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Matteo Berrettini could not bring himself to watch the match, or even to check the score.
The Italian player knew he was on the precipice of becoming one of only eight players to qualify for the year-end Nitto ATP Finals at London’s O2 arena. All he needed was for Denis Shapovalov to beat Gaël Monfils in the quarterfinals of the Paris Masters, and he would edge ahead of Monfils in the standings.
Less than seven months ago, Berrettini was not even ranked in the world’s top 50. But in only his second full year on tour, the 23-year-old from Rome had a late spring/summer surge that garnered him two ATP Tour titles and a spectacular run to the semifinals of the United States Open.