Matteo Berrettini beat world number 143 Nicolas Moreno De Alboran 7-6 (7-5) 6-3 in their first head-to-head match to reach the semifinal at the Generali Open in Kitzbuhel. Berrettini has extended his winning streak to eight consecutive matches.
Berrettini hit seven aces, dropped just five points on his first serve and saved all three break points.
Berrettini, who was outside the top 150 last March, returned to the top 50 after claiming his ninth career title in Gstaad.
The first three games featured a total of three break points. Both players went on serve en route to the tie-break. De Alboran earned the first mini-break to take a 4-3 lead, but Berrettini won four consecutive points from 3-5 down to claim the tie-break 7-5. Berrettini improved to 9-0 in tie-breaks during the past two tournaments.
The second set went on serve until the eighth game when Berrettini earned his decisive break to take a 5-3 lead. The 2021 Wimbledon finalist sealed the win on his first match point after a double fault from De Alboran.
Berrettini set up a semifinal match against Yannik Hanfmann, who beat Thago Seyboth Wild 7-6 (7-2) 6-4.
“I am really happy with the performance, I have never played against him so I did not really what to expect. It was a really high level of tennis and I think he was playing and serving really well, hitting the forehand really well, so I had to dig deep with my energy and my level”, said Berrettini.
Hugo Gaston battled past Sebastian Baez 7-5 5-7 7-6 (8-6) in 3 hours and 8 minutes. Gaston saved two match point as he won the last four points of the tie-break in the third set. The Frenchman fended off 12 of the 16 break points.
Gaston set up a semifinal clash against Pedro Martinez, who came back from one set down to beat Pedro Martinez 6-7 (2-7) 6-3 6-4 in 3 hours and 32 minutes.
