Novak Djokovic vs Matteo Berrettini: Will Novak win the meeting?

The next opponent for world number one Novak Djokovic at the American Majors will be Italian Matteo Berrettini, number eight in the ATP rankings. The boys have played each other three times, on different surfaces and exclusively at top tournaments.

Given that Novak lost each set to Rune, Nishikori, and Brooksby, it can hardly be said that the Serb is in peak form right now. The Balkan has been admirable in the seeding, but his three losses leave him very unlikely to overcome the deficit in the deciding games. On the other hand, Berrettini is quite a comfortable opponent for Novak, so it is unlikely that the Italian will knock the world number one out of the draw.

He’s just a hammer of tennis. I think he has the most powerful serve and forehand combination since Del Potro. He has a deadly first shot after his serve. He established himself as a Top Tennis player a long time ago. I think Matteo played in the semi-finals in New York a couple of years ago, and this season he played in the Wimbledon final, where we had a tough 4 set match. If he serves well, it won’t be easy for me because it’s his main weapon. He’s dangerous on any surface. We had very tough matches at Roland Garros and Wimbledon. It’s our third Slam in a row. I hope it will be the same as the first two.

Novak Djokovic ahead of his match against Matteo Berrettini

Matteo lost twice to Djokovic in the 2021 season, first in the quarter-finals of Roland Garros, where Novak won his set on a tie-break. And afterward, in the Wimbledon final, where the Italian again took the game on a tie-break. Directly in New York, Matteo knocked Shardi, Moute, Iwaszka, and Otte out of the draw for a total of four games Berrettini lost at the tournament.

I feel I’m on the same level as Zverev, Medvedev, Thiem, and Tsitsipas, both in terms of rankings and level of play with each other. I think they understand that. Unfortunately, I’ve been hampered twice by injuries this year, but I’ve always shown I’m playing on par.

Matteo Berrettini before the crucial matches at the US Open

We are expecting Novak in the semi-finals of the American Majors. However, it is unlikely that the bout against the Italian will be an easy walk for the Serb. Although surfaces in Melbourne and New York are not much different, at least that is what many tennis players say, Novak Djokovic has had frequent problems with results on the American Majors. Berrettini himself has won twice each set against Novak at Roland Garros and Wimbledon, and we wouldn’t be surprised to see him win a game on Thursday as well. Here are the odds for this encounter: W1+Total Over (30.5) for 1.83, tie-break - yes for 1.70.