Lorenzo Musetti Sheds Light on ‘Warrior’ Mentality After Battling Past Alex de Minaur in Turin
Lorenzo Musetti will next be locking horns with Carlos Alcaraz in his third round-robin match of the ATP Finals.
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Lorenzo Musetti, Alex de Minaur (Image via X/ItalianTeam, Sky Sports Tennis)
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Lorenzo Musetti snatched the win from the verge of defeat and will remain as a contender for the semifinals of the ATP Finals. Musetti was the last player to qualify for the year-end championship.
He made his debut against Taylor Fritz, only to suffer a straight-set defeat. The Italian was then pitted against Alex de Minaur and almost lost the match as the latter was leading 5-3 in the third set, and eventually served for the match at 5-4.
Musetti held his nerves, winning four consecutive games while trailing 3-5 and winning the match with a 7-5, 3-6, 7-5 scoreline. The 2024 Paris Olympic bronze medalist, who qualified only because of Novak Djokovic‘s withdrawal, then talked about his mentality at this stage of the season.
Of a warrior. I think I improved a lot on the mental side. Of course, I’m pushing myself to the limit. I’m playing every match with the top players. I knew that. The next one coming is against Carlos.. So I know how difficult it is… Especially in these conditions. I’ll try to enjoy and fight like I’ve done today.
Lorenzo Musetti said during the on-court interview
Musetti has improved his head-to-head record over de Minaur to 4-1. It was also his third consecutive over him this season.
The 23-year-old has a huge obstacle in front of him in the form of Carlos Alcaraz, who defeated Fritz and de Minaur in the previous two matches. Musetti trails 1-6 in the head-to-head matchups and has also lost three consecutive matches against him this year, including in the Monte Carlo Masters, where Musetti played a Masters 1000 final for the first time.
Alex de Minaur vows to improve after defeat to Lorenzo Musetti in the ATP Finals
Alex de Minaur was greatly disappointed after his defeat to Lorenzo Musetti. The 26-year-old qualified for the ATP Finals for the second consecutive and overall time on the back of deep runs in several tournaments, including at the Rotterdam Open and the Citi Open.
De Minaur lost in three sets to Carlos Alcaraz in Rotterdam and ended his trophy drought by defeating Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in Washington. At the press conference after his defeat to Musetti, a disheartened de Minaur chose not to express what he felt.
I think it’s probably a good thing I don’t express my feelings right now because they’re quite dark. Yeah, to be honest, it just feels like it’s been that type of year where I’ve had what feels like a whole lot of matches that should have gone my way and just somehow don’t, so…I mean, yeah, don’t feel great.
In his first round robin match, de Minaur lost to six-time Grand Slam champion Carlos Alcaraz. None of the players from Group Jimmy Connors has tasted success in the year-end championship.
De Minaur will next be playing Taylor Fritz, against whom he holds a 5-5 head-to-head record. The American ace defeated Musetti and lost to Alcaraz in his previous match. Fritz played the championship match last year, losing it to World No.1 Jannik Sinner in straight sets.
Musetti, on the other hand, is aiming to win his first title of the season. Before arriving in Turin, he lost the first edition of the Hellenic Championship to Novak Djokovic.
Prior to Athens, Alejandro Tabilo beat him in the Chengdu Open final. Earlier this year, Musetti played his career’s first Masters 1000 final, only to suffer a three-set defeat at the hands of Alcaraz. No player from either group has qualified for the semifinals. Group Bjorn Borg’s Sinner and Alexander Zverev are the only players in the draw who have the ATP Finals titles to their names.
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