Lorenzo Musetti (Italy) stunned the defending Olympic champion, Alexander Zverev (Germany), in straight sets. This is one of the biggest wins of Musetti’s career and it couldn’t have come at a better time. The Italian wasn’t even in Paris when the tournament started and now he gets to play for a medal. He has been on fire in the last couple of months and is on a dream run, taking his career to new heights. He has reached the semifinals or better in his last five tournaments and made a statement to the tennis world that he has arrived. A top-10 push is on the cards if he can maintain this level.
He played an excellent match against one of the best players in the world. There were moments in the match when the “old” Musetti would have crumbled–when he failed to serve out the first set the first time and when they closed the roof mid-game at 3-4 in the second set, but he never lost his concentration for one second. When his game is on, he’s an absolute joy to watch. He is an insanely talented player who plays with a lot of variety and intelligence. His fitness is underrated as this was his eighth match in nine days. Zverev was struggling with the hot and humid conditions but Musetti seemed to have more in the tank.
Eyeing Olympic Glory
Lorenzo Musetti is playing in his first Olympic games and has a good chance to finish on the podium. One more win and he gets a medal but he will give his all and go for the Gold and is capable of making it happen. He exploited Zverev’s weakness and maximised his own game. If he can bring this level to the semifinals, he will fancy his chances against whoever he plays.
If he does play Novak Djokovic (Serbia), the encouraging fact is that of their four meetings on clay, Musetti won one and was up 2-0 and 2-1 in two of the best-of-five matches, so he has a shot. His defense on clay is elite and it is a best-of-three match where he has more of a chance to win. He makes improbable shots from defensive positions and that annoys Djokovic. Musetti does not have a good record against Stefanos Tsitsipas (Greece), but he is a much-improved player now and has all the tools to beat the Greek player. Whatever happens, this has been one hell of an effort from the Italian.
Main Photo Credit: Susan Mullane-USA TODAY Sports
