The last time a debutant claimed the title at Queen’s Club, he famously went on to win Wimbledon two weeks later. Matteo Berrettini, the world No 9, is not quite on a par with Boris Becker on a grass court, but he was equal to a spirited challenge from Britain’s Cameron Norrie and that was enough to emulate at least the first part of the great German’s historic achievement.
For once, the tournament’s colossal winner’s trophy did not look disproportionately large in the hands of the champion, the towering Berrettini hoisting it over his head with the same apparent ease he has dispatched most of his opponents over the course of a week that bodes well for his tilt at Wimbledon. Few will relish the prospect of facing him in SW19, such is the range of an arsenal that includes not only a serve and forehand of irresistible power, but also a skidding sliced backhand, ideally suited to grass, and a delicate touch on the drop shot. Two of the Italian’s five titles have now come on grass.
Norrie, the only player to take a set off Berrettini all week, played with courage, conviction and no little intelligence, but was ultimately unable to withstand the top seed’s superior firepower as he slipped to a 6-4, 6-7 (5-7), 6-3 defeat.
“It’s been an unbelievable week and if I think of [Boris Becker’s] name and my name, it’s crazy,” said Berrettini, the first Italian to win the title at Queen’s Club. “I was dreaming about playing this tournament I was watching when I was a kid and now I had a chance to lift the trophy, so it’s a dream coming true.”
There was a word too for Norrie, who was now drawn a blank in three finals this year after losing in Lyon and Estoril in the prelude to the French Open. “Cam is a great player,” said Berrettini. “This year he has shown how he can play on all the surfaces. He made finals, he’s playing great tennis and I’m sure he’s going to lift a title soon. I’m sure this guy’s going to lift a lot of trophies and he’s going to have a great career.”
Norrie said afterwards that Berrettini had simply played the big points better, and that felt about right. While Norrie fell short in his attempt to become only the second British player to win the event since the second world war, after Andy Murray, he can take heart from an excellent week’s work that will elevate him to 34th in the world rankings. With Rafael Nadal and Milos Raonic absent, that should be enough to earn him a seeding at Wimbledon in a week’s time.
“I’ve really enjoyed my tennis here and if you had told me before the tournament, I would have signed for the finals,” said Norrie. “It was a great week.”
Berrettini’s ability to pump down serves at speeds in excess of 140mph meant Norrie’s hopes hinged first and foremost on protecting his own delivery. The concern for the Briton was that he has a tendency to lose rhythm on his ball toss, which can lead to double faults. He produced two in the fifth game, yielding an early break. With Berrettini landing 74% of his first serves, that was enough to determine the outcome of the opening set.
Yet it is not by fluke that Norrie has won 29 matches on the ATP Tour this season, and his response to the setback was admirable. Favouring depth and accuracy over power, the southpaw focused on finding the court with his first delivery and backing it up with smart shot selection and energetic court coverage. It was enough to gain a firmer foothold and, although he was forced to save two break points in the ninth game of the second set, he kept his nose in front to force a tiebreak.
Now Norrie was bouncing, hustling, scrambling back Berrettini’s first serve where he could and finding greater depth and penetration with his returns whenever he got a look at a second delivery. His approach reaped dividends. The Italian sent a forehand long behind his second serve to hand Norrie an early mini-break, and Norrie protected the advantage with some adroit serving, swinging the ball wide to the Berrettini backhand and working his way intelligently into the forecourt behind his groundstrokes. Serving at 3-6 down, Berrettini saved the first of three set points with a swingeing forehand and the second with an ace. On the third, however, Norrie took full advantage of a floated backhand slice, pounding a forehand beyond the Italian to claim the set with a gleeful roar.
Having conceded his first set of the week, Berrettini knew he was in a match. Norrie flirted with danger when he opened the fourth game with a double fault, but exploited some errant play from the Italian to recover, sealing the game with an ace. Further escapology was required when the Italian carved out two break points in the sixth game. Again Norrie was equal to the task, varying his service placement and forcing his way to the net to draw errors from his opponent.
Norrie was living dangerously, however, and in the eighth game Berrettini’s sustained assault finally told. Serving at 40-0, Norrie mishit two forehands and produced another costly double fault. A forehand pass exploded off Berrettini’s racket to bring up a break point, and when Norrie rolled a backhand into the net to concede the game, the Italian emitted the triumphant cry of a man who knew that he need only secure his 46th consecutive service game of the tournament to clinch the title. A 19th ace brought up three match points, and the title was his.
Elsewhere, Ugo Humbert beat world No 7 Andrey Rublev 6-3, 7-6 (7-4) in Halle to win his first ATP 500 title. It was the 31st-ranked Frenchman’s third career win following his victories at 250 events in Antwerp and Auckland last year.
“It is incredible. It is the best victory of my career,” Humbert said. “I am very proud because it wasn’t easy. I was a little bit tired, but I tried to stay focused on each point, and did what I could, so it is very nice.
“I tried to stay aggressive and take the ball early because in the baseline rallies it was tough, because Andrey was hitting the ball very hard. Physically, it was tough, and I tried to take my chances when I could, and I won.”
Ons Jabeur became the first Arab woman to win a WTA Tour title after beating Daria Kasatkina of Russia 7-5, 6-4 to win the Birmingham Classic. It was the first title of the 24th-ranked Tunisian’s career.
“I knew I had to go for it, I had to win this title to at least breathe, and give an example,” said Jabeur after her 28th win of the season. “There’s not a lot of Tunisian or Arabic players playing, so I hope this could inspire them, and I want to see more Arabic [players] and Tunisians playing with me on tour.”
There was another maiden title winner in Berlin, where world No 106 Liudmila Samsonova rounded off an extraordinary week with a 1-6, 6-1, 6-3 over fifth seed Belinda Bencic. The Russian qualifier, 22, learned after the match that she had been granted the final main draw wild card for Wimbledon.
“It’s unbelievable,” said Samsonova. “I didn’t expect it. I [did] dream it, but it’s amazing.”