Jannik Sinner may be the big story for the host nation at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia, but don’t sleep on Lorenzo Musetti. It would not be the most unexpected development if the world if an all-Italian final is on the cards for Sunday in Rome.
Of course, Musetti still has a long way to go before he can think about the final–he certainly won’t be looking past a quarterfinal showdown against No. 2 seed Alexander Zverev on Wednesday night. Although Musetti is obviously the underdog, it is a matchup that has suited him just fine in the past. He leads the head-to-head series 2-1 and Zverev’s lone victory came via retirement at the 2022 Madrid Masters. Musetti won both of their 2024 encounters; 7-5, 7-5 in the quarterfinals of the Paris Olympics and 2-6, 7-6(5), 6-4 on the indoor hard courts of Vienna.
Since then, Zverev has gone in the wrong direction. The 28-year-old German is still ranked second, but that won’t be the case heading into Roland Garros if he either fails to defend his 2024 Rome title or Carlos Alcaraz wins his next match against Jack Draper. Zverev is a modest 16-8 dating back to the Australian Open final, although he has looked good this fortnight with straight-set wins over Camilo Ugo Carabelli, Vilius Gaubas, and Arthur Fils.
Musetti hasn’t been riding a roller-coaster like Zverev; he has been consistently stellar dating back to last summer. The Olympic bronze medalist and Wimbledon semifinalist boasts a 19-6 record this season and registers at a career-high ranking of No. 9 in the world. Musetti’s current clay-court swing already features a runner-up showing in Monte-Carlo and a semifinal run in Madrid, and now he is back in another Masters 1000 quarterfinal following straight-set defeats of Otto Virtanen, Brandon Nakashima, and Daniil Medvedev.
If the Zverev of February and March shows up, this match might not be competitive. If the Rome version of Zverev is on display, he will have a chance. Regardless, the edge goes to Musetti. The Italian has home-court advantage, has always been awesome on clay, and is in incredible form.
Pick: Musetti in 3
WWW?
Yes, Lorenzo in 3
Fluke picks as usuall
I’ve got a hunch that ZV wins this one….in 3
ouch!
Germania v Italia. The two European powerhouses going head to head, just like the old days!
congrats to me
And me. Over 100 points in my bracket.
I’ve got Musetti winning the whole thing , but seeing Sinner answering the question marks over his form, would change that now