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Match Details
Fixture: (7) Matteo Berrettini vs Lorenzo Sonego
Tournament: Boss Open 2023
Round: First Round (Round of 32)
Venue: Stuttgart, Germany
Category: ATP 250
Surface: Outdoor grass
Prize money: €718,410
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | Canada - TSN | UK - Amazon Prime
Matteo Berrettini vs Lorenzo Sonego preview
Defending champion Matteo Berrettini will open his Stuttgart campaign against World No. 48 Lorenzo Sonego in an all-Italian first-round clash.
With this match, Berrettini will be making his comeback to the tour after two months. An abdominal injury that he suffered at the Monte-Carlo Masters necessitated his withdrawal from his Round-of-16 showdown with Holger Rune. Having failed to recover on time, the World No. 20 had to sit out of the remainder of the clay season.
Berrettini had begun the 2023 season in fine fashion, steering Team Italy to the final of the United Cup, where they finished runners-up to Team USA. The 27-year-old beat Casper Ruud and Hubert Hurkacz, but lost to Stefanos Tsitsipas and Taylor Fritz at the competition.
Berrettini also made the quarterfinals of Acapulco and at the ATP Challenger event in Phoenix before suffering his latest injury.
Lorenzo Sonego, meanwhile, has a 15-14 win-loss record for the year. He is coming to Stuttgart after equaling his career-best record at Roland Garros with a fourth-round finish.
The 28-year-old played some fantastic tennis to beat the likes of seventh seed Andrey Rublev, 30th seed Ben Shelton and Ugo Humbert. Sonego's spirited run was ultimately ended by 11th seed Karen Khachanov in four sets in the Round of 16.
Other than that, the 48th-ranked player reached the quarterfinals in Montpellier and Dubai, as well as the Round of 16 in Miami.
Matteo Berrettini vs Lorenzo Sonego head-to-head
Berrettini has a 1-0 lead in the head-to-head over his countryman, Sonego. They met right here in the quarterfinals of Stuttgart a year ago, where Berrettini came through 3-6, 6-3, 6-4.
Matteo Berrettini vs Lorenzo Sonego odds
(Odds sourced from BetMGM)
Matteo Berrettini vs Lorenzo Sonego prediction
Although Sonego has never beaten Berrettini, this might be his biggest opportunity to open his account against his more-fancied compatriot.
Armed with a booming serve and an equally deadly forehand, the former Wimbledon runner-up has all the attributes needed to play well on grass. But Berrettini will be playing after a gap of a couple of months, which could make him slightly rusty.
Sonego, on the other hand, will be arriving in Stuttgart full of confidence following a fabulous campaign at the French Open. Buoyed by his three wins, especially a five-setter victory over Rublev, the Italian will be eager to carry on the momentum on grass.
The World No. 48 is more comfortable playing on faster surfaces. He hits flat groundstrokes with power and depth off both wings. This is further corroborated by the fact that two of Sonego's five ATP singles finals have come on grass, although a title on the surface is still missing.
Sonego managed to stretch Berrettini the last time they met in Stuttgart and will be keen not to repeat the mistakes he committed a year ago. If the lower-ranked Italian can keep attacking the vulnerable Berrettini backhand and can keep his own unforced errors to a minimum, he has a good chance of causing an upset.
Pick: Lorenzo Sonego to win in three sets.
