A Good Preparation

Berrettini just played Zeppieri, who is a left-handed player...

Honestly, that was such good practice for Matteo for this match. Because yes, he just played a lefty that plays quite attacking tennis, similar to Ugo! Well, the issue is... that Humbert is a way better player than Zeppieri ;) I find the slower conditions somewhat of a double-edged sword for Matteo... his strongest attribute, the serve, is a lot more vulnerable. However, he can get into the opponent's service games a lot more, which tends to be a weakness for him on faster surfaces. As for the rallies, it's all good for him as long as he can dictate enough with his forehand to maintain control of the rallies. Once he is not able to do that, it becomes very problematic... because the opponents can force him to defend and exploit his backhand, especially with his slice having limited effectiveness on these courts. Having said that, I liked his effort when he had to hustle around the baseline in his match against Zeppieri. As for Humbert, his form has not been good for a while now, a lot of it due to injuries. At least we did get to see a good match from him against Thompson before losing to Rune (in Shanghai), who is a tough matchup for him. We also know that indoor hardcourt is by far his best surface. I have more faith in him to exploit Matteo's weaknesses more than Zeppieri did, but his form, along with Berrettini having played a match already here against a lefty, makes it complicated. Could we see a big battle here...?