Marrakech
Darderi, Moutet race into Marrakech QFs, Trungelliti’s Top 100 tilt continues
36-year-old Trungelliti in contention to break Top 100 for first time aged 36
April 01, 2026
Grand Prix Hassan II
Luciano Darderi in action against Mattia Bellucci on Wednesday in Marrakech.
By Andy West
Luciano Darderi settled in nicely to life as a defending champion on Wednesday at the Grand Prix Hassan II in Marrakech.
The top seed marched past his fellow Italian Mattia Bellucci 6-4, 6-2 at the clay ATP 250 with a commanding opening-round display. Darderi did not face a break point and converted three of the nine that he earned, according to Infosys ATP Stats.
Picking up where he left off 😎
Top seed and reigning champ @Lucianodarderi_ starts his Marrakech title defence with a victory over compatriot Bellucci 6-4, 6-2!#GrandPrixHassanII pic.twitter.com/ohNl62FIKp
— ATP Tour (@atptour) April 1, 2026
Having won his first ATP Tour trophy at the final edition of the Cordoba ATP 250 in 2024, Darderi claimed his second crown in Marrakech a year ago. The 24-year-old has won three further titles since then (Bastad and Umag in 2025, Santiago in 2026), but is defending a tour-level title for the first time this week in Morocco.
“I’m very happy to come back here after last year,” said Darderi after his 78-minute victory against Bellucci. “Coming back here is a special sensation. The first time I’ve come back to defend a title so I’m very happy to be here. I will try my best to defend it this year.”
The No. 19 player in the PIF ATP Rankings, Darderi has won 17 of his past 19 tour-level matches on clay. He will face Yannick Hanfmann in the last eight in Marrakech, after the eighth seed overcame home favourite Karim Bennani 6-4, 6-7(3), 6-2.
Earlier on Wednesday, third seed Corentin Moutet made a similarly rapid start to his title tilt. The Frenchman defeated home favourite Taha Baadi 6-0, 6-2 to reach his first ATP Tour quarter-final of the year. World No. 32 Moutet next faces a maiden Lexus ATP Head2Head clash with Marco Trungelliti.
Argentine qualifier Trungelliti kick-started Day 3 in Marrakech with a 7-6(4), 6-3 upset against fifth seed Kamil Majchrzak. The 36-year-old is currently up 17 spots to No. 100 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings as a result of his run. On Monday, he could become the oldest man to break the Top 100 for the first time in the past 50 years.