Jacopo Berrettini, brother of Matteo, had 'best night' of his life at Mexican Open - and then beat Oscar Otte
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Published 01/03/2023 at 12:35 GMT
Jacopo Berrettini said he had the "best night of my life" after qualifying for the Mexican Open main draw, and things have got even better after he won again against Oscar Otte in the first round. Jacopo, the younger brother of former Wimbledon finalist Matteo, had never qualified for an ATP event before this week but says his brother is his "inspiration" as he looks for further success.
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After the Mexican Open field was significantly weakened by the withdrawals of Carlos Alcaraz, Stefanos Tsitsipas and Cameron Norrie, who would have thought it would be given some added intrigue by the world No. 842?
Jacopo Berrettini, the younger brother of world No. 24 Matteo Berrettini, hadn’t ever played an ATP main-draw match before this week. In four previous ATP Tour qualifying attempts he had failed to win a set.
His hopes of making use of the Acapulco qualifying wild card, which his brother seemingly helped secure, looked slim when he lost the first set of his opening match 6-0 to Geoffrey Blancaneaux.
However, he not only found another level to beat third seed Blancaneaux, 0-6 6-4 6-4, but he then toppled fellow Italian Luciano Darderi in straight sets to qualify for the main draw.
“It was probably the best night of my life,” Berrettini, who before this week last played in a Futures tournament – the third tier of men's professional tennis – told the ATP.
Berrettini celebrated qualification with his brother and their shared team before turning his attention to his first-ever ATP main draw match against Oscar Otte.
With 764 ranking places between the pair, it seemed unlikely that Berrettini would top his achievements in qualifying for the tournament – but he did.
After dropping the first set, Berrettini saved a break point in the first game of the second set and then broke in the next game to move 2-0 ahead. Big-server Otte got back on level terms and took the set to a tie-break, where it was Berrettini who prevailed.
Watched on by packed stands, Berrettini levelled the contest at one-set all with a fine forehand winner down the line. The world No. 842 soon secured the win when Otte retired with injury after being broken to love at the start of the third set.
“It was really a special moment, obviously," said Matteo Berrettini, who also advanced into the last 16 after a retirement, about his brother’s success this week.
"Especially because he was having a tough moment the last couple of years, with Covid and for so many reasons. Also, he got injured many times and he couldn't really perform the way he wanted to. I was really happy for him."
Jacopo will next face Alex de Minaur, while Matteo meets Elias Ymer. If both were to win two more matches then they would meet in the semi-finals in Acapulco.
Jacopo, whose career-high ranking is No. 388, shares a coach with his older brother when he travels with him, and also gets the benefit of using his trainer and physio. They are staying in the same house this week and played doubles together at the Mexican Open, losing in the first round.
Even though Jacopo has been enjoying his own success in Acapulco, he has left little doubt how important Matteo is to him.
"Without him [none of this] would be possible," he said. "Not just for the wild card but for everything. He is my inspiration, he is really a true champion and really a very good person.
"For me, he's the most important person in my life. I really want to say thanks to him. It's really nice to have him here, and in general in my life.
"I came here with not good vibes. But I was trying from the first match to fight a lot, and I think I did it. My team, my family helped me a lot. For me, it's really important to have them here."
Jacopo’s wins this week are set to catapult him up into the top 500 in the rankings. A shock win over De Minaur would push him even higher, and make an already memorable week even more special.
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