Matteo Berrettini takes ‘pride’ in ‘playing better’ and knocking Novak Djokovic out of Qatar Open
World No.29 Matteo Berrettini clinched his first career win over Novak Djokovic in the first round of the Qatar Open.
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Novak Djokovic, Matteo Berrettini (Image via X)
Matteo Berrettini had decent campaigns in the Middle East Swing. The former World No.6 was pitted against Novak Djokovic in the Qatar Open first round and he shocked the Serb with a straight-set win.
Berrettini made it to the quarterfinal where eventual finalist Jack Draper came from a set down to beat him. The Italian reached back-to-back quarterfinals as he progressed to the last eight in Dubai where eventual winner Stefanos Tsitsipas knocked him out in three sets.
Berrettini is all set to kickstart his Sunshine Doubles campaign at the Indian Wells Open. The World No.29 will lock horns with a qualifier and ahead of his opening round match, the 28-year-old revisited his Doha clash with Djokovic.
And tell my kids, if I’m going to have them, or whoever’s going to ask me in the future. That first win was really good. At the same time, I feel like I won because I really played better than him, which is never easy to do. So, double pride, yeah.
Matteo Berrettini told Tennis TV
It was the 2021 Wimbledon finalist’s first victory over the 24-time Grand Slam champion. The 37-year-old, who is yet to win a title on the tour since the 2023 ATP Finals, will kick start his Indian Wells campaign against Nick Kyrgios or Botic van de Zandschulp.
Jay Clarke claims Andy Murray helped Novak Djokovic beat Carlos Alcaraz
British tennis player Jay Clarke said that compatriot Andy Murray can offer Novak Djokovic a lot of things as a coach. Murray joined Djokovic’s entourage last year after retirement from tennis and under him, the 10-time Australian Open champion progressed to the semifinals in this year’s Melbourne Slam.
Clarke, who has often practiced with the Scot, believes Murray’s advice at the Australian Open helped Djokovic reach the semifinals after eliminating World No.3 Carlos Alcaraz in the last eight. The 26-year-old thinks Djokovic, who has reached the twilight of his career, is in a similar situation as Murray with a lot of injury issues.
Maybe perspective, that you know, Djokovic is older now. He’s not as fit as maybe five or six years ago, and Andy played the last three or four years of his career with a metal hip. So he wasn’t as fit as well, but it’s just finding a way to win.
Jay Clarke told Sportskeeda
The World No.7 will be entering the Indian Wells Open as the player with the most titles (five). Last year, he was knocked out of the third round by Luca Nardi. The ATP 1000 event in the Californian desert will mark Djokovic’s first tournament since his Qatar Open exit.
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