Pablo Carreño says goodbye to the Australian Open in the round of 16. Just as happened to his compatriot, friend and training partner Carlos Alcaraz , the man from Gijón was unable to beat Matteo Berrettini (7-5, 7-6, 6-4) in a match decided in three sets and in which the Italian was better at key moments. The first two sets could have gone either way but the number 7 in the draw was more incisive and helped with the power of his serve and his forehand made the difference.
Carreño had assured that he would ask the Alcaraz team , commanded by Juan Carlos Ferrero , apparently in the third round match and thus glimpse the possible weak points of Berrettini , another member of that intermediate generation that seems ready to make the leap and win the ranking. The Italian has a very specific recipe: sticks and more sticks with the serve and with the right.
Thus, the first set was decided by details, which came to the fore after 5-5. Carreño had managed to survive and his options were intact, but a game of doubts at the service gave Berrettini the long-awaited break with which to close the first set in his favor.
The clash was equal but the loss of the first set would affect Pablo in a new decisive moment, the tie-break of the second set. There, aware of the strength of the Italian giant on serve, Carreño was not solid with his, letting two points pass on serve that earned him the loss of the second set.
Already in the third, fatigue began to take its toll on both contenders, but Berrettini ‘s greatest inspiration once again bore fruit in the decisive game, when everything pointed to a decision in the key stage. The Italian goes to the quarterfinals, where he will face Monfils , and is confirmed as the executioner of Spanish tennis at the Australian Open .
