What’s Going on With Matteo Berrettini?

The Cincinnati Open starts in a week, and several players have already withdrawn: Grigor Dimitrov, who will skip the US Open as well; Hubert Hurkacz, who won’t play in New York either; Jack Draper and Alexander Bublik, who both forfeited in Toronto but plan to return for Flushing Meadows.

Then there’s Matteo Berrettini, who is missing his fourth consecutive tournament, having not defended his titles in Kitzbuhel and Gstaad and having skipped the Canadian Open. This situation has tennis fans quite worried, as Berrettini’s health—both physical and mental—is shrouded in mystery.

A Career Marked by Injuries

Matteo Berrettini has been dealing with injuries since the beginning of his career. 2021 was his best year, as he reached the Wimbledon final and lost only to Novak Djokovic. Over time, he has established himself as one of the best players of his generation, especially on grass. However, Berrettini has struggled with consistency and injuries, never managing to play a full season injury-free.

2024 seemed like a new beginning for him. He won three ATP titles, fulfilled a lifelong dream of winning the Davis Cup, and secured the Comeback Player of the Year award at the 2024 ATP Awards.

But in 2025, everything started all over again. He earned his first career win over Novak Djokovic in Doha—a highlight of the season—before being forced to take a break due to an injury sustained at the Italian Open, his hometown tournament, during a second-round match against Casper Ruud.

Berrettini’s Frustration

He couldn’t hold back the tears as he left the court. In the press conference (translation from Google), he said:

“Rome was one of my goals; I didn’t want to retire. The doctors are tired of seeing me too.”

A few weeks later, he withdrew from the French Open, though there was little concern at the time since his priority was the upcoming grass season. However, he also pulled out of Stuttgart and Queen’s.

Berrettini did make it to London to play Wimbledon and even won an exhibition match at the Giorgio Armani Tennis Classic. But his journey on British grass ended far sooner than he had hoped, as he lost in the first round to Kamil Majchrzak in a five-setter. He didn’t play badly, but he seemed to lack the fire in his eyes—the fighting spirit he had always shown throughout his career.

After the match, he spoke to the Italian journalists (translation from Google) and admitted:

“Maybe I’m a little tired, tired of always having to chase things. Being on the court like this isn’t what I want. It’s normal to be down after everything that’s happened these past years, and now I need time to reflect and understand.”

A Mental Struggle?

These words hinted at something deeper: while Berrettini has been focused on his body, he may have neglected his mental health. From the outside, it seems more likely that he is skipping tournaments because, psychologically, he doesn’t feel ready to compete rather than because he is still injured.

Still, these are just hypotheses. It has been a month since his last social media post, and the only recent sign of life came from a video published by an influencer in Monte-Carlo.