French Open 2022: World no. 8 Matteo Berrettini pulls out of tournament

After having surgery on his right hand in March, Matteo Berrettini is back on the practise court, but the World No. 8’s comeback timeline does not involve competing at Roland Garros at the end of May.

“Following a very positive update from my medical team, I am now back on-court training at a high level,” the Italian announced on Instagram on Saturday. “My hand is feeling great and I am working hard to build up my match fitness.

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“My team and I have made the decision that going straight back into five-set matches on clay at Roland Garros would not be sensible, therefore I will delay my comeback to compete in the full grass season,” he added.

Berrettini reached the quarterfinals of the Grand Slam event in Paris last year before losing to eventual champion Novak Djokovic, his best performance in the French city, which will be staged this year from May 22 to June 5. Berrettini, 26, is now 9-6 for the 2022 season after reaching the Australian Open semi-finals in January.

Despite missing out on this year’s clay season, Berrettini will return to another surface where he has had great success. Last year, the Italian won his second grass-court title at the Cinch Championships in London before reaching his first Grand Slam final at Wimbledon.

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There were already two notable absences from this year’s French Open. Tennis legend Roger Federer will not compete in the forthcoming tournament. “I feel it is best to skip the clay-court season this year and prepare for the grass and hard court seasons,” he stated in a statement.

Andy Murray has also declared that he would not compete in the French Open in 2022. He also stated that he will forego the entire clay-court season in order to compete at Wimbledon later this year.