“Grandma is not happy about it” – Matteo Berrettini talks about his tattoos, credits good looks to Brazilian and Italian genes he inherited

Matteo Berrettini recently answered a few popular questions attached to his personal and professional life.

At the moment, Berrettini is afloat in the singles draw at the Phoenix Challenger 2024. He defeated Hugo Gaston with a comeback effort in the opening round on Tuesday, March 12, to set up a duel with Arthur Cazaux in the second.

On the sidelines of the event in Arizona, Berrettini sat down with the ATP Challenger Tour for a fun session called 'Searching for Answers', wherein he replied to several queries about himself.

To begin with, Berrettini cleared the air on the 'double Ts' in his moniker.

"Is it 'Mateo' or 'Matteo'? Guys, two Ts, two Ts, Matteo. 'Mateo' I think is more like Spanish vibes. In Italy, we use a lot of double letters," he said.

The 27-year-old then talked about his Brazil-born grandmother Lucia Fogaca's disapproval of the tattoos on his body.

"'Does Matteo Berrettini have tattoos?' Yeah, I have quite a lot. My grandma is not happy about it but I think I have 11. I have a feeling that it’s going to be more soon but yeah, I just love them so can't help it," he stated.

In another question, Berrettini revealed the secret to his good looks, crediting the Brazilian and Italian genes he inherited from his mother Claudia and father Luca.

"'Why is Matteo Berrettini so handsome?' Uhm… I think good genes. Brazilian genes in me, Italian. I didn’t do anything, it was just a gift I guess… so embarrassing," the former World No. 6 added.

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Matteo Berrettini hopes to be remembered for "playing and winning a lot" in tennis

Matteo Berrettini is a former World No. 6 in singles

Further, during the same session with the ATP Challenger Tour, Matteo Berrettini weighed in on his proficiency on the grass surface.

"'Why is Berrettini so good on grass?' I love playing on grass. Actually, I didn't like it the first time I played on grass, it was too fast for me. And then I adjusted, I changed a couple of things. When you go to Wimbledon, you feel like you want to play tennis," the 27-year-old said.

Berrettini has bagged seven tour titles since turning professional in the year 2015. Four of those have come at grasscourt tournaments, including the Queen's Club Championships (2021 and 2022) and the Stuttgart Open (2019 and 2022).

The Italian's best Grand Slam performance also came at Wimbledon in 2021, when he ended as second-best to World No. 1 Novak Djokovic. He concluded the segment by expressing his wish to be remembered as the guy who played and won a lot on the tennis court.

"'Is Matteo Berrettini still playing tennis?' Yes, guys, I'm still playing tennis. I know I miss tennis. Hopefully, you miss me as well. I got too many injuries to even count them. Hopefully, I'm going to have a long season and you guys are going to remember me playing and winning a lot," he added.

Berrettini hasn't played on the ATP Tour since walking out of the US Open in August 2023 from the second round with an ankle injury.