Alexander Zverev lost against Matteo Berrettini 2-6 6-3 7-5 on Tuesday, crashing out of the Monte-Carlo Masters.
When serving for the match for the second time and on his first match point against the top-seeded German, the unseeded Berrettini secured victory.
Since the championship game, Zverev has only won six of his twelve games, including two of his past six.
With a well-earned victory in two hours and 27 minutes, Berrettini took advantage of his recent success and secured his spot in the third round for the second time.
Zverev had won the opening set with ease, but Berrettini leveled the match with a determined break of service in the second.
Following a fierce battle in the final, Berrettini lost the match at 5-4 but bounced back to win an exciting 48-shot rally at deuce in the following game, eventually breaching Zverev’s defenses with a hammering forehand victory.
Furthermore, he served out the victory to secure a last-16 matchup with either Lorenzo Musetti or Jiri Lehecka after gaining a 6-5 lead.
After losing heartbreakingly in Melbourne and losing in the quarterfinals in Buenos Aires and Rio de Janeiro earlier this year, Zverev is disappointed once more.
After serving a three-month doping ban, Sinner will return to tennis as the top-ranked player in the ATP, as the German’s defeat confirmed.
Nuno Borges was ahead 6-2 3-0 when Holger Rune ended up having to quit 42 minutes into his first-round match earlier on Tuesday.
