Lorenzo Musetti the beat Stefanos Tsitsipas
Photo: KEYSTONE/EPA/SEBASTIEN NOGIER
Triple winner of the tournament and title holder in Monte-Carlo, the Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas (ATP 8) was eliminated on Friday in quarters. The Italian Lorenzo Musetti (16th) won 1-6 6-3 6-4.
The bronze medalist of the Paris Olympic Games won against a player who systematically beat him during their previous five duels on the ATP circuit.
Musetti will face Australian Alex de Minaur (10th) in the semi-finals on Saturday in the semi-finals, who swept the Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov (18th) 6-0 6-0 in a little less than three quarters of an hour earlier during the day.
Tightened despite the score of the first two sets, the match switched to the seventh game of the last act, when Musetti took the service of Tsitsipas on a double fault of the Greek to lead 4-3 then 5-3, before concluding on its service.
Musetti, encouraged by an Italian voice in voice on the Central Rainier-III Court, reached its first Masters 1000 semi-final at 23 years old, the most important tournaments on the male circuit after the four Grands Chelems.
He had failed in quarters during his two previous attempts, in 2022 on the hard courts of the Masters 1000 in Paris and in 2023 on the clay Monegasque.
Winner in early March of Dubai ATP 500 but eliminated in the 1st round of the Australian Open in January, Tsitsipas continues to live a mixed season and collected a sixth loss in a row against a top 20 on Friday.
His last victory against one of the 20 best players in the world dates back to August 2024, when he beat Argentinian Sebastian Baez (then 18th) during the Olympic tournament in Paris.
/ATS
