Mattia going wild?

The Italian knows how to transcend himself in big matches. He must not be underestimated!

Who would have thought the Italian would manage to break through the Etcheverry wall in three sets with his offensive and somewhat erratic game?

One set, maybe, but not more from my point of view. I didn’t see him “in a trance” like I did at Roland when he came through the qualifiers, possessed by a kind of supernatural force, and then went on to play five sets against Tiafoe. But I did see him being very proactive. He was the one looking to create play, to hurt, to take risks. And that attitude, in tennis as in life, always ends up paying off.

Nevertheless, a completely different match-up awaits him against a Landaluce who is starting to get a bit of a handle on the surface despite a very timid start to his clay-court season. The Spaniard dismissed Cilic like a boss, and believe me, that performance is never easy. He comes here already leading 3 wins from 3 matches against the Italian. Yes, but the conditions change here with the clay, the crowd, and an Italian who’s capable of transcending himself.

The weather will be good today, ideal temperatures for playing tennis. The Spaniard’s ball is going to do damage, and I’m afraid it won’t leave enough time for the Italian to fully express himself. For me it’s quite simple: if Bellucci tries to play him in a rhythm battle, wanting to play faster than him, he’s going to lose. If he adopts a clay-courter’s strategy with much loopier trajectories and 80% of his shots to the backhand, then maybe...