TIE-BREAKFAST - 09/04 Monte Carlo

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Ace Cream's daily newsletter during Masters 1000s and Grand Slams, every morning at 8:30.

Today is Thursday, April 9, in Monte Carlo it's 08:30 and 14 degrees. Ok, let's go.

On the menu today

• 🇮🇹 Berrettini overwhelms Medvedev with a historic double 6-0
• 🇲🇨 Vacherot blows up the draw and sends Musetti home
• 🇩🇪 Zverev rallies from 2-5 in the third and survives
• 🇧🇷 Fonseca past Rinderknech in three sets, Cobolli out to Blockx
• 🇮🇹 Sinner returns to court against Machac
• 🇪🇸 Alcaraz into the round of 16 against Etcheverry

WHAT HAPPENED YESTERDAY:

🇮🇹 Berrettini Crushes Medvedev In 49 Minutes

Matteo Berrettini beat Daniil Medvedev 6-0 6-0 in 49 minutes, the Russian's first career loss in a tour-level match without winning a single game. Medvedev didn't have a single point on his own serve, made five double faults and thirty unforced errors, ending the night with his racket smashed at the side of the court.

It's hard to remember an afternoon this lopsided between two players with this kind of pedigree, and perhaps the most interesting fact isn't even the score: it's the calmness with which Matteo kept his foot on the gas, never allowing himself the luxury of relaxing at 5-0. What remains is the feeling of a Berrettini who was looking for real minutes on court and got many more than expected, in a context that probably even he didn't see coming.

🇲🇨 Vacherot Blows Up The Draw

Valentin Vacherot, from Monaco, eliminated Lorenzo Musetti 7-6(6) 7-5, becoming the first player from the Principality to reach the third round in Monte Carlo since his half-brother and coach Benjamin Balleret. Vacherot came back from 1-4 in the first-set tie-break, and in the second was broken while serving for the match at 5-4 but immediately broke back and closed it out 7-5, a turn Musetti never managed to straighten out.

These are the losses that make the most noise because they come in a place where Lorenzo seemed to have an edge, against an opponent with no pressure and the entire crowd against him. The regret has more to do with the way than with the result, with a second set that slipped away after a break lead, but there are weeks on clay when things just go this way and there's not much you can do.

🇩🇪 Zverev Saves Himself From 2-5 In The Third

Alexander Zverev beat Cristian Garin 4-6 6-4 7-5 in two hours and fifty minutes, coming back from 2-5 in the deciding set with five consecutive games and saving three break points before closing it on his third match point. The Chilean had served for the match at 5-3 and seemed to have one of the day's most surprising wins in his hands.

Zverev arrived on European clay with plenty of doubts hanging over him, and a match like this doesn't erase them — in some ways it reinforces them. Yet there are matches in which a player learns something about himself he didn't know, and getting out alive from 2-5 in the third is the kind of episode you carry with you into the rounds that follow.

🇧🇷 Fonseca Advances, Cobolli Stopped By Blockx

Joao Fonseca got past Arthur Rinderknech 7-5 4-6 6-3, continuing his first run at Monte Carlo, while Flavio Cobolli lost to Alexander Blockx 6-3 6-3, stopped by the Belgian born in 2005 in the second round. Casper Ruud, meanwhile, dispatched Corentin Moutet 7-5 6-3, a match many had pegged as the day's most unpredictable but which the Norwegian channeled with relative ease.

For Fonseca it's another important step on clay, where matches are won more with the legs than with the arm, and that's where the Brazilian is putting in the most work. For Cobolli it's a setback that comes right when he seemed ready to consolidate: Blockx is still a profile in development but very solid, and certain rounds become tougher tests than the rankings suggest.

WHAT HAPPENS TODAY:

• Zverev-Bergs (Court Rainier III) - Sascha opens the program on center court against the Belgian who just eliminated Rublev. After the scare against Garin, another test right away and the margin for error has already shrunk.
• Sinner-Machac (Court Rainier III) - Jannik in the second match against the Czech, someone who can cause problems on clay and has already eliminated Cerundolo in the second round. First real test for the world number one.
• Alcaraz-Etcheverry (Court Rainier III) - The defending champion against the Argentine, third match on center. On clay Etcheverry is an awkward customer for anyone.
• Berrettini-Fonseca (Court des Princes) - The Roman and the Brazilian meet right away in the round of 16 after two wins of very different weight. One of the most curious matchups in the bottom half of the draw.
• Auger-Aliassime-Ruud (Court des Princes) - The Canadian against the Norwegian, one of those matches that counts double for the rest of the draw. Two players who know each other well on clay.
• Lehecka-Bublik (Court des Princes) - The Czech against the Kazakh fresh off eliminating Monfils. An unpredictable match by definition, with Bublik capable of anything from one game to the next.

Further reading

• Matteo Berrettini dishes astonishing Daniil Medvedev double bagel in Monte-Carlo
• Valentin Vacherot shocks Lorenzo Musetti in Monte-Carlo, makes Monegasque history
• Alexander Zverev rallies from 2-5, battles past Cristian Garin in Monte-Carlo
• Medvedev thrashed by Berrettini as racquets smashed in Monte Carlo defeat
• Thursday, April 9th Montecarlo Masters 1000 Schedule: Sinner in the second match, and Alcaraz, after
• Clay bites back: Monte-Carlo's red dirt claims another batch of victims from Musetti to Rublev

Enjoy your breakfast and have a great day.

See you tomorrow at 08:30 with TIE-Breakfast