Lorenzo Musetti capped his stunning week at the Tennis Napoli Cup on Sunday when the 20-year-old prevailed 7-6(5), 6-2 against Matteo Berrettini in an all-Italian championship match in Naples.
The fourth-seeded Musetti claimed a pulsating 82-minute opening set against his countryman by staying consistent to clinch the only point against serve in the tie-break. Moving a set ahead seemed to invigorate the #NextGenATP star to find an even higher level, and his clean hitting off both wings overwhelmed Berrettini in the second set as he accelerated to a two-hour, one-minute victory.
“It was a really tough first set,” said Musetti in his on-court interview. “Very long and [no breaks]. Matteo is [a competitor], he was not 100 per cent physically. His capacity to stay until the end, to fight until the end, was a big problem for me to solve.
“Today I think I played not the best tennis because I think we were both really emotional, really nervous and there was a lot of tension, but in the important moments I played better. It’s really nice to be here with my family, with the crowd, and it’s a really big win for me and an important moment for my career.”
Berrettini had struggled with a foot injury in his semi-final win against Mackenzie McDonald on Saturday but the World No. 16 looked to be moving well as he and Musetti played out a series of exhilarating early exchanges from the baseline to the delight of the home crowd. It was Musetti who maintained his level to take the opener, however, as a single Berrettii unforced error on his own serve at 3/3 in the tie-break proved decisive.
Musetti immediately took control of the second set by breaking for 1-0 in the second set and the the fourth seed never looked like relinquishing that advantage as he effectively manouevered the physically fading Berrettini around the court. He broke the big-serving second seed again in the seventh game and completed victory having won 85 per cent (35/41) of points behind his own first delivery.
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Musetti moved past Laslo Djere, Daniel Elahi Galan, Miomir Kecmanovic and Berrettini this week in Naples to clinch his second ATP Tour crown. He is the ninth player on Tour to win a title in 2022 without dropping a set.
“I think it was the perfect week,” said Musetti after his victory. “I didn’t lose a set so I’m really happy about that, and I’m really happy about the game I showed. Sometimes you have to work hard to bring success and consistency in my game, so I’m really proud of myself and my team.”
Having also reached the semi-finals on the indoor hard courts in Florence last week, Musetti carries significant momentum into the final weeks of the 2022 season. The Italian is currently third in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Milan and has already secured his spot at November’s Intesa Sanpaolo Next Gen ATP Finals for the second consecutive year.
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