UTS Day 7: Tsitsipas reigns supreme and takes down #2 Berrettini

Stefanos Tsitsipas has taken over at the UTS, winning 5 of his 6 UTS matches. The UTS’ 7th day was also full of shifts amongst the standings.

Stefanos Tsitpas is proving why there isn’t a player better than him at the UTS. He’s won 6 of his 7 matches and got his 6th with a comeback win over Matteo Berrettini. Berrettini has started to slip in the standings, dropping his last matches after having a 1st-place spot last Saturday.

The standings have also shifted, with three players all vying for the final spot: Berrettini, David Goffin, and Feliciano Lopez. Richard Gasquet sits at 5-2 (one win ahead of Berrettini and Goffin) but could slip with a loss tomorrow.

Day 7 recap

Match #1: The Underdog (Elliot Benchetrit) def. The Rebel (Benoit Paire) 3-2

Benchetrit is back permanently in the UTS after Dominic Thiem withdrew from the event a few days ago. The Underdog needs a perfect weekend to have a shot at the Final Four, and while he had a match too close for comfort, he took the win and is halfway to 2-0.

Paire’s loss has all but taken him out of contention for the Final Four; his 2-5 record will likely fall short of what’s needed for that final spot. The Rebel has had an up-and-down tournament and simply couldn’t put all of the pieces together.

Paire fought well in this match, however. He fought back, losing the first quarter 18-11 before taking a clutch second quarter win off of a tiebreaker. Benchetrit took the third but couldn’t close the match in the final quarter, losing it 16-10. Benchetrit ultimately took the win in sudden death (3-1) and moved to 2-2 for the tournament.

Match #2: The Artist (Dustin Brown) def. The Torero (Feliciano Lopez) 3-1

Dustin Brown finally picked up his first UTS win, scoring 11 points in every quarter for the first time in the event. Brown is out of the running for the Final Four but can play the role of “spoiler” for the last two days of group play.

He did exactly that by defeating Lopez. Lopez is sitting right on the cusp of the 4th spot at and every win counts for him. He needed to notch a win today to get himself into the last spot going into tomorrow. Unfortunately for him, he couldn’t produce a win against the tournament’s weakest player.

Lopez was very inefficient on his serve for the match, only producing a first-serve percentage of 48% for the match compared to Brown’s 79%. Lopez also committed 4 double faults and simply couldn’t catch up against The Artist’s serve-and-volley artistry on the return.

Going into tomorrow, Lopez needs a loss by current 4th-ranked David Goffin today with a score of 3 quarters to 1 in order to take over the spot. He faces 3rd-ranked Gasquet tomorrow, which will be a tough finish for the Spaniard. Goffin, on the other hand, has an easier hand for the finale. He plays Corentin Moutet today and Paire tomorrow.

Lopez is all but out and is counting on the success of his competitors and the missteps of Goffin to propel him into the elimination round.

Match #3: The Virtuoso (Richard Gasquet) def. The Sniper (Alexei Popyrin) 3-1

Gasquet is continuing his dominance over the last few weeks. Since losing his first UTS match, he’s won 4 of his last 5 with a quarter record of 15-9. He’s been at the very top of his game and it continued today against Popyrin as he won the first 3 quarters of the match before losing the statistical 4th set, 21-14.

While Gasquet is a virtual lock into the top four, Popyrin is in the same boat as Lopez: outside looking in. At 3-4, he and Lopez are both battling to take the fourth spot from Goffin. Popyrin’s main problem is his quarter record and point differential. He has put together a few solid wins but his losses haven’t been close.

In his four losses, he’s been outscored 265-179 (-86). This, added to the fact that he’s only won one match in his last five, only confirms how far behind he is for the end of the group stage. Barring a miracle, it looks like Popyrin’s subpar last three weeks has taken him out of the running for good.

Match #4: The Tornado (Corentin Moutet) def. The Wall (David Goffin) 3-1

Unfortunately for Lopez, he didn’t get the break he needed. Goffin, who now sits at 4-3, took down Moutet with a devastating 4th quarter victory (20-7) to all but give him the 4th-place spot.

Outside of a 2nd quarter loss 14-12, Goffin led the way for the entirety of the match. The German’s 3 aces and 73% first-serve percentage, coupled with Moutet’s inconsistent groundstroke performance (22 unforced errors), was the key to victory.

Moutet had the opportunity to upset the 4th-seeded Goffin and help his chances at taking the spot but didn’t convert. With Lopez and Popyrin at 3-4, The Tornado looks to be out of the running.

Goffin is slowly but surely guaranteeing his spot in the elimination stage. He looks to be on form and should improve to 5-3 tomorrow by defeating Paire. He’ll be tough to knock out fo the way but it’s up to tomorrow to find out.

Match #5: The Greek God (Stefanos Tsitsipas) def. The Hammer (Matteo Berrettini) 3-2

Tsitsipas has shown everyone why he’s the best player in the event. Although he got off to a slow start today, falling behind 2 quarters to none (16-11, 14-13), he fought back in the last two quarters. He displayed textbook groundstrokes throughout the entire match, overpowering The Hammer as the match went on. Thankfully for Tsitsipas, he got away with 16 unforced errors en route to his win.

Berrettini has slipped a little since the beginning of last weekend. He’s lost his last two matches and hasn’t been as dominant as he was before. He joins Goffin at 4-3 with the loss and puts him only a game ahead of Lopez and Popyrin.

Day 7 standings

1. Stefanos Tsitsipas (6-1, 19-12, +85)
2. Richard Gasquet (5-2, 18-12, +63)
3. Matteo Berrettini (4-3, 17-12, +50)
4. David Goffin (4-3, 17-13,  +47)
5. Feliciano Lopez (3-4, 16-15, +21)
6. Alexei Popyrin (3-4, 12-16, -52)
7. Elliot Benchetrit (2-2, 8-10, -14)
8. Corentin Moutet (2-3, 11-9, -1)
9. Benoit Paire (2-5, 9-20, -94)
10. Dustin Brown (1-5, 6-18, -112)

Tsitsipas is now guaranteed a spot in the final four. The only thing he has to worry about is where he finishes in the top four.

Second-ranked Gasquet looks to be safe but can open the door for those below him if he loses tomorrow. He has a one-win advantage over Berrettini and Goffin and should be safe in the top four given his records.

Berrettini has been a surprise the last week. After dominating the field in Weeks 2-3, he has slipped back dangerously close to falling out of the top four. A loss and a win by Lopez could knock him out, depending on the result of Goffin tomorrow.

Goffin, like Berrettini, needs a win tomorrow to give him a top-four spot. Facing Paire tomorrow, he has the advantage.

Lopez is likely the only contender outside of the top four that can break inside. With Popyrin sitting at -52 point differential and a 12-16 quarter record, Lopez has slightly distanced himself from those below him. It’s up to the bullfighter, however, to take his fate into his own hands. He faces off against 3rd-ranked Gasquet tomorrow.

Day 8 Match Schedule

1. The Underdog (Elliot Benchetrit) vs. The Artist (Dustin Brown)
2. The Greek God (Stefanos Tsitsipas) vs The Tornado (Corentin Moutet)
3. The Sniper (Alexei Popyrin) vs. The Hammer (Matteo Berrettini)
4. The Torero (Feliciano Lopez) vs. The Virtuoso (Richard Gasquet)
5. The Rebel (Benoit Paire) vs. The Wall (David Goffin)