Lorenzo won the round of 16 by beating Cerundolo and the pain: “I gritted my teeth, I also had cramps and the crowd gave me the strength to carry on. Matches like this can help me turn the season around”
After the match won in two hard-fought sets against Cerundolo, Lorenzo goes to sit down, covers his head with the towel and bursts into liberating tears. The tears continue to flow even when he is called to the center of the pitch by Diego Nargiso for the ritual interview. The 10 thousand spectators at the Centrale, who have never stopped supporting him, still encourage him with a stadium chorus. “I find it hard to speak,” says Musetti, who then regains his composure: “I didn’t know whether to go on the pitch or not, my physical condition is what it is, but in the end I did it. Thanks to everyone, mine are tears of joy.”
via crucis
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2026, with his retirement in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open against Djokovic, was a sort of via crucis. The injury to the ilio-psoas of the right leg forced Musetti to miss the South American trip. The return to Indian Wells immediately resulted in a defeat. Then he gave up Miami to carefully prepare for the clay season, where last year his performance was top 3. Defeat on his debut in Monte Carlo, fourth in Barcelona, eighth in Madrid, punctuating a difficult recovery. Lorenzo showed up in Rome, where he reached the semi-finals in 2025, still far from 100%.
cramps
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Even today, as in the debut match against Mpetshi-Perricard, the world number 9 took to the field with a bandage on his left thigh. This morning the sensations were not positive. Once on the court, “I suffered from the start – explains Carrarino -, I expected a very difficult match and so it was, against a friend who knows how to play very well on clay. I also had a bit of cramps, it wasn’t easy to find a way out, but I fought and the crowd helped me find the strength within myself to carry on. I think I handled the situation well, I didn’t finish 100%, but I’m already thinking about rest and the next match”. And again: “I really want to do well here. I’m really gritting my teeth, to find the right physical condition you have to go through these situations. I believe that a person like me needs this type of match much more than champagne tennis matches. These matches can change my season.”
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