Rio Open 2022: Matteo Berrettini vs Thiago Monteiro preview, head-to-head and prediction

Match Details

Fixture: (1) Matteo Berrettini vs Thiago Monteiro

Date: 17 February 2022

Tournament: Rio Open.

Round: Second round (Round of 16).

Venue: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Category: ATP 500.

Surface: Outdoor claycourt.

Prize money: $1,815,115.

Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Amazon Prime Video | India - Tennis TV

Matteo Berrettini vs Thiago Monteiro preview

Berrettini will be keen on winning the Rio Open this year

Top seed Matteo Berrettini will face Brazilian wildcard Thiago Monteiro in the second round of the Rio Open on Thursday.

The Italian did not make a great start to 2022 as he lost two of his three singles matches at the ATP Cup. Seeded No. 7 at the Australian Open, the Italian reached the third round following wins over Brandon Nakashima and Stefan Kozlov. He then survived a huge scare from Carlos Alcaraz, beating the young Spaniard in five sets.

Berrettini then beat Pablo Carreno Busta and Gael Monfils to make it to his third Grand Slam semifinal, where he lost to eventual champion Rafael Nadal in four sets. Berrettini's run at Melbourne Park saw him reach a career-high ranking of No. 6.

The Rio Open will be his first tournament since the Australian Open and he has been handed a bye into the second round.

Monteiro, meanwhile, started the year at the Adelaide International and reached the second round of the competition, where he lost to Marin Cilic in straight sets.

The Brazilian then qualified for the main draw of Adelaide International 2 and went on to reach the quarterfinals before losing to Corentin Moutet.

Monteiro exited in the first round of the Australian Open after losing to Benoit Paire in five sets. He suffered another opening-round exit at the Cordoba Open after losing to Pedro Martinez.

The 27-year-old then reached the second round of the Argentina Open, before losing to Fernando Verdasco.

Monteiro received a wildcard into the Rio Open and came from a set down to defeat qualifier Sebastian Baez and reach the second round of the competition.

Matteo Berrettini vs Thiago Monteiro head-to-head

This will be the first meeting between Berrettini and Monteiro so their head-to-head is currently 0-0. The winner of the match will face either seventh seed Carlos Alcaraz or Federico Delbonis in the quarterfinals.

Matteo Berrettini vs Thiago Monteiro prediction

Berrettini will be the overwhelming favorite to win the match given his ranking and recent form. The Italian is comfortable on all surfaces and produced some very good performances on clay last year, winning 14 of 18 matches. This included a run to the final of the Madrid Masters.

Berrettini only really has one approach to matches. He will look to be aggressive with his serve and forehand and dictate the points from the baseline.

Monteiro does not have too many weapons, but he is quick around the court and will look to extend the rallies and force Berrettini to hit extra balls. However, given the form the Italian has shown over the past few months, he is unlikely to stumble against a player of Monteiro's calibre.

Prediction: Berrettini to win in straight sets.

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Also Check Out: Rio Open Schedule 2022