WATCH: An emotional Lorenzo Musetti’s stunning win over Novak Djokovic in Monte Carlo
Thursday was a day to remember for Lorenzo Musetti at the Monte Carlo Masters as the Italian claimed the biggest wins of his career over Novak Djokovic.
Beating 22-time Grand Slam winner Djokovic at any tournament is always special, but for Musetti there was a bit of redemption on clay as nearly two years ago he found himself two sets to love up against the Serbian in the fourth round of the French Open, but he allowed the lead to slip and eventually retired with the score 6-7 (7-9), 6-7 (2-7), 6-1, 6-0, 5-0.
Memories of that match will no doubt have come up during the match, but this time he held on for a 4-6, 7-5, 6-4 win over the tennis great.
“I am struggling not to cry,” Musetti said during his post-match interview. “It is an emotional win because it was a really long match.
“Three-hour match and suspended by rain. It was not easy conditions because it was a little bit windy and cold. Not like we used to play in the recent days. I am really proud of myself and I can see on the screen. I am struggling not to cry because it is a dream for me.”
The pair shared 14 breaks of serve in the first two sets with the break count 3-2 in Djokovic’s favour in the first set before Musetti enjoyed a 5-4 break count in the second set.
But the third set turned into a tight affair with the solitary break of serve coming in game seven. Djokovic then saved three match points before Musetti got the job done.
Biggest-ever win
It was the 21-year-old’s first-ever victory over a world No 1 although he does have some wins over Carlos Alcaraz and Casper Ruud under his belt.
His win over Ruud at the Paris Masters last year came when the Norwegian was ranked No 5 in the world, but it was his biggest win at the time while Alcaraz was world No 6 at the time of his defeat to the Italian in Hamburg last year.
But the big matches are coming thick and fast for Musetti as on Friday he will face compatriot Jannik Sinner in the quarter-final. Sinner battled to a three-set win over Hubert Hurkacz and the winner of that clash will face either the in-form Daniil Medvedev or sixth seed Holger Rune for a place in the final.
A win for Musetti on Friday could see him rise to a career-high of No 17 in the Live ATP Rankings.
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