UTS Insider: Behind the scenes as Berrettini lifts the trophy
Matteo Berrettini lifted an amazing trophy at UTS amidst spectacular pyrotechnics – but the trophy ceremony took lots of planning and practice beforehand.
“Countdown! Five, four, three, two, one, go!”
After a magnificent showpiece event like UTS, a spectacular on-court awards ceremony to close it all off is essential.
But that requires plenty of work behind the scenes to put it together.
“I’ll feel better when it’s over!”
After all, the stage needs to be set as quickly as possible after the end of the final – so the net needs to be taken down, and all the pieces of scenery need to be ready to go and moved into place.
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That includes the pillars emblazoned with the players’ names and nicknames, and of course the red carpet.
And that takes timing – and practice.
“I’ll feel better when it’s over,” revealed one member of the team after the first and only practice before the UTS final.
“We did one rehearsal – it should be three or four!”
“It looks good!”
This exclusive video behind the scenes at UTS shows the vital preparation for the closing ceremony – meaning everything was all set as soon as Matteo Berrettini hit a cross-court winner in the sudden-death shoot-out against Stefanos Tsitsipas to secure a 16-15, 15-12, 12-14, 8-15, 3-2 victory and became the inaugural champion.
Matteo Berrettini took a few moments to soak in the triumph – but it was not long before he could ascend the newly-assembled steps amidst stunning pyrotechnics – and lift his lightning bolt of a trophy, smiling broadly for the watching cameras.
The Hammer posed for some selfies plus some snaps with his team, using the podium to its fullest effect.
As soon as the lighting, sound, and stage were all packed away, though, it was already time to debrief and assess what had been the highlights of the ceremony – and what more could be done next time round.
“It looks good!” said one onlooker watching the footage back.
“The combination of the three elements…[but] the scaffoldings shouldn’t be here.”
