ATP Tour

Buse does the double vs. Berrettini with 3 hour Marrakech win

Ignacio Buse is quickly turning Matteo Berrettini into a familiar victim and he did it again Tuesday with another hard-fought win at the Grand Prix Hassan II in Marrakech.

The seventh-seeded Peruvian dug deep to secure a 7-6(5), 6-7(2), 6-4 victory over Berrettini to advance to the second round of the clay-court ATP 250 on his debut. Having also beaten Berrettini in three sets in Rio de Janeiro last month, Buse now holds a 2-0 Lexus ATP Head2Head lead over the former World No. 6 and 2024 Marrakech champion.

Peruvian lightning strikes twice ⚡ 🇵🇪

Buse prevails over Berrettini again, winning their second encounter in a three-hour Marrakech epic! #GrandPrixHassanII pic.twitter.com/bIKPJvCsl3

— ATP Tour (@atptour) March 31, 2026

“I felt really comfortable today,” said Buse. “The conditions are really fast… It’s the first tournament on clay after the U.S. swing, so I’m really happy to be back on clay. I’m really happy how I played against [Berrettini] and I’m really happy that I’m continuing here.”

Berrettini levelled the contest after a topsy turvy second set, which featured four breaks of serve, according to Infosys ATP Stats. Yet the Italian was unable to fend off Buse in the decider, watching his five-match winning streak at the event come to an end.

Buse, competing at a career-high No. 59 in the PIF ATP Rankings, will face Camilo Ugo Carabelli in the second round. The Argentine defeated qualifier Timofey Skatov 6-7(2), 6-3, 6-4.

#NextGenATP star Rafael Jodar continued his impressive run of form by opening his Marrakech debut with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Dusan Lajovic in just 72 minutes. The 19-year-old Spaniard, who cracked the Top 100 for the first time on Monday following his run to the third round at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Miami, will next meet fourth seed Tomas Machac in Morocco.

Mattia Bellucci, who edged home wild card Reda Bennani 6-3, 3-6, 6-4, set a showdown with top seed and defending champion Luciano Darderi. Although it will mark their first Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting, Bellucci won their latest meeting in the third round of the 2023 Australian Open qualifying event.

Earlier, 2023 Marrakech finalist Alexandre Muller kickstarted his title bid with a 6-2, 6-3 win over 19-year-old Italian Federico Cina, who was competing at the ATP 250 event through the PIF ATP Next Gen Accelerator. The programme provides additional playing opportunities for those who earn a spot by being the best up-and-coming players across junior, college or traditional pathways.

Fifth seed Kamil Majchrzak, qualifier Marco Trungelliti and Luca Van Assche also advanced on Tuesday in Marrakech. Majchrzak overcame Juan Manuel Cerundolo 7-6(3), 3-6, 6-3, while Trungelliti beat Henrique Rocha 7-6(5), 6-2. Van Assche beat fellow Frenchman Hugo Gaston 6-4, 7-6(5) to set a meeting with last year's runner-up and second seed Tallon Griekspoor.