Ah!
No one was expecting it, and the guy comes back and wins Chengdu!
The Spaniard is on fire, and he’s just beaten all kinds of opponents in Chengdu. But overall, even Muller and JM Cerundolo were forced to play aggressively in the high-altitude conditions in Chengdu. So we’ve got a Foki who’s already well in rhythm, able to fully use his strengths as a solid counterpuncher with his buffalo legs. In the final, he made Hubby play on the return and went on the attack in the rallies. And if you’re wondering, I didn’t find him tired at all. The break did him a world of good!
On Berrettini’s side, he keeps skipping quite a few tournaments to focus on the big ones. Except lately, things have been stalling a bit. We were surprised by how vulnerable he was on the return against Navone. And every time an opponent can pin him on his backhand and neutralize his forehand and serve, it really hurts. I’m thinking of Navone of course, but also Fonseca in Monte Carlo. A good Foki is bad news for him in terms of match-up. He’s going to have to serve absolute steel the whole match and use his skimming slice without restraint on these low-bouncing courts.
But Foki is a Swiss army knife. Their last two meetings were very tight. I think it’s because Berrettini turns the match into a mental battle, and he’s better than Foki in that department. Except in Chengdu, the Spaniard really impressed us all with how he handled the pressure...
