She needs to get back to competing and finding a way not to let matches slip away.

The Belarusian ace has already qualified for the WTA Finals. She last played at the Wuhan Open, where Ann Li upset her in the opening round.

Sabalenka has never won the WTA Finals, though she has reached the title clash twice, in 2022 and 2025. Last year, Elena Rybakina beat her.

Rybakina also denied her the wins in the finals of this year’s Australian Open and the US Open. Sabalenka has played five finals this season, winning in Brisbane, Indian Wells, and Miami, and losing in Melbourne and New York.

Also read: Carlos Alcaraz Reveals Why He Was ‘Unhappy’ During Practice Session in Vienna