WHAT HAPPENED: Italy's Matteo Berrettini had only a handful of hard-court wins this season before the 2019 US Open. He's matched that number in just the past 10 days to make his first Grand Slam semifinal.
The No. 24 seed extended his unexpected tear in New York on Wednesday, out-slugging French veteran Gael Monfils, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2, 3-6, 7-6, in an instant classic that featured waves of momentum changes and left Monfils leaning on his racquet for reprieve.
Berrettini saw five match points, the first at 5-3, 40-30, in the fifth set when he double faulted and was later broken. "I was dying inside," he said.
But four more opportunities came, including three on Monfils' serve: two at 5-6 in the fifth set and again at 4-6 in the fifth-set tiebreak.
But Monfils erased them all until Berrettini saw another match point on his serve and clinched the nearly four-hour quarterfinal.
"I was saying to myself during the match, 'What do you expect for, I mean, you're 23. Just playing your first [Slam] quarterfinal and you expect that you not get tight?' So I was saying to myself, 'Okay, that's normal. Keep going. You know you're going to have more chances,'" Berrettini said. "That's the thing that I'm most proud of, you know. That's what I learned."
The 23-year-old Rome native became the first Italian man to reach the US Open semifinals in 42 years (Corrado Barazzutti was the last in 1977) and only the fourth Italian man to make a Grand Slam semifinal in the Open era, which began more than 51 years ago.
He will face the winner of three-time US Open champion Rafael Nadal and No. 20 seed Diego Schwartzman of Argentina, who will close Wednesday's night session in Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Berrettini, the No. 24 seed, outlasted the more experienced Monfils, who was trying to reach his third Grand Slam semifinal and second in Flushing Meadows. The 33-year-old was content sagging behind the baseline and retrieving from side to side, letting Berrettini's power and accuracy decide the match.
When the Italian walloped winners and carved out angles, he had success against the 2016 US Open semifinalist. Berrettini also mixed it up well, slicing his backhand to set up his more potent forehand.
"I'm really proud of my tennis today," he said.
But when he overhit, Monfils' strategy looked like a smart move. Exhaustion, however, dimmed Monfils' chances as, down two sets to one, he looked finished against the Italian, 10 years his junior.
But with the help of a packed crowd in Arthur Ashe Stadium, the fan favorite found a second life to force a deciding set. "They helped me. It was fun. It was exactly what I play for," Monfils said.
In the fifth, though, Monfils donated five double faults—17 for the match—including two in the fifth-set tiebreak. "I served bad, but I gave my heart," he said.
WHAT IT MEANS: A trio of future top ATP Tour stars—Stefanos Tsitsipas, Dominic Thiem and Alexander Zverev—fell short of the quarterfinals at the season's final Grand Slam. But if you're looking for a fresh face to root for in the semifinals, look no further than Berrettini, who has steadily improved his way to prominence.
In May 2018, the 23-year-old was still ranked outside the Top 100. But with his first Grand Slam semifinal, he's projected to crack the Top 15 on Monday when the new rankings are released.
He's never faced Nadal, and Berrettini and Schwartzman split their two meetings.
"He's the greatest fighter ever in this sport," Berrettini said of Nadal. "His attitude is something that is close to perfection. He's always, like, 5-0, 40-Love down, he's always there."
For Monfils, it's another missed opportunity at a Slam. The Frenchman, who won three of the four junior Grand Slam boys' titles 15 years ago, was nearly flawless in his run to the quarterfinals. But he'll have to wait until January to try to reach his first Slam final. "I know how to bounce back," he said.
MATCH POINT: Berrettini was 11-18 on hard courts before the 2019 US Open and had reached only one other hard-court quarterfinal at Sofia in February.
