Alcaraz finds his fury, dispatches Musetti

Beneath the closed roof on Court Philippe-Chatrier on Friday afternoon, the defending champion played second fiddle to Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti for the better part of two sets. 

Not to worry. 

Alcaraz turned on the power — and the style — as he stormed to victory to reach his second Roland-Garros final and stretch his tournament win streak to 13. With the momentum of the match firmly in Alcaraz’s hands after nearly three sets, Musetti began to suffer from a hamstring strain that would ultimately contribute to his demise. 

With Alcaraz in full flight and reeling off nine games on the trot, the Italian pulled the plug after two games in the fourth set, sending the contest to a premature end. 

Alcaraz will face the winner of Friday night’s blockbuster semi-final between Novak Djokovic and Jannik Sinner in Sunday’s men’s singles final in Paris. 

Story of the match

Musetti announced his presence early in the tilt, winning a gorgeous sequence in the third game by punching a slick volley into the open court. The Italian’s elevated play would be a recurring theme across the first two sets. 

Executing with clarity and his trademark elegance, Musetti warmed to the task and kept his nose ahead of Alcaraz for nearly two hours and two full sets. 

After nine straight holds in the opener, the seventh-ranked Italian made hay in the tenth game, breaking for the set as Alcaraz steered a forehand well wide: 6-4. 

Alcaraz, meanwhile, struggled to locate the breathtaking tennis that has made him a fan favourite in Paris. 

“He just doesn’t have any feel out there today,” opined Jim Courier, who was calling the match for TNT, as Alcaraz dumped a drop shot into the net in the first game of the second set. 

“He’s a little jittery, he hasn’t settled down,” added Andre Agassi, also in the booth. 

It wasn’t for lack of effort that the Spaniard struggled. Musetti, one of the few players who moves nearly as well as Alcaraz on the clay, seemed to have a riposte for every Alcaraz advance.

Alcaraz snagged two service breaks in set two; Musetti, keen to demonstrate he was in it for the long haul, broke back immediately on both occasions. 

A second-set tiebreak would prove an inflection point. Suddenly Alcaraz had more pop on his shots and he directed traffic with more authority.

Playing some of his most explosive tennis of the afternoon, he quickly earned five set points and converted the third, a vintage forehand squash shot that befuddled Musetti and raised the roof inside Court Philippe-Chatrier. 

One set apiece. But not for long. 

Now firing on all cylinders, Alcaraz put distance between himself and wobbling Musetti in the third set, reeling off the first five games. Musetti sought the attention of a trainer after the fifth game, and had his right hamstring attended to, but he elected not to tape it. 

Alcaraz’s fourth consecutive break of serve sealed the set; his fifth then took him to 2-0 in the fourth, and Musetti promptly retired the match, a bitter way for the 23-year-old to conclude his first career Roland-Garros semi-final, and his most successful clay-court season to date. 

Key stats

Musetti won just 10 points after the start of the second-set tiebreak, and just three points after he saw the trainer after the fifth game of the third set. 

Alcaraz made only 41 percent of his first serves in the opening set, but connected on at least 65 percent of first serves in sets two, three and four. The No.2 seed hit 34 winners against just 22 for Musetti. 

Alcaraz improves to 33-2 on the clay since the start of Roland-Garros last year, including 18-1 in Paris, with his only loss coming to Djokovic in last year’s Olympic gold medal match in Chatrier. 

The 22-year-old Alcaraz is the fifth-youngest player in the Open era to reach five major finals, older only than Mats Wilander, Bjorn Borg, Rafael Nadal and Boris Becker.

Alcaraz earned his 70th career Grand Slam match win in 82 total matches. In the Open Era, only Bjorn Borg and John McEnroe (81 each) have achieved 70 men’s singles wins in fewer Grand Slam matches.

What Alcaraz said

On winning via Musetti’s retirement: “It’s never easy to win a match like this. Lorenzo is a great player and he has had an incredible clay season. He is one of the few players that achieved at least the semi-finals in the biggest events on clay. That shows how incredible he is. I wish him all the best and a speedy recovery, and I’m pretty sure that we are going to enjoy his tennis pretty soon.” 

On how he became more free after the second set: “The first two sets were really tough. I had chances to break his serve and to be up in the match. I couldn’t make the most of them. He was playing great tennis. When I won the second set it was a little bit of relief and then in the third set I knew what I had to do from the beginning. 

“Just pushing him to the limits, trying to be aggressive and not letting him dominate the game. I was more calm, and I could see things more clearly.” 

On whether or not he will watch Djokovic v Sinner on Friday night: “For sure. I’m not going to miss it. Obviously one of the best matchups that we have in tennis right now. I’m going to watch it and enjoy, and obviously take tactics from that match. 

“I think we are all going to enjoy that match because they are going to play great tennis.”