Mattia Bellucci is the tenth Italian in the Wimbledon main draw. The 23 year old from Busto Arsizio passed the qualifications by beating former Top 10 player David Goffin 63 26 76(4) 64 in the decisive round.
Bellucci shows off all his quick and fast, but not messy, tennis. He plays at a faster tempo than the still elegant and refined Belgian can currently handle. Bellucci opens the match with an ace, gets the first break in the eighth game, and closes on the first set point with an applause-worthy embroidery: a short forehand ball down the line, with a slight spin to go out, which lands on the line, centimeters from the net . A masterstroke against someone who only came close to the title of master, with the final at the Nitto ATP Finals (the former Masters) in 2017.
The sky turns grey, the wind picks up and the match gets complicated for Bellucci who starts the second set down by a break. In the seventh game, the Italian does not take advantage of four counter-break opportunities, but it must be said that the Belgian has more merits than his demerits. So after an hour and twenty minutes a third set begins which marks a new beginning.
The greater dynamism returns to reward Bellucci. The 23 year old from Busto Arsizio saved himself from 15-40 in the fourth game, then exacerbated the Belgian’s tensions and took a break lead (3-2). It’s not the last twist of an all-torn partial. Three forehand errors cost him the counter-break at 4-4, the prelude to a spectacular tie-break. Bellucci wins the best point of the set with an applause-worthy demi-volée and with the 14th ace of the match he brings himself to within one set of the main draw.
With a bold tennis style without traces of braggadocio, Bellucci puts on a show. And not just for the habit of swinging the racket like a juggler between one point and another. A diving volley and a tight pass launch him towards the break in the first return game (2-0), and in fact towards the Doherty Gates, the gates of Church Road. The doors leading into Wimbledon Gardens.
