DAVIS CUP FINALS

November 24, 2024

Matteo Berrettini

Team Italy

Press Conference

M. BERRETTINI/B. van de Zandschulp

6-4, 6-2

Team Italy - 1

Team Netherlands - 0

THE MODERATOR: Questions in English for Matteo.

Q. Last year you were supporting your team out of the court. If you could, what message would you send to your last-year Matteo? What does this Davis Cup mean to you after all the process?

MATTEO BERRETTINI: It would be tough, but I think I would tell him what I did, which was don't give up. Last year was a little bit, was really nice to be here, but at same time, I remember a moment, like, why did I come? Because I wasn't part of the team 100%, because I'm competitive and I want to be part of the team.

But then at the end of the day, after the whole week, I said it was really important for you to come, because I support them, because I was really happy for them, but also for me. I did it for myself. I took so much energy from those matches.

I once again realized how much I care about Davis Cup. And living those moments I took all this energy, and I was, like, okay, next year, you're going to be here, you're going to be fighting for Italy. I used that as an engine for, you know, for the training sessions and everything that happened afterwards.

Q. Matteo, when you consider all you have been through physically and that you have made this comeback this year with some great results, and there was that huge smile on your face at the end of this match, are you able to describe the sense of satisfaction you had when match point happened today and how you actually felt?

MATTEO BERRETTINI: Yes, definitely. It's not a secret that I'm working really hard. I'm training to live these moments, to be ready for my team, for myself, as well. But at the same time, I think Davis Cup is special in a way of that if I lost this match, and let's say, like, last match, and we won in doubles, deciding doubles, I would have been happy anyways.

So satisfaction, team competition, I think is something about the win for the whole team, for the whole country. But at the same time, like I said before, I'm competitive. I want to be the one that is bringing points; otherwise I wouldn't do this, I wouldn't play tennis. Everybody out there in the locker room, it's like that.

Personally, after everything, yeah, I'm really proud of myself, the work that I put in, the tough moments that I really dig deep, like it wasn't easy. There were moments where I thought that I was done with tennis, that my body wasn't holding up. I felt weak. And thanks to the people that were helping me, they told me and I trust them and they told me that I wasn't weak. It was just some things were happening and I had to deal with them. After accepting that, everything was easier.

Q. Congratulations. Just going back to last year, how much do you think your team members were really appreciating the fact that you were here supporting, even if you weren't playing? And how much has that maybe strengthened the connection between you ahead of this year?

MATTEO BERRETTINI: Hopefully a lot (smiling). Everybody appreciated me coming here and in Bologna, as well, last year. I consider myself pretty humble, but when I'm on the bench, I think you could feel that there is something, like, the energy is different.

I remember Sonego playing here, and he was telling me, like, you have to be in first line, I have to look at you when you're playing. I need your energy. Same thing has happened with the other guys. I asked them the same thing. Today, after the National Anthem, I asked them and I told them, I want to play with you guys, like everybody together.

I think they felt that. They are feeling that. That's why I decided to come, because I felt like even maybe a small percentage like that we would have had more chance to win the ties.