"Heartbroken" Matteo Berrettini joins Marin Cilic in withdrawing from Wimbledon due to positive COVID-19 test

MATCH POINT: Berrettini retains Queen's Club title

In less than 24 hours, a pair of past Wimbledon men’s singles finalists have withdrawn from the grass-court major as a result of testing positive for COVID-19.

After Marin Cilic pulled out Monday, Matteo Berrettini revealed Tuesday morning he was forced out for the same reason.

“I am heartbroken to announce that I need to withdraw from Wimbledon due to a positive COVID-19 test result. I have had flu symptoms and been isolating the last few days,” he wrote.

“Despite symptoms not being severe, I decided it was important to take another test this morning to protect the health and safety of my fellow competitors and everyone else involved in the tournament.”

A year after coming within two sets of lifting his first major trophy at the All England Club, Berrettini returned to SW19 as a viable contender once again. A right hand injury had prevented the 26-year-old from playing any of the European clay-court swing, but when he stepped back out on grass, Berrettini reeled off nine successive wins in collecting consecutive crowns at Stuttgart and London Queen’s to solidify himself as a title threat.

“I have no words to describe the extreme disappoint[ment] I feel. The dream is over for this year,” continued Berrettini. “But I will be back stronger. Thank you for the support.”

Berrettini and Cilic had both landed in the bottom half the draw, which is led by No. 2 seed Rafael Nadal. Elias Ymer takes the Italian's spot in the tournament as a lucky loser to face Cristian Garin Tuesday.