ATP 250 DELRAY BEACH OPEN. USA.By Emiliano Naftali
Matteo Arnaldi, a 22-year-old Italian who debuted in the Top 100 in May 2023, has already managed to break into the Top 40 for the first time this year. This Monday, by defeating Yoshihito Nishioka in the first round of the Delray Beach Open with scores of 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, and after hitting 21 aces, he shows us that he is playing in top form this year.
Before 2024, his record for most aces in a single match was 12. And in the current season, he has already surpassed that mark three times: he hit 17 in the round of 16 in Adelaide, 16 in the first round of the Australian Open, and 21 this Monday despite the strong wind in Delray Beach.
He even hit three aces in the same game on two occasions in the match. Thanks to that, saving seven out of nine break points, and breaking three times, the current World No. 43 clinched victory in two hours and 22 minutes.
“It was definitely a tough match. Since Australia, I haven’t played, so it’s been almost a month. I had to get into the game, into the competition,” said Arnaldi. “Today wasn’t easy because there was a lot of wind, so… the match could have gone the other way. But I’m happy with how I stayed in the match. I basically fought on every point.”
“This is the first time I’ve played here, so I’m happy to have won the match and I’m trying to get used to these conditions,” added the Italian, who now has a record of 25-22 on the tour (5-3 this year).
In other results of the day, Frenchman Constant Lestienne defeated Australian Aleksandar Vukic 6-4, 6-4. Next, he will face either the fifth-seeded Miomir Kecmanovic or American wildcard Patrick Kypson.