Musetti’s adventures continue at Paris 2024
Arriving very late in Paris and currently at the top of his game, Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti delivered a very accomplished performance to beat defending Olympic champion Alexander Zverev of Germany and so earn a place in the last four of Paris 2024.
With his finger pointed at the Italy crest embroidered on his heart, Musetti could fully savour one of the most important successes of his career. With a magical final backhand for which only he knows the secret, he concluded his performance by becoming the first Italian to reach the semi-finals of the men's singles at the Games since tennis regained its Olympic status (in Seoul in 1988).
Musetti is now only two matches away from bringing home a medal. "I want to go to the final, I don't want to think about bronze or another place," he said. “It's not the right mindset to have before a match as important as tomorrow's. I want to enjoy this result and I want to be ready to play the best match possible."
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After defeating Gaël Monfils, Mariano Navone and Taylor Fritz in the first three rounds, he raised his level of play a little more to dispatch Zverev, world No. 4 and Tokyo 2020 gold medallist, 7-5 7-5 in 2 hours 4 minutes.
"I think I played at my best level and it's probably one of the best matches of my career," Musetti continued. “I started my match very well and it gave me confidence in my game and in what I was doing on the court. It was difficult but mentally, I was focused on what I had to do.”
The German – finalist at Roland-Garros a few weeks ago – will not be the second player in history after Andy Murray to retain his Olympic men’s tennis title.
FORZA ITALIAAAA! 🇮🇹
— ITF (@ITFTennis) August 1, 2024
Lorenzo Musetti takes out the defending champion, Alexander Zverev, in straight sets to advance to the semi-finals!#Paris2024 | #Olympics | #tennis pic.twitter.com/cRFw5hPPLg
If this result is not an incredible sensation given the excellent level that the world No. 16 has played at for many weeks, it is nevertheless a surprise if we consider his recent tennis schedule.
Finalist at Queen's and a semi-finalist at Wimbledon, Musetti made the decision to enter the ATP 250 tournament in Umag last week. It was a success in terms of results (he was beaten in the final in a third-set tie-break by Francisco Cerundolo), but it could have greatly compromised his chances of shining at the Olympics since he arrived in Paris on Sunday morning, in time to play his first match on Sunday afternoon.
In the end, his Umag dress rehearsal didn’t hamper him at all – quite the contrary, since he kept his momentum and even seems to be getting stronger with every outing. And the next outing will not be any easier than today's, since Lorenzo Musetti now has an appointment with either Novak Djokovic or Stefanos Tsitsipas.
"I'd like not to play against one of these two players, but I'll have to do it!” he laughed. “If I can, I'll try to watch (the Djokovic v Tsitsipas quarterfinal) but whoever wins, it's going to be difficult."
Difficult because the Italian has a losing record against both players (0-5 against Tsitsipas and 1-6 against Djokovic, who recently beat him in the last four at the All England Club), but far from impossible for a player full of confidence, and who seems to particularly enjoy taking on big challenges in recent weeks.